Most professional developers I know who use VS2008 use it in the following way.

They hand code the minimum amount of html in the "source" view of the "aspx" page editor.  BUT they do all of their "coding" in the code behind file that (aspx.vb or aspx.cs)

As a PHP developer you are probably used to mixing your html and your php code in the same file, as PHP is a parsed "dynamic" language.  .NET languages are compiled, for the most part and use a model whereby most pages are built from 2 or 3 files.  The idea is to keep the code separate from the layout, so that in theory a graphic designer could work with the aspx page to design the layout - using a tool like Expression (similar to Dreamweaver) and a programmer would work with the associated code file in Visual Studio.

While Visual Studio has improved its design support - it is most powerful dealing with the classes in your application.

If you want a comparison - Visual Studio is more like Eclipse than Dreamweaver - Dreamweaver is a design tool with minmal support for "script".

I would suggest you get hold of Visual Web Developer - its free - and gives you an intro into what Visual Studio can do for you.

Cheers for the info ,I feel like I'm in the picture now and I'll therrefore be using Visual Studio, if I need to.  I don't reckon that there's an option anyway, as the code, as mentioned, needs to be compiled. 

I'll still use my text editor for PHP though.  I don't use it for snobbery reasons, it's just how I was forced to learn it and it works for me.  As regards productivity, most of what I write is either using previously wirtten classes or just cut and pasted from previous work, apart from all the CSS + HTML, maybe.  Is there an easier way to do this?  I am open-minded.

Cheers.

Jonny:

Let's clarify something, and this confuses a lot of people starting with DNN.  You DO NOT need to compile DNN, or a module you write for that matter, when working with ASP.Net 2.0 or above.  You DO NOT need to get and install the source version of DNN either.  Install the "Install Package" to get started and with it you will still be able to develop your own custom modules if you wish.  By the way, the DNN core is actually pre-compiled using the "old fashion" architecture of ASP.Net 1.1, or WAP for Web Application Project.  The new way of doing things is WSP or Web Site Project.  The latter does not apply to the core itself but to the modules you develop.  With WSP the module's code is automagically compiled whenever you make a change and connect to the site.  This is much faster than having to compile the whole core project every time.  Like everything else in life, there are pros and cons for both of this approaches (and as many opinions) depending on what it is that you want to do.  See the article in the following link for a good comparison: http://forums.asp.net/p/996852/1306168.aspx#1306168.  There are many other articles out there that compare WAP with WSP but basically, if you want to develop modules and sell them without code, you need to do WAP, if you are an enterprise developer with no need to distribute your module in DLL form without code, WSP is much easier to deal with.

Good luck.

Carlos