Any programmer worth their salt maintains Java and Javascript fluency. But, if you aim to fill a gap in the market, then consider adding Visual Basic fluency to your repertoire. Here''s why:

When it comes to the latest programming languages & trends in today market, Visual Basic is the language programmers loathe but Microsoft loves. Microsoft may cling to VB for sentimental reasons or because they fear change. Regardless, VB remains an integral part of Visual Studio''s language suite alongside C++, C# and others.

Like it or not, VB can do everything. At its heart, VB is an object-oriented, data-driven language. With the rise of Big Data and increasingly powerful databases, fluency in VB means that developers have access to a greater range of coding maneuvers which equates to a greater range of problem solving techniques.

When optimized, VB creates smaller, faster, applications. VB borrows objects from other applications, integrates text and graphics while ActiveX "provides visual tools for defining complex database queries." All this with minimal use of code.

Like other languages, VB is going open-source. Visual Basic architect Anders Hejlsberg explains, “We’re trying to engage the community. There are a lot of smart people out there. We’ll look at pull requests from the community just like we do our own ideas.”

The Microsoft team believes that Visual Basic is a strong language capable of providing strong solutions to data management and business applications. Now, Microsoft aims to leverage community engagement into creating a more usable language.

What this means to developers is that the language is still in play, for everything from user interface design to databases. While other developers plan to drop VB, it might prove useful to pick it up because it isn''t going away.

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