Microsoft® .NET can best be described as the initiative that will allow the Internet to be the basis of a new operating system. It frees us from the constraints of hardware by making user data available from the Internet. .NET is important to end users because it makes their information accessible across all devices. It is also important to developers because it will change the way they develop applications by allowing them to hook into Web Services. Simply put, Microsoft® .NET is Microsoft's strategy for delivering software as a service.