Hi, #3, no, WSS is not about an IDE like CVS, Sourceforge or even VSS...it is also free and is one of many features for Windows Server 2003. While it, and the webparts one can create for use in it, do integrate well with the .NET IDE/VSS, it is not about team or collaborative development - it is about productivity, information sharing and inter/intra-team collaboration.
There are native connections to Office - most especially 2003 and Exchange - again, most especially EXCH 2003 Server.
As regards its use...it is really just a matter of ones' imagination and what business requirements/processes one is trying to satisfy and to what level one wishes to integrate other components. By itself, WSS is pretty powerful, flexible and even fun to work with. As part of enabling secure team collaboration no matter what kind of team, or how long that team is formed for or for what purpose, WSS can be used as an individually customized [based upon LDAP log in and AD], tool through which all kinds of live information can be delivered - SQL Reporting Services add a lot to this and make it possible to quickly and easily build business intelligence products based upon data exisiting in just about any form or place in an organization. WSS is most especially valuable to small businesses with limited budgets and is worth some exploration.
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