1. First of all, VB.NET provides managed code execution that runs under the Common Language Runtime (CLR), resulting in robust, stable and secure applications. All features of the .NET framework are readily available in VB.NET. 2. VB.NET is totally object oriented. This is a major addition that VB6 and other earlier releases didn't have. 3. The .NET framework comes with ADO.NET, which follows the disconnected paradigm, i.e. once the required records are fetched the connection no longer exists. It also retrieves the records that are expected to be accessed in the immediate future. This enhances Scalability of the application to a great extent. 4. VB.NET uses XML to transfer data between the various layers in the DNA Architecture i.e. data are passed as simple text strings. 5. Error handling has changed in VB.NET. A new Try-Catch-Finally block has been introduced to handle errors and exceptions as a unit, allowing appropriate action to be taken at the place the error occurred thus discouraging the use of ON ERROR GOTO statement. This again credits to the maintainability of the code.