Choosing between VS 2005/2008/2010 for independent learning

Question

I am working helpdesk software support on our proprietary programs. Whenever I run into a bug, I am supposed to try and get as much info as possible so the developers can fix the source. I have a very limited programming background but we can access the source and try and get as close to possible so the devs won't give us too much grief when we report. The programs were written using C# 2005, ASP.NET, run using .NET 2.0, and on SQL 2005. I am going to purchase my own copy of SQL Developer and probably Visual Studio since the company doesn't consider me a developer and won't spring for this and won't give me the company time to learn it so I need to learn it at home.

What I want to know is - should I try to get the 2005 versions, get the current 2008 version, or start on the beta 2010 versions? Basically, if I learn all 2008/.NET 3.5/SQL 2008 or later, is there anything that will screw me up supporting older platforms - for example, not learning deprecated stuff because it is no longer in the newer versions?

10/31 - Clarifying my question - money isn't an object - SQL Dev is only $50 and I can get VS relatively cheaply. I'm not worried about the price. Just - if I learn the 2008 or 2010 versions of SQL/C#/ASP.NET, are there enough changes such that I'll either not understand something due to something being implemented differently? How much change has there been - not including stuff like LINQ/MVP/WP and other frameworks which obviously won't be in the old code?

Answer 1

I would recommend installing Visual Studio 2008 Express (Free). If you want to start getting into the latest and greatest just for personal learning, also install the 2010 beta.

Answer 2

It depends. If you are learning this solely to improve your ability to identify bugs in your software, learn the CURRENT language of said software, or you'll just annoy the devs more.

If you are learning for personal growth, learn the latest and (supposedly) greatest.