The Mono Project which aims at providing an open source implementation of Microsoft’s .Net framework has released it version 2.0 which includes an open source flavour of C#3.0 and LINQ.

For the uninitiated the Mono project was formed to bring skills of Windows developers to Linux Desktops and have received wide support amongst the developer community despite drawing criticism from traditional Linux users.

The new release focuses on improving runtime performance and incorporates significant advancements in reducing memory footprints and object locking.

Other notable improvement includes refined implementations of .NET DataGridView in Windows.Forms along with support for flow layouts.

The buzz around Mono is growing with it being adopted by leading software companies and a range of powerful desktop applications for Linux being built on it including the likes of Banshee and Tomboy.

The new version is already drawing attention in Linux developer forums with many anticipating it to receive wide support from third party application developers.