Enrico,
If you compare bcc32.exe with cl.exe they are basically the same (quite similar, as they are the compilers). The libraries and the header files are almost identical, The same applies to the linkers, so whats the difference ?
Lets say you want to use a low level debugger ? I just need a C/C++ debugger. A good one. Visual Studio one works really fine and you can get it for free.
And the Visual Studio profiler is great. Yesterday I was analizing FWH apps with it and getting real valuable info.
Sadly Borland dropped the "easy" way, not proving an easy to download compiler, free, that everybody could use. Now if you want it, you have to install something huge (try it and you will get really scared about it). Incredibly Microsoft has become simpler on this, and Borland lost its simplicity.