Microsoft Giving Away Developer Software

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According to the Associated Press, Microsoft is giving students free access to its most sophisticated tools for writing software and making media-rich Web sites.

The Redmond-based software maker said late Monday it will let students download Visual Studio Professional Edition, a software development environment; Expression Studio, which includes graphic design and Web site and hybrid Web-desktop programming tools; and XNA Game Studio 2.0, a video game development program.
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They've been doing this for years. It's called the MSDN Academic Alliance. I get most of Microsoft's library short of the core Office programs for free. All university students should check with their school to see if their part of it.
 
I've played with both products. I got them both for free through my school's MSDNAA program.
Neat things, especailly in Visual Studio. Expression isn't so great. Blend was fun to mess with, but I wont use it anytime soon.
 
Personally, I think this is great. Visual Studio is among my favorite IDEs, and although it always needs work on the performance side of things, it does a very good job at what it's supposed to do. Unfortunately, my school is not yet on that list, however, it is part of the MSDNAA.
 
I got vista business from MSAA for about 17 bucks, xp for about 14 bucks, and Visual studios 2005 for about 27. Saved me almost a grand in software.
 
Cyrilix said:
Personally, I think this is great. Visual Studio is among my favorite IDEs, and although it always needs work on the performance side of things, it does a very good job at what it's supposed to do. Unfortunately, my school is not yet on that list, however, it is part of the MSDNAA.
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Neither was mine. You can go through a simple 'validation' process, and you have access. I just had to wait about 2 hours for a validation email with a link to my software.
 
InorganicMatter said:
Anything to proliferate their technologies as much as possible. :rolleyes:
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Why not get the youngens an environment to work in for free? It would have solved a large learning curve issue from our last group of applicants here at work..
 
modi123 said:
Why not get the youngens an environment to work in for free? It would have solved a large learning curve issue from our last group of applicants here at work..
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Because it's not done for the benefit of students, it's done to get the world as addicted to Microsoft's products as possible.

Besides, young people need to start with a real programming language, not this virtual environment and framework garbage. C should be the required first-time language for programming students.
 
InorganicMatter said:
Because it's not done for the benefit of students, it's done to get the world as addicted to Microsoft's products as possible.

Besides, young people need to start with a real programming language, not this virtual environment and framework garbage. C should be the required first-time language for programming students.
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Have you ever used Visual Studio?
 
See this is the problem I see.

People always tell me why use M$ [sic] products when you can get free just as good alternatives. Then when Microsoft goes and makes their product free for some people, it really means that microsoft is trying to get people addicted to their product.

I see no win in this. They're an ass for selling their product at an outragous price, or they're an ass for making it (basically) free for some of us.
 
qkool said:
See this is the problem I see.

People always tell me why use M$ [sic] products when you can get free just as good alternatives. Then when Microsoft goes and makes their product free for some people, it really means that microsoft is trying to get people addicted to their product.

I see no win in this. They're an ass for selling their product at an outragous price, or they're an ass for making it (basically) free for some of us.
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Don't you know, Microsoft is the root of all evil, and everything they do is wrong and somehow meant to sucker you in, get you to pay money, or otherwise feel inadequate? Get with the times, man! :p
 
InorganicMatter said:
Because it's not done for the benefit of students, it's done to get the world as addicted to Microsoft's products as possible.

Besides, young people need to start with a real programming language, not this virtual environment and framework garbage. C should be the required first-time language for programming students.
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Umm... 95% of the work I've done with Visual Studio has been for C++ projects. The other 5% for C#.
 
I took the server 2003 because it saves me time and effort for building a lab machine for certs. Why not when it's free? :D
 
tgabe213 said:
Neither was mine. You can go through a simple 'validation' process, and you have access. I just had to wait about 2 hours for a validation email with a link to my software.
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I'm in Canada, so unfortunately, I have to go through anothey process -- guess I'll just wait for it. That is a good suggestion for every other US school that isn't listed though (which there are probably hundreds and hundreds of).
 
Day 3 of MS Career :)

So far so good. Doesn't seem like an awful company. Most of the people I've been around are working hard to make things better. I'm in the tools side of MS, so I'm all about Visual Studio, Team System, and Team Foundation Server. From what I can gather, it's not a horrible dev environment.

And Microsoft is the company that seems to lose to matter what..... MS charges to much... Okay, let's give some Dev tools away..... Oh MS is just a dev drug dealer trying to get the kids hooked.....

Ah the challenges, I love it!
 
gbed said:
Day 3 of MS Career :)

So far so good. Doesn't seem like an awful company. Most of the people I've been around are working hard to make things better. I'm in the tools side of MS, so I'm all about Visual Studio, Team System, and Team Foundation Server. From what I can gather, it's not a horrible dev environment.

And Microsoft is the company that seems to lose to matter what..... MS charges to much... Okay, let's give some Dev tools away..... Oh MS is just a dev drug dealer trying to get the kids hooked.....

Ah the challenges, I love it!
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You better be working on making that Intellisense faster. :p
 
I'm working on getting my school to get involved in that. I'm not paying for some international ID. :(
 
InorganicMatter said:
Because it's not done for the benefit of students, it's done to get the world as addicted to Microsoft's products as possible.

Besides, young people need to start with a real programming language, not this virtual environment and framework garbage. C should be the required first-time language for programming students.
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If the students you speak of are going to work in most of the sciences fields “C” anything won’t get them hired.

Astronomy and biology and all associated fields are stuck in FORTRAN and have been forever. They won’t change, period.

The very Folding @ Home program we here at the [H] support in a huge way is totally dependant on FORTRAN and all of it’s associated old world add-ons.

The space program is lost in FORTRAN as well. Virtually all planet tracking etc is FORTRAN.

Not ranting at you at all, but this is one of those push button subjects for me.;)
 
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