Microsoft have released the second beta of Visual Studio 2010 today, for MSDN
subscribers.
Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 and Dot Net framework 4 Beta 2 will be made
available to the general public on 21st October, with the final
launch date now being 22nd March 2010.
One major change with this release is the new packages, the team editions
have now been removed and there are only three main versions of Visual Studio
2010:
- Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate with MSDN. The
comprehensive suite of application life-cycle management tools for software
teams to help ensure quality results from design to deployment
- Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Premium with MSDN. A complete
toolset to help developers deliver scalable, high-quality applications
- Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Professional with MSDN. The
essential tool for basic development tasks to assist developers in implementing
their ideas easily
For an in-depth comparison of the features available with each version
Microsoft have produced a comparison
chart.
The new new pricing structure puts the costs at:
- Professional $1,199
- Premium $5,469
- Ultimate $11,924
Microsoft unveiled new benefits for MSDN subscribers, including these:
- Unlimited access to Visual Studio Team Foundation Server 2010
(upon release), a server product that drives down the
risks and costs of developing software by enhancing team collaboration
- Azure Development, which enables MSDN Premium subscribers
to develop on the Windows Azure platform (Microsoft’s cloud services platform)
with compute hours, storage, data transfers, SQL Azure databases and .NET
Services.
- Complimentary e-learning, up to 40 hours per year, per
subscriber
To help developers access the wealth of online resources in a more
streamlined fashion, Microsoft has also updated the MSDN Web site, which now
features an updated user interface, a faster version of the MSDN Library and
more community resources.
Those interested can download Beta 2 at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/default.aspx.