Whatz you think, Microsoft is espensive?

I am visting Msdn download center then minute ago, for get a copy of Visual Studio.net beta 2, and i be disconcerted about Microsoft politics:
Only msdn subscriber, and starting from professional (699 $) can download a beta?
I have to pay for do someting that is usefull only for them?
( The Visual studio.net beta licanses said that i CAN NOT use it for commercial purpose!!! i can not selling whatz i building whit it?!!)
They are crazy or not?
I think thy start to become VERRY espensive.......Specialy whit the beginners....(thah don't know if can really selling own software)
Whatz you think about?

I don't know their rational, but development companies that want to stay on the bleeding edge of technology will purchase this software, even at the high cost.

These are also the people I think Microsoft wants testing their software since they are experienced developers with real life problems that need solved.

It isn't only useful to Microsoft, the people that use it from the Beta stage have an advantage when it gets officially released as they have been developing in it since the beginning.

I'm not saying I'm right, but these could be some reasons Microsoft does what it does.

Michael Woolsey

I think the BIGEST reason is that they whant make More monney the match they can.....and power the match they can.

i payed alot for my visual basic

It is expensive for beginners. However the real cost is not the software, but the time and money to get to a high level of skill so that you can get a job.

For example you might pay $2000 for visual studio. However it might take a year of practice, at least, before you get good enough to get a job. Which is cheaper, $2000, or a year of your time?

Well a year of learning in your own time probably doesn't have that much of a cost - unless the wife leaves you because you never got round to putting those shelves up.

But then when a new version of the development software is released after that year and you have to re-invest another year learning new features and technology, along with the cost of the updgrade then it can be very expensive.

People learning to program from scratch would be better advised to use a free or cheap language - I reckon 80% of the effort involved in learning to program is to teach your brain to think in a structured way, 10% is teaching yourself to be rigourous in your testing, 5% is learning to comment and only 5% is the actual language (hope that adds up :) )

Once you are profeccient in one language it's fairly easy to move to another.

VS.NET beta 2 is not $699, you only have to pay for the shipping ~$15.....

go back to the site and take another look...I just got my copy

The 699 $ vas for the Professional MSDN license, becose the Library License not alloew you to download any beta,......
They can allow download also whit the Library Msdn license.............
I think that if they do much more peoplo buy it
Especialy the beginners......

You could buy the Beta 1 CD without the MSDC subscription. I did it myself. I don't know if they changed it for Beta 2, but I doubt it.

I didn't download it, I had it shipped to me on CD, that may make a difference.

Michael