Microsoft has just released the Release Candidate version of Visual Studio 2010 for public download. You can now download and try out Visual Studio 2010 RC and .NET Framework 4 RC before the final version which is due to hit retail in this first quarter of 2010.

Microsoft has just released Silverlight 4 based facebook client for both Windows and Mac OS X. Back in April last year, Microsoft showed off a proof of concept facebook client which was made using facebook’s Open Stream API on Silverlight but unfortunately that never saw the light of the day. After a long wait, they have finally released a fully working client for users running Windows and OS X – with full capability to run it out-of-the-browser.

Microsoft today has released an update to its Software Development Kit (SDK) for the most popular social networking site, Facebook. With Microsoft SDK for Facebook Platform 3.0, developers can build rich Facebook applications using Silverlight, WPF (Windows Presentation Foundation), ASP.NET, ASP.NET MVC and Windows Forms. The SDK contains samples, controls, templates, and help documentation for implementing a simple Facebook Connect functionality, to a fully functional desktop, mobile or a web application. According to a Microsoft spokesperson: “the goal is to enable .NET developers to quickly and easily leverage the various features of the Facebook Platform.”.

Microsoft has just released Beta 2 milestone of the next version of Visual Studio to its MSDN subscribers. Testers who are enrolled in MSDN subscription program can now download and try out Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 and .NET Framework 4 Beta 2 before its public availability, which is scheduled for later this week.
Visual Studio 2010 is a monstrous and the most awaited release which is surely set to have a big impact on Microsoft platform developers in a positive way.

When working with WPF/Silverlight in Blend, it is quite irritating having to actually switch between Visual Studio and Blend throughout the course of the project by opening the project from its folder location again and again. I bet you might have wondered atleast once whether there was a way to open your project in Blend directly through Visual Studio!

Today, Microsoft has finally shipped the final version of Expression Studio 3 and it can now be downloaded from Microsoft Download Center. Expression Studio 3 was announced alongside Silverlight 3 at a recently held launch event in San Francisco.

Tired of the usual look of your buttons in WPF? Do you want a glossy-looking button with glass shine and glow effect as soon as you move the mouse cursor over the button?
Its just six easy steps away … Follow the tutorial below and give a fresh look to your apps.

Last week, I posted a tutorial on how to save and retrieve images using SQL Server and WPF. This is an extension to that article. In my previous article, the images were displayed in the image box as soon as its name was selected from the list box. In this tutorial the picture will be displayed from the database as soon as you the speak the name of the picture.

Microsoft has finally rolled out the final bits Silverlight 3 along with full version of Expression Studio 3 for creating RIA (Rich Internet Applications). If you haven’t already discovered the new features in Silverlight 3, here is a list of all the new controls, features and functionality that is added within the Silverlight 3.

Well yes you have finally found it! A complete tutorial on how to save and retrieve images from the SQL Server 2008 database in a C# WPF application. Everything has been kept simple so that even beginners can understand. However, if posed with any problem, questions are always welcomed!

Special promotion offer on Expression Studio is back! Just received an email from Renee Yong, the product manager for Microsoft Expression in the US, enlightening me about the special 50% discount on all SKUs of Microsoft Expression 2 products for a limited time only.

One of the easiest and the most common ways to make a reflective surface is through the use of visual brushes and opacity masks. In this step-by-step tutorial, I have attempted to teach the absolute beginners how to make an image reflection in WPF and giving a 3D feel to it.

XNA Game Studio 3.1 is go! and it brings support for the new features in Xbox 360 NXE – Xbox LIVE Avatars, Xbox LIVE Party features, Video playback and more!

The Beta bits of Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 were released yesterday to MSDN subscribers. Visual Studio 2010 is designed in a rich and modern way to make it easier for both the developers and designers to build innovative applications in a more natural way.

Microsoft today has released Visual Studio 2010 Beta 1 and .NET Framework 4.0 to its MSDN subscribers. Visual Studio 2010 is a monstrous and the most awaited release which is surely set to have a big impact on Microsoft platform developers in a positive way.

If you are a regular developer of WPF and Silverlight based application then you must be aware of XAML – A XML based standard language created by Microsoft which is used in Windows Presentation Foundation / Silverlight stack of .NET Framework 3.0 and above.

In his keynote address at the MIX 09 conference at the The Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas, Scott Guthrie, the Corporate Vice President of the .NET Developer Platform at Microsoft announced the beta availability of Silverlight 3 along with a Preview version of Expression Blend which enables us to develop Rich Internet Applications (RIA) using the newly released Silverlight 3 Beta 1.

Scott Guthrie has announced the availability of Windows Azure Tools for Microsoft Visual Studio March 2009 CTP in his keynote address at MIX conference in Vegas.

Well folks, Microsoft has already rolled out the Beta version of Silverlight 3. Silverlight 3 was expected to be announced by Scott Guthrie, Corporate Vice President of the .NET Developer Platform in his keynote today at MIX 09 in Las Vegas.

The General Manager of Visual Studio Developer Division has unveiled the new WPF-based UI of the upcoming Visual Studio 2010. One of the biggest visual change which Microsoft is trying to bring into this 2010 release of Visual Studio is that they are trying to completely redesign the Visual Studio editor shell – bringing in a rich WPF-based UI.