DreamSpark gives students free access to professional-level developer and design tools from Microsoft. Before downloading you will need to create a Microsoft Live ID, and will also be asked for your NetID and password to verify student affiliation here at Duke. Once you have logged in and been authenticated, you will have access to the following tools at no charge:
Visual Studio 2008 Professional
Visual Studio 2005 Professional
Windows Server 2003 Standard
SQL Server 2005 Developer
SQL Server 2005 Express
Expression Studio
XNA Game Studio 2.0
XNA Creators Club Online
Visual C# 2005
Visual C++ 2005
Visual Basic 2005
Visual J# 2005
Visual Web 2005
Virtual PC
To get started all you need to do is visit https://downloads.channel8.msdn.com/Default.aspx.
Technical support is currently not provided for the products downloaded through the use of the DreamSpark program. For help getting started or with authentication, please contact the OIT Service Desk.
An FAQ for students is provided at https://downloads.channel8.msdn.com/FAQ/Students.aspx.