Due to the number of comments I have had on this post, I just wanted to confirm what products will be available under DreamSpark for students.

MSDN Subscriber Downloads: August 15^th, 2012

Visual Studio 2012 and Windows 8 are available as of, August 15^th, on MSDN Subscriber Downloads to DreamSpark Subscribers.

To confirm DreamSpark Premium Subscription Program Administrators may follow these steps to get immediate access to the software:

1) Visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/downloads

2) Sign in with the Windows Live ID associated with their DreamSpark Subscription

3) Search for the product of choice and click on “Download”

4) To acquire product keys the administrator may click on “Product Keys” and “Get Key” for applicable SKUs.

a. Note: Not all Visual Studio 2012 SKUs require a product key.

5) The file will be downloaded in .iso format.

a. Click here for instructions on how to use .iso files.

DreamSpark.com and ELMS WebStore: August 25^th, 2012 for student downloads

Please see the SKU Availability Matrix below for specifics on which products will be available on DreamSpark.com, and through DreamSprk Premium ELMS Institutional WebStores.  The SKUs highlighted in red will be available starting August 25^th, with the remaining releasing in a week thereafter, To confirm, Windows desktop operating systems are only available to students at education institutions which have purchased a DreamSpark premium subscription for STEM based disciplines .

Note: these SKUs will be available in the following languages on the 25^th, English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese-Brazil, Russian, Chinese Simplified, and Chinese Traditional, with rolling releases of additional languages following on a week after:  

For Visual Studio SKUs a separate Portuguese-Brazil language pack will be required, and will also be available on the 25^th.

Product SKU Availability Matrix

August the 1st marked a important day for academic institutions wishing to use/teach Windows 8 in the next academic session.

Windows 8 reached Release to Manufacturing, Windows 8 is now being issued to all PC OEM and manufacturing partners.

More details http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2012/08/01/releasing-windows-8-august-1-2012.aspx

• August 15th: Developers will be able to download the final version of Windows 8 via your MSDN subscriptions and DreamSpark Premium for institutional administrators
• August 15th: IT professionals testing Windows 8 in organizations will be able to access the final version of Windows 8 through your TechNet subscriptions.
• August 16th: Education institutions with existing Microsoft Software Assurance for Windows will be able to download Windows 8 Enterprise edition through the Volume License Service Center (VLSC), allowing you to test, pilot and begin adopting Windows 8 Enterprise within your organization.
• August 16th: Microsoft Partner Network members will have access to Windows 8.
• August 20th: Microsoft Action Pack Providers (MAPS) receive access to Windows 8.
• August 25th - 31st: Students will be able to download these via DreamSpark Premium institutional ELMS stores
• September 1st: Volume License customers without Software Assurance will be able to purchase Windows 8 through Microsoft Volume License Resellers and Academic License Resellers.

So over the next few days/weeks you will see the availability of exciting new models of PCs loaded with Windows 8 and online availability of Windows 8 on October 26, 2012.

More details http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2012/08/01/windows-8-has-reached-the-rtm-milestone.aspx

Developers can visit the Windows Dev Center to get access to all the tools and resources they need to design, build, and sell apps in the Windows Store. While all apps during the preview phases were free, at RTM developers can begin charging for apps, so those with access to RTM bits will begin to see paid apps appear in the Windows Store.

Also, Windows Server 2012 has been released to manufacturing.

On September 4.  That’s when Windows Server 2012 will be generally available for evaluation and download by all customers around the world.  On that day we will also host an online launch event where our executives, engineers, customers and partners will share more about how Windows Server 2012 can help organizations of all sizes realize the benefits of what we call the Cloud OS.  You will be able to learn more about the features and capabilities and connect with experts and peers.  You’ll also be able to collect points along the way for the chance to win some amazing prizes. You don’t want to miss it.  Visit this site to save the date for the launch event.

More details http://blogs.technet.com/b/windowsserver/archive/2012/08/01/windows-server-2012-released-to-manufacturing.aspx

Exam 70-480: Programming in HTML5 with JavaScript and CSS3, you complete the requirements for the following certification(s):

counts as credit toward the following certification(s):

• MCSD: Web Applications
• MCSD: Windows Store Apps using HTML5

Use code : HTMLJMP for a free exam credit, the exam will normally cost £99.

After passing 70-480, you will be given a certification for Microsoft Specialist and this is one of the three exams which will ultimately certify you as MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solution Developer).

MCSD is one tier above MCSA (Associate) and is a respectable title in the field of web development.

Exam registration: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/exam.aspx?id=70-480
Link for free online training: https://www.microsoftvirtualacademy.com/tracks/developing-html5-apps-jump-start?o=1943
Link to MCSD page: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/mcsd.aspx

This offer is available for a limited time only until March 2013 and is open to IT Academy members also so all students undertaking a course can sit a free exam at  any prometric testing centre.

A large number of the UK’s Universities and colleges have been using XNA since 2004 within gaming course curricula on Windows, XBox and Windows Phone. We have a huge set of Free curricula resources for  XNA  game development at http://www.microsoft.com/faculty

XNA over the last 7 years has provide a number of students and indie game developers with an impressive content pipeline, game assets, load functionality, animation, math, sound and user input tracking via gamepad, mouse, keyboard and touch with game logic organized in a straightforward game loop architecture, more recently we have also added curricula for XNA and Kinect.

Within education XNA has been a huge driver for a number of students and developers who wanted to learn how to create games. XNA along with Visual Studio made it as easy as File –> New –> XNA Game Studio Project and you were off developing.

Since Windows 8 is built on the strong foundation of Windows 7, any app built for Windows will run in the Windows 8 desktop environment. This includes apps based on XNA, Win32, .NET, WPF, Silverlight, etc. 

Windows 8 also introduces a new type of app called a Metro Style App for developers that wish to make their app available in the Windows 8 Store, for free or for sale. Using Visual Studio 2012, you have a language choice of C++, XAML with C#, VB or C++, or HTML5/JS to create a Metro Style App.

Using the XNA Framework is not a choice for building a Metro Style App. Official Microsoft guidance on game development is documented here.

Windows 8 allows you too build highly immersive games using HTML5/JS, XAML/C#, XAML/VB or C++ and DirectX.

However a number of you have already stressed too me, that you and your students have been developing with XNA and have an existing code base, or would like to import existing XNA games too Windows 8 your only option it would seem is running as a desktop app.

This is where MonoGame comes in…

MonoGame is an Open Source implementation of the Microsoft XNA 4 Framework. The goal is to allow XNA developers on Windows & Windows Phone to port their games to the iOS, Android, Mac OS X, Linux with both PlayStation Suite and Windows 8 support currently under development.

NOTE : This project is not linked with Microsoft or any of it subsidiaries. It is a non-profit, open source project. MonoGame is licensed under the Microsoft Public License (Ms-PL)

MonoGame provides a cross platform XNA Framework implementation for XNA developers who want to take their code to non-Microsoft platforms as well as the ability, to target Windows 8.

MonoGame for Windows 8  you can take your XNA code and with a recompile and some additional features too simply create a Metro Style App for example Armed within the Windows Store uses MonoGame. I have too stress MonoGame is still under development and so any use of it should come with a note of advice to stay on top of that effort.

In order to provide a complete implementation of XNA on Windows 8, MonoGame leverages SharpDX , an open-source project delivering the full DirectX API for managed code (.NET) and Windows 8 (WinRT). SharpDX is an open-source project, free of charge available under the following MIT License.

Want to start developing for Windows Phone, but not yet taken the plunge?

Then this free day of training is the quickest way to find out all you need to know.

The Windows Phone Camps will show you how to learn and build Windows Phone apps from scratch. You'll be guided through the development process with a series of hands-on workshops and short tutorials, with some seasoned experts to give you one on one help when you need it. There'll be topics like; Introduction to Windows Phone Development, Controls & Control Toolkit, Execution Model, Storing Data, Launchers & Choosers, Accessing Cloud Services, Marketplace & Submission. Also, there will be informal Mango tutorial sessions on offer covering topics such as Multi-tasking, Debugging & Profiling, Motion API, Advertising SDK and Sockets. There's even an introductory design session to help you make your app look its best. Just pick the workshops that are most useful for you and work at your own pace.

Once you've got the basics, you’ll be off and running and ready to develop your own apps. You can work on your own projects with assistance from our Windows Phone MVPs, and of course there's the all-important opportunity to meet up with likeminded devs.

The camp kicks off at 9am and finish at 6pm. By registering and attending, you will receive (fanfare please) an exclusive Windows Phone Design Guide Sketch Pad as well as your own customized Hit & Run Windows Phone Camp T-shirt.

Spaces are limited, so register your place in the Windows Phone Camp today!

• London - Saturday 17 September
• Manchester - Saturday 24 September

Got a question? You might find the answer below...

How much do I need to know about Windows Phone to attend this camp?

You don't need any prior experience or knowledge about Windows Phone or app development to attend. The purpose of the camp is to provide you with the basic skills and knowledge to get started with learning about Windows Phone app development.

Who can attend these camps?

Academics, Students, developers, hobbyist, technology enthusiasts. Everyone is welcome! All we ask is that you are ready and keen to learn about developing apps for Windows Phone.

How much does it cost to attend this camp?

Your luck's in - it's FREE.

What do I need to prepare in advance to make the most of this camp?

There are a basic set of things you should prepare before attending the camp. This includes bringing your own suitable laptop with the Windows Phone Developer tools installed (these are free), preferably the latest version of the tools.

It would also be useful if you could read the following documentation:

• Getting Started with Windows Phone Development
• User Experience Design Guidelines for Windows Phone

If you have a Windows Phone please bring it with you.

Are you holding these camps elsewhere in the country?

Yes, this is a series of Windows Phone Camps kicking off around the country. Follow us on Twitter (@ukmsdn) to see where we’re visiting next.

What if I've registered already and can't make it on the day?

Please let us know as soon as you can if you can't make the camp as there will be plenty of people who are keen to take your spot. Please respect the trainers and your fellow delegates by turning up if you've registered and committed. Thanks!

Who are Hit & Run?

They're do cool live on-site event screen-printing. You'll get the chance to create your very own t-shirt with your unique design at the end of the camp.

What’s the Windows Phone Design Sketch Pad?

In the spirit of highlighting good design, we intend to provide each attendee with an exclusive Windows Phone design sketch pad with Windows Phone design guidelines as well as open spaces and templates to sketch your next big Windows Phone app idea. Great stuff!

Register at the event of your choice below. Go on. You know you want to.

London - Saturday 17 September

Manchester - Saturday 24 September

Windows 8 RTM is available for developers and new developer content based upon RTM is now available in the Windows Dev Center: http://dev.windows.com.

The Windows 8 RTM is available for developers blog details how to get a 90 day evaluation version of Windows 8 RTM if you’re not part of TechNet, MSDN or DreamSpark Premium for institutional administrators.

The Windows Dev Center, now contains brand new overviews and migration guides for apps built on RP as well as..

• Developer downloads – This single page gives access to all of the downloads you need to build apps, including Windows 8 RTM, Visual Studio Express 2012, design assets, code samples, and additional SDKs and tools.
• Design resources – All Windows 8 design resources are located at design.windows.com. See case studies, category guidance, and get a new downloadable version of the UX guidelines for Windows 8 apps.
• Developer content – The ‘Docs’ section of the Windows Dev Center is updated for RTM including more detailed API docs, new How-to articles, a new section for developing apps with C++ and DirectX, and many more samples.
• Selling content – Find the Windows Store markets, how to price apps, and the latest versions of the Windows Store Agreements including the App Certification Requirements.
• Community content – Access to developer forums, blogs, Dev Camps, and local event listings

The Windows engineering and Windows Store teams are blogging regularly at the following sites

· Windows 8 app developer blog: Get coding and design best practices and tips, and updates on events and offers for developers.

· Windows Store for developers blog: Get all the latest news on doing business in the Windows Store.

Over the past few days I have had a few questions re how does a University go about installing Enterprise apps onto Windows 8 machines without having to setup Microsoft LiveIDs on each of the machines,

As your all aware from the Consumer preview, applications are installed via the Microsoft Store, authentication to the store is based upon your Microsoft LiveID. As a consumer you simply click on the store icon and use the Windows 8 Store to get an application onto Windows 8 Consumer Preview.

However if you are an Enterprise looking to get Metro applications onto your employees/students or lab Windows 8 desktops then you will likely want to do it more directly.

Which is where “sideloading” fits in.

Microsoft Technet has detailed documentation on Windows 8 Sideloading to add and remove line-of-business (LOB) Metro style apps

In brief:

• App must be cryptographically signed
• App can only be installed on a computer that trusts the signing certificate
• Group Policy must have the Allow all trusted applications to install setting.
• Computer must be domain joined to run the app (not needed for install)

At which point installing an app is as simple as

add-appxpackage C:\app1.appx

Additionally you can also remove apps via this process

Remove-appxpackage C:\app1.apx

More details on the Windows Store can be found here

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsstore/

And Building Windows 8 blog

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/

Channel 9 is home base online for technical know how, how to’s and tips and tricks.

Channel 9 is used by millions of Developers worldwide each month through videos, how to articles and events.

We are excited to announce that the team has just released a Channel 9 application in the Windows 8 App Store. 

So Install the application today on the Windows 8 Consumer Preview and easily browse the latest content on Channel 9, share content with your friends and view content on any of your Play To Enabled devices. 

To find the app, Search the Windows 8 App store for Channel 9.

Basic considerations

Typically, you develop an application for Windows Phone 7 by using Microsoft Silverlight  and one of the managed programming languages—usually C# or XNA.

There are two main Windows Store app development approaches that you can use when migrating your Windows Phone 7 app: XAML, and JavaScript with HTML5. You develop Windows Store apps using C++, C#, or Visual Basic by using one of those languages with XAML, whereas you develop Windows Store apps using JavaScript with JavaScript, CSS, and HTML5 along with the Windows Library for JavaScript.

Porting to a Windows Store app using XAML

A Windows Store app using C++, C#, or Visual Basic, using XAML, is the preferred model for ports from Windows Phone 7. If you are familiar with Silverlight, you can port to a Windows Store app using XAML by using familiar languages like C# or Visual Basic, and a similar set of UI elements and APIs.

For more detail about porting a Windows Phone 7 application to XAML, read Migrating a Windows Phone 7 app to XAML.

Porting to a Windows Store app using JavaScript

A Windows Store app using JavaScript is another model for Windows Phone 7 ports, and may be better suited for simple UI-based apps or to full-screen web apps or clients.

However if your a game developer then you can move your existing Windows Phone XNA using Monogame.

Porting to Windows Store app using MonoGame

For some background you can read these posts:

• Windows 8, XNA and MonoGame – Part 1, Overview
• Windows 8, XNA and MonoGame - Part 2, Getting Started
• Windows 8, XNA and MonoGame - Part 3, Getting Windows 8 Store Ready

During the ThreeThing Game event, Dean Ellis @InfSpaceStudios  talked through the porting of a one of the teams Windows Phone game, Shear Carnage to Windows 8, the initial port took 7mins 47seconds, which is pretty impressive stuff!

Some of the key features, the team now need to work on now to get the app store ready is..

• In app advertisement
• Windows 8 Store app contracts and charms settings to allow the tweeting and sharing of results
• Development of a online leader board
• A ensuring the app functions is both landscape and portrait modes.

Overall this is pretty stunning for existing Windows Phone developers taking existing or new phone apps to both the Windows Phone Marketplace and Windows 8 Store.

New Updates - What’s new

AppHub Integration: Linking your DreamSpark Account with a Microsoft Live ID

I’m very excited to inform you that we’ve completed our “AppHub Integration: Linking DreamSpark Account with Live ID” 

This will now dramatically improve the experience of those students that were having difficulties with App Hub registration.

With the update to DreamSpark students and educators create a new DreamSpark account that is not a Windows Live ID. However for students who wish to produce application for Xbox or Windows Phone require a Windows Live ID, to create apphub accounts via http://create.msdn.com.

We have now enabled the system, to enable educators or students to map their DreamSpark account to new or existing Windows Live ID. 

Here is the workflow:

- Student/Educator visits the page https://www.dreamspark.com/Product/Product.aspx?ProductId=26 and sees [Map your Live ID] button enabled and [Register on AppHub] button disabled.

- Student/Educator Clicks on [Map your Live ID] button.

- Student/Educator Sign in on DreamSpark site with their Verified account (or get the account verified).

- Student/Educator then logs in using Windows Live ID account.

- Student/Educator is shown the message “Are you sure you want your map your DreamSpark login (name@university.com) with your Windows Live ID (myname@hotmail.com) with [Ok] and [Cancel] buttons.

- Student/Educator clicks on [Ok] button a Accounts will be mapped a User automatically signed out from Live ID account à User will be redirected to the page https://www.dreamspark.com/Product/Product.aspx?ProductId=26 with [Map your Live ID] button disabled and [Register on AppHub] button enabled.