http://www.news.com/8301-13860_3-9873185-56.html?part=rss&tag=feed&subj=BeyondBinary
Microsoft wants more students using its software tools and it
thinks it has hit on the right business model.
It's going to give away its software.
Starting this week, college students in 10 countries will be
able to get Microsoft's Visual Studio and several other programs
for free as part of an effort dubbed DreamSpark. Over the next
year, Microsoft plans to offer the program worldwide for college
and high school students.
In addition to giving away its Visual Studio tools, Microsoft is
also providing no-charge access to its Expression Web design tools
and its XNA studio for developing Xbox 360 software. Microsoft
already provides discounted academic versions of its software, as
well as a free
"express" version of Visual Studio. Students can also get free
copies of Windows Server and the developer version of the SQL
Server database.
"You can go build software applications," said Joe Wilson,
Microsoft's senior director of academic initiatives. "You can go
build Web sites. You can do a really cool Facebook
application...There are a lot of possibilities that comes with this
small list of products.
Included in those initial 10 countries are the United States,
the United Kingdom, China, France, and Germany.
Clearly, Microsoft has a couple of goals here. One is to get
more students who have enough design or science aptitude to enter
the software field. The other is to get them using Microsoft's
tools early.
"That next generation and future generations of technologists,
they are vital to any industry leader like us," Wilson said. Wilson
said his goal is to be able five years from now to spot businesses
that got their start because a student used Microsoft's tools for
free.
"I expect that to happen," Wilson said. "Maybe it's hundreds or
thousands of companies."
Bill Gates is set to discuss DreamSpark Tuesday in a speech to
students at Stanford University.
.........
No Singapore! 
