14 DAY TRIAL // Concomitantly with the availability of the Silverlight 4 Release Candidate, Microsoft also provided developers with the necessary tools to start adapting content for the next version of the company’s alternative to Adobe Flash. In addition to the near-final Silverlight 4 bits, devs can also grab the Release Candidate development milestone of the software development kit for Silverlight 4. According to the Redmond company, the Silverlight 4 SDK RC brings to the table both libraries and tools designed to streamline developing Silverlight applications.
In addition to the libraries and tools in the SDK, the resource also features links pointing developers to online documentation and makes it easier for them to access online samples to help with the coding. “The toolkit provides support for Visual Studio 2010 and Silverlight 4 development. The Toolkit provides numerous controls for your application and source code is also included for these controls using an Open Source license,” Microsoft noted.
One thing to keep in mind is that Silverlight 4 RC doesn’t come with a go-live license. Microsoft underlined both with the Beta and the RC that the Builds were developer previews designed for testing, and should be kept away from production. At the same time, devs will not have to wait all that long until they will be able to provide Silverlight 4 content, websites and applications to end users. The promise from Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president, .NET Developer Platform, is that Silverlight 4 will be finalized and released to web in April 2010.
“This latest version of Silverlight delivers hundreds of features and controls that, when combined with the continued innovation in Microsoft’s world-class tools for designers and developers — Microsoft Visual Studio and Microsoft Expression Blend – present the leading edge in rapid, powerful application development. With printing support, rich reporting and charting, and integration with back-end systems and server products including Microsoft SharePoint, Silverlight is ready for business,” Microsoft stated. Silverlight 4 SDK Release Candidate (RC) is available for download here.
Silverlight 4 Release Candidate (RC) Build 4.0.50303.0 is available for download here.
The Silverlight 4 Training Kit is available for download here.