Will there be an Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 download?

Question

An Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 4 download was provided (http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=3062).  Will there be an Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 download in the future? 

Thanks

-Rex

Answer 1

You can continue to use the Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 to edit Silverlight 5 RTM projects. 

Install the Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 first, and then install the Silverlight 5 SDK.  That will replace the SDK files.

We are working on an updated installer that will provide an easier setup experience for you.

Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5

Thanks,

Lori

 

Answer 2

Hi Lori,

Thanks for the quick response.  So just to confirm, there will a be a final version of the Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 download available at some point in the future, correct? 

Thanks

-Rex

Answer 3

Hi Rex,

Yes, we will be releasing a version of Blend for Silverlight 5.

It's not a "Blend SDK", rather it's Blend packaged with the final, released version of the Silverlight 5 SDK.  The underlying version of Blend is not changing, just the SDK it targets. 

You can go ahead and use the current Blend Preview for Silverlight 5, as long as you replace the Silverlight SDK after you install it.

Hope that info helps!

Lori

Answer 4

Thanks Lori,

Sorry, I still need clarification...

The "Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 Beta" is included with the "Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5" download (see screenshot below).   In the past there were downloads for the "Expression Blend 3 SDK" and the "Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 4" so you could install the Expression Blend libraries and use them with Silverlight applications, without having to install or purchase Expression Blend or Studio.  This was very convenient for Silverlight developers since they were lightweight and free. 

With this in mind, will there be a download for the "Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5" by itself?

If the answer is no, will the "Expression Blend for Silverlight 5" product be free to use, not a trial? 
   

 

Thanks

-Rex

Answer 5

Fully agree with Rex.  I'd love to know the answer to his question.  The Blend SDK is very important to us.

Answer 6

Any replies / updates on this Lori?   Even an "I don't know" would be much appreciated over this mysterious radio silence.  

Thanks!  

Answer 7

Hi dshorter,

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be mysterious.  I've asked the question and haven't gotten an answer yet.  I'll provide an update when I have a definitive answer.  Until then, I simply don't have anything to share.

Thanks,

Lori

Answer 8

Hi Lori,

It is nearly 3 months since Silverlight 5 launched. Could you press whomever for an answer to this sooner rather than later?

It is an important issue for several customers.

Thanks,

Richard

Answer 9

The SDKs are extremely important for Continuous Integration build servers, especially when we are talking about products with license fees attached to them.

Answer 10

Agreed, I'd really like to know when a version of the Blend SDK that is built against Silverlight 5 will be available.  The current version built against Silverlight 4 throws code analysis warnings, which is annoying.

Answer 11

New Update:http://blendinsider.com/news/visual-authoring-for-the-windows-8-consumer-preview-with-blend-and-visual-studio-2012-02-29/

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Creativity Flows

Answer 12

Yes, the preview dev tools for the preview OS have been updated to deal with XAML.  Meanwhile, actual customers who paid actual money are still waiting for tools to deal with the released software.

Answer 13

While we cannot comment on future plans, we should have news to share with you about this soon.

Thanks for your comments.

Lori

Answer 14

My Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 told me at install that it would be expiring on Thursday, 29th Mar.  I assumed this date applied to all consumers of the software.  What should we do to work with Silverlight 5 after Thursday, please?  [In case of confusion, I'm in a timezone about 8hours before Washington state]  This isn't an immediate show-stopper for me.

Answer 15

I"m seeing an expiration of March 31, 2012, and i'm in the Mountain Timezone.

Answer 16

I"m seeing an expiration of March 31, 2012, and i'm in the Mountain Timezone.

Same here.  Our project team relies heavily on Blend 5 Preview for our SL5 development.  If we can't get a new release by March 31, please provide a way to extend the preview so we can continue to work.  We are extremely pressed for time right now and losing our primary design tool towards the end of a high-profile project will strand us dead in the water and put the project at critical risk.

Thanks.

Answer 17

I"m seeing an expiration of March 31, 2012, and i'm in the Mountain Timezone.

Take a look at this post and answer from Chuck Hays with Microsoft... http://social.expression.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/blend/thread/fef47051-c14b-49cf-a13e-6537ef96d1d0

http://www.microsoft.com/expression/products/Blend_FAQ.aspx

Q: What happens to my Silverlight 5 projects when the Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 expires?

A: The Preview release will be updated as necessary to ensure continued support for Silverlight 5 projects until the release of Silverlight 5 and associated tools.

~Christine

Answer 18

We published the updated Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 today.  You can get more info on our team blog:http://blendinsider.com/version-expression-blend-4/updated-microsoft-expression-blend-preview-for-silverlight-5-2012-03-29/

The updated download is available on the Microsoft Download Center at http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=9503

Thanks,

Lori

Answer 19

Lori-

That still doesn't answer the original question of when do we get an Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5?

Answer 20

Thanks very much.  Much appreciated.

Answer 21

We published the updated Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 today.  You can get more info on our team blog:http://blendinsider.com/version-expression-blend-4/updated-microsoft-expression-blend-preview-for-silverlight-5-2012-03-29/

The updated download is available on the Microsoft Download Center at http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=9503

Thanks,

Lori

If you have installed the new version from above and it still says expired, this is the workaround:

in Registry Editor :

Go to Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Expression\Blend 
and delete this DWORD value : {B079CC9C-3A9F-4570-909C-900D638AA038}
or search in the registry for {B079CC9C-3A9F-4570-909C-900D638AA038} and delete it.

with grateful thanks to Sebastien Chandonnet

https://connect.microsoft.com/Expression/feedback/details/734979/blend-5-is-displaying-expired-even-after-beta-upgrade#tabs

Answer 22

Hi Lori,

  To reiterate what StormRider01 mentioned, the original question pertains to the availability of the Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 as a separate download.   Not as a Preview and not included with a full install of Expression Blend (as it is now).   We want to build Silverlight 5 components that just rely on the Blend SDK, not the Blend IDE, as we did with Silverlight 4.  Really just looking for a yes or no at this point. 

Thanks

-Rex         

Answer 23

Lori,

  There is still no clear answer to this thread.   Will there be an Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 as a separate download?   The current download of the Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 is NOT the same thing.    If the answer is no, just say no. 

-Rex

Answer 24

Hi Rex,

We are not at liberty to comment on future plans.  In April we released an update for the Blend Preview for Silverlight 5.  There's simply nothing more that I can tell you at this time.

Lori

Answer 25

In April we released an update for the Blend Preview for Silverlight 5.

This is problematic: the Blend Preview for Silverlight 5 is not RTM code which is fully supported.  That makes it essentially beta.  That means I have trouble shipping Silverlight 5 products that use the Blend SDK.  All of our software goes through several quality gates one of which is "does not contain beta or pre-release code".  I can't get this issue resolved until Microsoft ships a release version of the Blend SDK for Silverlight 5.

It's been six months since Silverlight 5 was released.  This has gone through frustrating into ridiculous.  Unless, of course, Microsoft's goal is that no one gets paid for Silverlight 5 apps in which case we're 100% on target.

Answer 26

Thanks, Mike.  I'll share your feedback with the team.

Just so you're fully aware, the April release contains a "go-live" license.

Answer 27

Thanks, I am aware of the go-live license.  But it doesn't change the fact that the SDK is unsupported pre-release software that I can't get through what most people would call a very reasonable quality check.

Answer 28

You do know that the "go-live" license means fully supported right?

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Keep your head in the Clouds as you're coding .NET http://azurecoding.net

Answer 29

Hi,

For your information the SKD in embedded in the Blend Preview installer.

Unzip the installer with 7.z for instance and the SDK installer is located in one of the folder.

Answer 30

Wow!!  This is amazing, so there is NO "Official" Expression Blend SDK for Silverlight 5???  I guess when Microsoft drop a product they really do drop it like a hot rock.  

My jaw had dropped and I don't know what to say, I paid $11,300 for my MSDN subscription and have been paying $3K a year (well over $30,000 spent on MSDN subscriptions) for a long time and this is how Microsoft handle me?  I'm at a loss for words -- time to start developing applications for Apple I guess ... wow, all I can say is wow!

I can't deploy "Preview" anything in my production environment, and for good reason (read lots of bugs).  I need to use some key DLLs ... specifically Microsoft.Expression.Interactions.dll and System.Windows.Interactivity.dll and these need to be solid for SL5 ... I can NOT rely on "Preview" versions of these.

Guess it's time to reach for that phone, this is just unacceptable.

Rob

Answer 31

 ^Bump. Will there be a "Final" release of Blend SDK for Silverlight 5 or we just gonna keep using "Preview" at this point.

Answer 32

No one seems willing to answer this or even knows ... reading the documentation it says the "Preview" will expire June 30th, 2013.  It also says it has a "go live" license, but again, if it expires June 30th, 2013 what's the point in having a "go live" license.

Can someone please clarify?

Answer 33

Hey, now that Sinofsky got ejected, and MS employees don't have to worry about being shot for uttering the word Silverlight, will someone please answer this question?

Answer 34

Extremely unlikely- Expression is getting sucked into Visual Studio 2012: /http://www.microsoft.com/expression/

Answer 35

As we recently announced, we are planning to release authoring support for WPF and Silverlight 5 for Blend along with the upcoming quarterly release of Visual Studio 2012.  You can see the detailed announcement at http://expression.microsoft.com.

We are planning to release a Blend SDK as a part of that release.

Thanks,

Lori

Answer 36

Lori,

I'm reading this thread here: Blend Preview for VS 2012 and it seems to indicate that we're still do NOT have a go-live license for the SDK for SL5?

This is a preview version for evaluation only and none of the platforms contain a go-live license. You should use other released versions of Blend for production work. The table below lists the Blend Platforms and the version of Blend you should use for production applications.

PLATFORM
GO LIVE BLEND VERSION
Windows Store apps, HTML	Blend for Visual Studio 2012
Windows Store apps, XAML	Blend for Visual Studio 2012
Silverlight 4.0	Expression Blend 4
Silverlight 5.0	Expression Blend Preview for Silverlight 5
WPF 3.5/4.0	Expression Blend 4
WPF 4.5	Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 Professional
WPF/Silverlight Prototypes	Expression Blend 4

Also this statement:

"We are committed to releasing a production-ready version of Blend that supports these platforms in the upcoming Visual Studio 2012 Update 2."

So I guess my question still stands, is there going to be a "Go Live" version of Blend SDK for SL5 that I use with VS 2010?  I have no plans to move to VS 2012, can I get just the Go-Live version of  Blend SL5 SDK without having to install VS 2012?

Thanks, Rob.