We are pleased to present our next preview of Expression Blend 2 (formerly known as Expression Interactive Designer), that targets Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0. We are very excited to receive your feedback on the new user experience this Beta provides compared to our previous CTP releases.
Your input is essential during our development cycle to help us make a better product. Please send your feedback to us via our discussion forum or our product feedback center as you encounter bugs or usability issues, or if you simply want to request a feature. Have fun designing, and we look forward to your continued feedback!
If you are new to Expression Blend and are building user experiences for .NET 3.0 applications on the Windows platform, this is a great place to start. The betas are a great way to experiment and begin familiarizing yourself with the tool. We hope you will try the innovative features in Expression Blend, such as rich 2D and 3D graphics, animation, dynamic layout, data binding, style and template editing, and resource management.
We also recommend that you explore the included documentation and sample projects. Additionally, some knowledge of .NET 3.0 programming may help you when working with the beta. For more information about the .NET Framework 3.0, see the .NET Framework 3.0 Development section of the Windows Software Development Kit. Please also refer to 3rd-party books that are good resources for learning WPF.
In order to edit code, you will also need a free copy of a Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Express edition from the Visual Studio Express Web site (choose either the Visual Basic or C# edition).
Installation Instructions
Installing on Windows Vista:
· Install a version of Silverlight
Installing on Windows XP SP2:
· Install .NET Framework 3.0 first before attempting to install Expression Blend 2
· Install a version of Silverlight
· Install Expression Blend 2 August Preview
Requirements:
Recommended system:
· Intel Pentium or AMD processor, 2 GHz with MMX or equivalent
· 1GB of RAM
· Microsoft DirectX 9.0–capable video card with 128 MB or more of memory-for example, ATI Radeon X300 or NVIDIA GeForce 5600 class equivalent or better
· 1280 x 1024 or greater monitor resolution with 32-bit color
Graphics requirements:
In Windows XP
· Click Display in Control Panel.
· Click the Settings tab and then under Color quality, make sure Highest (32 bit) is selected.
· Next, click the Advanced button, and then on the Adapter tab, click the Properties button.
· Click the Driver tab and look next to the Driver Date to see if the date is more recent than 11/1/2004. If it is not, then video and hardware acceleration will not work properly on your system unless you upgrade your video drivers.
In Windows Vista
· Under Appearance and Personalization in Control Panel, click Adjust screen resolution.
· Under Colors, make sure Highest (32 bit) is selected.
· Next, click the Advanced Settings button, and then on the Adapter tab, click the Properties button.
· Click the Driver tab and look next to the Driver Date to see if the date is more recent than 11/1/2004. If it is not, then video and hardware acceleration will not work properly on your system unless you upgrade your video drivers.
Limitations:
· 30 days trial
