Microsoft Expression Studio 2 starts shipping!

Microsoft Corp. today delivered on its commitment to rapid innovation for the newest Microsoft platforms and latest Web technologies by announcing the release of Expression Studio 2.

                                             The suite of professional design tools includes Expression Web 2, Expression Blend 2, Expression Design 2, Expression Media 2 and Expression Encoder 2 and works seamlessly with Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008, solving the age-old designer and developer workflow challenge. The innovations in Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML), used by both Expression Studio and Visual Studio, allow for unprecedented designer-developer collaboration for the creation of both standards-based and Microsoft Silverlight-enhanced Web experiences as well as Windows Vista and .NET Framework 3.5 client applications.

                                           In line with the team’s commitment to short release cycles, Expression Studio 2 is coming to market one year after the last release with major updates to each product. The products together contain more than 100 new features and introduce new Microsoft Silverlight functionality for creating stunning cross-browser, cross-platform Web experiences. Key features include the following:

•  Expression Web 2 adds support for PHP and Adobe Photoshop import based on customer feedback.
•  Expression Blend 2, in addition to Silverlight support, adds vertex animation and an improved user interface with a new split design/XAML view.
•  Expression Design 2 adds improved exporting functionality including the ability to export slices.
•  Expression Media 2 is a robust digital asset management solution for photographers and other creative professionals. It adds support for the latest file formats including RAW, provides geotagging functionality, and is supported by Microsoft Office 2007 and Microsoft Office for Mac 2008.
• • Expression Encoder 2 is now a core offering of the suite. It allows creative and Web professionals to optimize almost any type of video content quickly for publishing on the Web, either in streaming video, rich-media advertising or other Web 2.0 projects.

Screenshot:-

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                                              Microsoft also unveiled final product pricing and availability for the complete Expression 2 product family. Interested customers can purchase the entire studio from leading retailers such as Amazon.com and Best Buy starting in mid-May for $699 estimated retail price (ERP) (U.S.). In addition, all of the tools except Expression Design 2 are available as stand-alone products: Expression Blend 2 is available for $499 ERP (U.S.), Expression Web 2 is available for $299 ERP (U.S.), Expression Media 2 for $199 ERP (U.S), and Expression Encoder 2 for $199 ERP (U.S.). Microsoft also offers several upgrade options for existing Expression users and companion upgrades to Expression Web and Expression Media from a range of software titles by other vendors, including Adobe Systems Inc. All Expression products for English-speaking markets will include a getting-started video training courtesy of Total Training Inc. Comprehensive video training will be available for purchase separately at http://www.totaltraining.com/expression2.