This just in. for MSDN subscribers, Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate 1 is now available for download. Microsoft Windows XP SP3 will be a rollup that includes all previously released updates for Windows XP, including security updates, out-of-band releases, and hot fixes. It contains a small number of new updates, but should not significantly change the Windows XP experience.

The computational power of multi-core processors, new programming models and platforms, and advanced research in usability all promise to change the way people interact with computers. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to correctly implement parallel applications with today's technologies. Parallel Extensions to the .NET Framework, available now as a Community Technology Preview (CTP), is a managed programming model for data parallelism, task parallelism, and coordination on parallel hardware unified by a common work scheduler. Parallel Extensions makes it easier for developers to write programs that scale to take advantage of parallel hardware - providing improved performance as the numbers of cores and processors increase - without having to deal with many of the complexities of today's concurrent programming models. Parallel Extensions provides library-based support for introducing concurrency into applications written with any .NET language, including but not limited to C# and Visual Basic. Download it today. You can discuss and provide feedback on Parallel Extensions in the MSDN Forums, and learn more about concurrency in the new Parallel Computing Developer Center on MSDN.

Speaking of feedback, help refine and enhance product features by taking part in the SQL Server 2008 November CTP. This release offers enhancements, including transparent data encryption, plan freezing, backup compression, spatial data support, install/uninstall capabilities, and much more. You can also try out the SQL Server 2008 November Express CTP, a free, easy-to-use, lightweight, and embeddable version of SQL Server 2008 - and SQL Server Compact 3.5 Beta 2 is also available for download.

Here's a great new MSDN online feature created by the MSDN development team: the new Package This is a GUI tool written in C# for creating help files (.chm and .hxs) from the content obtained from the MSDN Library or the TechNet Library via the MSDN Content Service. Essentially, it allows you to package your own MSDN Library. You select the content you want from the table of contents, build a help file, and use the content offline.

While you are on the site, check out the newly launched Windows SharePoint Services Resource Center. Explore five new resource centers for Administration, Pages and User Interface, Provisioning, Security and Web Parts.

Reminder: On November 19, Microsoft announced that Visual Studio 2008 and the .NET Framework 3.5 were released to manufacturing (RTM). MSDN subscribers can get the Visual Studio 2008 RTM now via Subscriber Downloads. If you are not a subscriber, what are you waiting for? Access to the Visual 2008 bits is just one of the many benefits. Subscribe today. There are also 90-day trial versions of Visual Studio 2008, Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Suite, Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Foundation Server and Visual Studio Team System 2008 Test Load Agent available for download. You can also download Visual Studio 2008 Express Editions for free, including Visual Basic 2008 Express Edition, Visual Web Developer 2008 Express Edition, Visual C# 2008 Express Edition, and Visual C++ 2008 Express Edition.

Thanks for reading.
Editor, MSDN Flash