In a move that has surprised and shocked users, Microsoft has confirmed that as of Visual Studio 11, it will be pulling development of desktop applications from its free Express Suite, leaving those who are looking to write apps that aren't full-screen Metro to look towards Visual Studio 11 Professional, which starts at around £350.
It's clear that Microsoft wishes to encourage indie groups and users just becoming familiar with Windows programming to write apps for Metro, spreading the love to tablets, which have to compete with the huge stock of existing apps present on iOS and Android.
Microsoft will be removing both the toolchain and compiler from Visual Studio Express and so, whilst 3rd party tools will continue to build programs as always, there's no quick and easy way around the Express limitation, keeping users who are looking for a free solution from the official Microsoft path.
