For those that now are able to install and use an early version of Longhorn and for others that just want to learn more about what all the talk is about, start by taking a close look at the Longhorn SDK. The information both including on the Longhorn DVD as well as available on the web at http://longhorn.msdn.microsoft.com. The information is divided into 5 main categories:
- Technologies – Provides an overview of the main technology areas of Longhorn
- Reference – A reference for the Class Libraries, Schema, Compiler and Languages
- How do I …? – Provides a list of “How do I ..?” topics grouped by technology area
- Samples – A number of Sample applications and code demonstrations
- Communities – Longhorn development community information
The format makes it easy to gain an overall understanding of a topic as well as to drill down into a specific piece of information and to see what it can be implemented. A very innovative addition is that through the entire SDK users are able to provide their comments or “Annotations” to assist in refining and improving that documentation. Users are encourage to comment on bugs, errors, and requests for additional information or details. The Longhorn SDK Documentation is a great resource that everybody should make some time to go through.
While still a work in progress, the SDK is an excellent example of how much work has already been done and the importance that Microsoft appears to be placing on working with the development community to shape and improve the continued development of Longhorn.
For the latest information on Longhorn check out:
LonghornBlogs.com
PDCBloggers.net
Msdn.microsoft.com/longhorn