If you want to learn all of the SQL Server products, this is a great options. You basically get a full copy of SQL Server Enterprise for less than half a Benjamin. You can download a free 120 day trial from Microsoft but it's much better to own a copy that won't expire.

Please note that you can not use this edition of SQL Server for a production database. It's intended use is only for development and testing purposes. I'm using the software to study for the a SQL Server certification exam.

The Developer addition is used by me almost everydaw. Works flawlessly. Super learning tool for those starting out. A+

Microsoft has done a clever thing with their Developer tools: they've recognized that it's more important to make it easy to put the product in the hands of someone who'll use it than it is to make huge sweeping profits off of every buyer. SQL Server 2008 Developer Edition provides all that you will need to learn and use SQL Server 2008: all that's missing here compared to the full Enterprise Edition are some of the Analytics tools and advanced features that, if you need them, you've already done all you need to do in this copy of the database, anyway (analytics is typically only critical to an Enterprise-level shop, who will most likely have full licensed server versions of SQL Server 2008 Enterprise Edition).

As a database technology, SQL Server 2008 has come into its own, finally being feature-rich enough and capable enough to be compared to Enterprise big-guns like Oracle. Microsoft are also nudging their way into SAP/Business Objects territory, making ancillary activities like Reporting and Transformations much easier to perform. The SQL Server 2008 interface is powerful, it is surprisingly easy to use, and installation and maintenance really do seem to be a breeze. You also get useful features like the SQL Server Books Online to help you learn, integration with Visual Studio to speed up your development time, and some surprisingly simple interfaces for doing powerful transforms/ETL like the Business Intelligence Development Studio.

If you're a developer, and you found downloading and installing the free version(s) of SQL Server 2008 to not meet your needs (or in my case, be fraught with problems), you can't argue with the price. This product works well to get you fairly far towards "guru", and can help teach old Database Dogs new tricks. :) You should be advised that this product is only intended for learning and working in a development environment and should NOT be used to deploy and/or support Production data or applications.

The product SQL Server Developer Edition is excellent but it arrived in a large box containing only one DVD. I am lucky that I am an experienced user, I was able to install it without a reference guide. There is information available on the internet but a quick reference would have saved me time and energy.

I can't stress out how great experience is buying through Amazon. Never failed so far. Product always arrive on time and in great shape, as expected.

I will continue working with Amazon for as long as the service maintains the quality demostrated so far.

Keep doing whatever you are doing, is working.

Orfelio Maycotte, MX - USA - TX - CT