Not terribly surprising.
MSDN subscriptions are still around and a good option for anyone who makes a living on via MS software.
MSDN subscriptions are still around and a good option for anyone who makes a living on via MS software.
If a college grad wants to learn new skills, will he/she: 1) reload the whole stack (Server, SQL, etc) every few months or 2) not be bothered with stupid notices and just learn Linux, OSS.
Technet was great program for learning. I am not willing to spend $6k on a MSDN subscription for learning to use Microsoft products. Instead, I will use this opportunity to learn more OSS software. Thanks Microsoft!
Or...
3) Spin the stuff up on EC2 as needed and likely spend less than the TechNet sub + power.
While I'm sure there are exceptions, my anecdotal experience says the typical TechNet subscriber wasn't in it to "learn new skills" they were directly or indirectly selling keys. This is surely why MS went through several rounds of reducing key allowances prior to this.