To those using the Technical Preview version of Windows Live Writer (such as yours truly), you probably noticed a 30-day expiration notice.

The WLW team has stated this is a false expiration. You can continue on using the Tech Preview version just by clicking "Ask Me Later" and not worrying about it.

I’m glad this is true because the Tech Preview version of WLW is better than the standard one.

If there is any be-all/end-all blog writing utility out there that classifies as the best, it’s Windows Live Writer. For all the bungling that Microsoft does with its other products, WLW is one that actually shines and does so very well.

Why is this? Because it does what any good blog authoring tool should do - author to just about anywhere. WordPress, Live Spaces, LiveJournal, MovableType and several others. It is not Microsoft proprietary to just its Live services alone (if it were it would never be used).

In addition it the the absolute easiest image placement. You can literally copy/paste any image into WLW and it will understand it, format it, create thumbnails, allow for drop shadows, “photopaper” effects plus actual image editing like black/white filter, tones and so on. This is what we call powerful.

The best part about using WLW is that it’s a true WYSIWYG. What you type and the images you place is what ends up when you post. It’s like having a “lite” version of Word that’s really, really quick. Want to insert a YouTube video, hit SHIFT+F11, paste the code, then CTRL+F11 to go back. Want to bring up a panel to select/create a category, add keywords and so on? Press F2. Press it again to hide the panel.

It is rare that I can compliment an app made by Microsoft this much.

I’ll put it to you this way: Even Mac people really dig this product. It’s that good. And yeah it’s a shame WLW doesn’t have a Mac version (and don’t say “Ecto” - it’s not as good and you have to pay for it).