This page contains help with how to order software from the Software Center. You must order a product before you can download anything, or to make a purchase for those products configured with a mail order option. If you have ever used a shopping cart on other web sites then the process should be familiar.

Before you can order the first time, you must first have an active account on the Software Center. (See instructions for how to activate your account).

(NOTE: Images and software titles that appear in the Software Center will change depending on what classes are currently scheduled or new software updates). After logging in, if you are not taken directly to the Software store front then click Software on the top menu.

You will see the Software store front (shown below) where selected products are configured for download or purchase, however you might not qualify to order all software products that are listed.

Regardless of what software titles you may see, for download or purchase, you may order only those software titles authorized for a course in which you are currently enrolled. To find out what software titles you are authorized to order, see Authorized Software under About Responsibilities, or while visiting the ELMS Software Center web site, click the ...full story link next to the Annoucement about what to read Before You Order or Download Software.

Use the Search by product titles box to find a list software configured for download, and look through the showcased icons with titles below the search box to find software products configured for purchase (Buy).

NOTE: Software configured for download will appear only in the search list and will require a utility program capable of creating a CD from a downloaded image file (see ISO Images for details). Software configured for purchase will be showcased with icons and also will appear in the search box listed along with download image files.

How to Order for Download

The example below demonstrates ordering Visual Studio 2005 Professional CD1 as a free download, but the process is basically the same for other titles. (Visual Studio 2005 CD1 and CD2 were recently replaced with Visual Studio 2008 on 1 DVD disk.) To order Visual Studio 2005 Professional as a free download, you would click the down-arrow and then in the selection list you would find that this product is available for download as two separate ISO Image files (CD1 and CD2). Depending on the software you want to order for download, you may see one, two, or more CDs for that title. To order the first CD for Visual Studio you would select the title shown below. Then later you would need to come back here to select and order CD2 for this product. (Note: ISO Image files will always be listed with CD1, CD2, etc. in the title, or ISO Image if there is only 1 CD for that title).

The selection list will change from time to time depending on what classes are running, and it includes mostly download options but also includes items for purchase. For example, you can see that there are items in the list shown for Visual Studio .NET 2005 Professional - Full Install, and Windows XP Professional (Single User). These are the same options for buying those titles as shown with icons on the storefront in the previous figure. To buy those products instead of downloading them, you can click the icons featured on the storefront or choose the related items in the selection list.

After selecting a software product to order, you will see a Product Details page for that item. This page allows you to view a product description and important information about the Download option.

View Product Description presents an overview of that product and what you can do with it. Also shown on this page are the file size and approximate download times.

When you click Add To Cart, you then must agree to the MSDN Academic Alliance -- Student Installation and Usage Guidelines, otherwise you cannot proceed with the order. After agreeing to the terms, you will see the product just ordered in your shopping cart as shown below.

The Edit button allows you to change deliverable types for a product, if available. The Remove button will remove that product from your shopping cart. The Continue Shopping button allows you to add more items to your cart or log off - you can come back to your shopping cart and check out later.

Clicking the Check Out button takes you to the Customer Information screen (below) where you will be asked to provide your name and Moraine Valley student email address.

Completing an order sends an auto-generated e-mail to your Moraine Valley student email address. Beware of spam blocking which could block this type of email message. (You can read more about Auto-generated Email on the Using ELMS page under About Software Center). The check box about subscribing to MSDN Student Flash may be checked by default. It is a free and unobtrusive newsletter that also is available at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/flash/default.aspx. Clear the check box if you do not want to receive the newsletter through email.

Click the Next button to see order details (below).

You are asked to Print a copy of this page for your records, and you can always display this page again by going to My Software, clicking Download link, and then clicking View Details.

Click on the Download link to proceed to the My Software page, where you can finally begin the first step of the download process.

For Download options, the Delivery Status will originally indicate Ready For Download. After you have downloaded that item then it will indicate Downloaded instead. A unique Serial Number will be issued for those products requiring a Personal License Key during software setup and is provided only here in the Software Center. If that is the case then be sure to print this page also...you will need that number when installing your software, and you will not always have access to this page if you ever need to reinstall that software later. For some products, such as Visual Studio 2005 Professional, the key is the same and is burned into the setup program, so the Serial Number reads Not Required. The View Order Details button will take you back to the Order Details page, shown in the previous figure. The Download button will begin the first part of the download process, which is a small installer program that may take just a few seconds.

There also is a link below View Order Details with additional information for Dial-up users. If you do not have a high-speed Internet connection then be sure to read that information. Although it would be impractical to download using a Dial-up connection, it can be done.

For further instructions about how to download, either at the end of the order process or perhaps later if you decided to order now and download later, then be sure to look over the How-To instructions for Download.

How to Order for Purchase (Buy)

If you decide to buy (and qualify for) a software product in the list of icons on the store front, then you simply need to click that icon to place a mail order. The example below demonstrates ordering Visual Studio 2005 Professional for purchase (buy) and have it shipped to your residence or workplace. The process is basically the same for other titles. (Visual Studio 2005 was recently replaced with Visual Studio 2008.)

You may see other software titles in the Software Center storefront or selection list, but that does not mean you qualify to get any or all software that is featured. You must be currently participating for credit in a course where those products are authorized (see Authorized Software under About Responsibilities). You may only order software for courses in which you are currently enrolled.

The Product Details page for buying software allows you to add that order to your shopping cart, and it also includes other important information for you to consider before deciding to buy.

Prices vary depending on what software product you order, and they are subject to change. The cost is minimal and includes charges to prepare the media as well as shipping/handling charges. Also, payment must be made using a credit card (Visa/MasterCard only). If you want to buy a product then click Add To Cart.

When you click Add To Cart, you then must agree to the MSDN Academic Alliance -- Student Installation and Usage Guidelines, otherwise you cannot proceed with the order. After agreeing to the terms, you will see another page about courier shipping information.

This page contains important information about delivering the software product. Be sure to review this information carefully so you know what to expect.

When you click Continue, this item will be added to your shopping cart.

The Edit button allows you to change deliverable types for a product, if available. The Remove button will remove that product from your shopping cart. The Continue Shopping button allows you to add more items to your cart or log off - you can come back to your shopping cart and check out later. Check Out will ask for customer information and also payment (MC/Visa only) and shipping information. The order is not complete until you click Check Out.

Completing an order sends an auto-generated e-mail to your Moraine Valley student email address. Beware of spam blocking which could block this type of email message. (You can read more about Auto-generated Email on the Using ELMS page under About Software Center). The check box about subscribing to MSDN Student Flash may be checked by default. It is a free and unobtrusive newsletter that also is available at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/flash/default.aspx. Clear the check box if you do not want to receive the newsletter through email.

After you have ordered a software product, you can find related information about that order by clicking on My Software.