I'm sure this is making the rounds, but Microsoft, through Nov. 6, 2006 has priced the Visual Studio Express editions at a price that is hard to beat: FREE! Start at the Express edition web site for information.

It really is free too -- the products can be used even for commerical software development projects.

If you're looking to learn .NET, this is a great way to get started. Pick your favorite edition and download it today!