Ummmm?!?! I'm used to paying for things like compilers. I came to the Microsoft website just to see what the latest version of Visual C++ is and I found Express addition 2005. I kept looking around for how to pay for it, or restrictions on how I can use it etc, but I couldn?? find anything. So I just downloaded it and installed it and registered it. So my question is: will it be disabled at some point? Or will the software police kick down my door and arrest me in a few days? Or will I now be sued for my net worth? what?

No there is no joke, the system is free for the moment. In the future they may be charging for it. And no there is no time bomb on the applications.

The express products are designed for the student, hobby, or small time developer. These applications are a stripped down IDE that are missing a lot of the functions that are in the main full grown applications. Here is a small list of FAQ Sites that you might be able to see some more information on the products, as well as a link to a comparison or the different product lines.

Visual studio express editions FAQ
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/support/faq/

Visual Studio Express edition Registration FAQ
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/register/faq/

Direct Link to the Visual Studio Starter Kits on MSDN
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/downloads/starterkits/

Manual Install Packages for Visual Studio Express
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/support/install/

Uninstalling Previous Versions of Visual Studio 2005
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/support/uninstall/default.aspx

Visual Studio 2005 Product Line Overview
http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/products/compare/default.aspx