Microsoft has just announced Windows Live Writer beta for Windows platform. It is a desktop blogging tool which features WYSIWYG authoring, photo publihing, etc. Map publishing is what stands out among the list. Currently it supports most of the popular blogging platforms.

Live Writer has the look and feel of Office 2003, which also means it takes up more memory — at least compared to w.Bloggar. But, the benefit is of course, a lot of people have been familar with the interface.

It tries to support existing bloggers through existing platforms, but newbie are given the option to sign
for Live Spaces.

Developers should find the SDK useful to add functionalities to the program. The support of plugins via SDK allows us to see great plugins soon, I predict.

As the name implies, the software is only available on Windows but not Mac. Existing Mac users have Ecto or Mars Edit. Other popular desktop blog editors for Windows include Qumana and Performancing Firefox.

Link: Windows Live Writer.
Download: for PC user.