Microsoft has now officially released Beta 2 of the .NET Framework 2.0. Late last week the bits were available to MSDN Subscribers; they now are available to the masses. It appears that the Express Versions of Visual Studio can be downloaded by all, but for the full blown Visual Studio 2005 Beta 2 or SQL Server 2005 Beta 2 you need to be mailed the CDs/DVDs (if you are not an MSDN Subscriber).
As with Beta 2 of the .NET Framework 1.0, 2.0's Beta 2 includes a Go Live license, meaning that you can start developing real-world, live applications using the beta software (something that was prohibited with Beta 1). Microsoft even provides a (incomplete) list of Web host providers that support the Whidbey Beta 2.