With all the video editing and publishing I find myself doing these days, I have to tell you that Expression Encoder is becoming one of my favorite applications. I actually use Sony Vegas Pro to edit and construct my videos, but then I use Expression Encoder to convert the raw video output into HD streaming format and, using an awesome plug-in available from the Expression web site, I can publish my content directly to my Silverlight Streaming account in the cloud. It's quick (possibly the fastest encoder I've used) and super easy to use -- exactly the way it should be.

The product group announced Tuesday on their team blog that Expression Encoder 2 SP1 would soon be available for download and laid out the key capabilities available via SP1, namely:

• Full support for Silverlight 2 applications
• New Silverlight 2 templates which include rich functionality such as DVD-style chapter navigation, subtitles and metadata
• Encoding support for H.264/AAC video
• Publish content to IIS and other servers that support the WebDAV protocol for use with IIS Smooth Streaming

To this last point, IIS Smooth Streaming is the new name for what had previously been called "adaptive streaming" for Silverlight. Essentially, Smooth Streaming enables video playback to dynamically assess changing network and PC load conditions during streaming and make adjustments to the bitrate on the fly, creating a seamless viewing experience for the user. IIS Smooth Streaming will be included in the upcoming IIS Media Pack.

Expression Encoder 2 SP1 became available for download yesterday from here. If you're a frequent user of Encoder like I am, I encourage you to pull it down and install it today. The new Silverlight 2 templates are very cool and worth the installation alone.