The SDK documentation is divided into five sections:

What's New in Version 1.1b of the Live Search API provides information on recent updates to the API for users of earlier versions.

Getting Started with the Live Search API explains the basic requirements for development with the API, how to access the service using the Web Service Description Language (WSDL) XML document that defines the format of messages used by the service, and how to obtain an Application ID for use of the service.

About the Live Search API contains information about the types of information that developers can retrieve from the service, and a diagram of the service class hierarchy.

The Live Search API Reference section contains reference material for the classes, properties, and methods available to Windows Live Search developers.

The Code Samples for the Live Search API section contains the full source code listings for two applications written in the C# programming language, complete with instructions for setting up and running these samples in the Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 development environment.

• See Downloadable Code Samples (Search) for links to samples describing how to call the Live Search Web Service API in a variety of programming languages.
  
• Visit http://dev.live.com to learn more about other services and developer offerings from Windows Live.
  
• The service is free to developers for personal use and supports a limited number of calls to the service per day (please see our API terms of use - http://dev.live.com/terms/search.aspx - for details). Users may request higher volumes for daily use, as well as access to certain types of information available only by means of an explicit contract with Microsoft. For more information, please contact api_tou@microsoft.com.
  
• For more information on the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) messaging protocol and WSDL documents, see the Messaging Specifications Index Page in the MSDN Library.
  
• For information about other XML-based services and technologies, visit the MSDN XML Developer Center.
  
• For information on Web services and other distributed technologies, visit the MSDN Developer Center.
  
• For developer support, please visit our Forum.