January 2008 - Posts

• Office Tip of the Day

  Remember Clippy?  That (not so) loveable little feature in all versions of Office previous to Office 2007?  How it would appear with helpful little hints on how to get more out of Office?  My impression is that this is the most often turned off feature in older versions of Office, mostly because of the poor timing.  Nothing is worse than having something appear on screen in the midst of the final rush to get a proposal out the door. With Office 2007 Clippy was laid to rest, much to the relief of a lot of Office users out there.  Clippy was gone and I could go about my work without worry of having him (or her?) interrupt at an inopportune time.  But alas where can we go to get tips on the new Office?  I recorded a short video to help with the transition from the old UI to the new UI but how does one go about learning about the new (and not so new) features of Office 2007?  Bring back Clippy?  No, but what about a sidebar gadget? Constructive Media, a Canadian web solutions provider, has created an Office Tip of the Day gadget for your Vista sidebar.  Add the gadget to your sidebar and off you go with tips ready for you to absorb and start using the entire set of Office tools to the maximum! Now if I could just find the person responsible for killing off Search Puppy and get them to resurrect him (or her?) Posted Tuesday, January 29, 2008 1:29 PM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Microsoft Office

• Southern Alberta Microsoft User Community

  User communities are a vital part of the IT industry.  Whether they are online communities like forums, newsgroups and blogs, or offline communities like user groups and professional organizations they are a place for anyone to go and give or get help with issues they are faced with.  I got my start with Thelazyadmin.com and later got involved with the Winnipeg IT Pro User Group and learned a lot listening and speaking/writing to those communities. If you live in or around Calgary, Alberta there is another option for you to connect with local IT Professionals.  Microsoft MVP Stuart Crawford has gathered together a group of passionate IT pros to start the Southern Alberta Microsoft User Community, or SAMUC.  Their web page is live at http://www.samuc.com and they have a meeting coming up on the 28th of January.  It will be a lunch meeting and the details are as follows... Date: January 28th, 2008 Time: 11:45 AM to 1:15 PM Location: Calgary Coast Plaza Hotel, 1316 33rd Street NE in the Horizon Restaurant Cost: $30 includes the meal You need to register so if you can make it, head to http://samfg.blogspot.com/2008/01/kick-off-luncheon-january-28th-2008.html and register today! Posted Monday, January 21, 2008 9:37 AM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments

• Comics Happen Here?

  Over the weekend I was reading through the comments that needed publishing and found one I didn't want to get lost in the shuffle.  It was made on the recent post by Rick on upcoming launch activities.  Sean Kearney wrote.... Hey everybody, if you didn't see it on the site?  There's a comic Microsoft and Seagate are sponsoring!  You're stories from the field (devs and ITs and geeks) can help drive the story line.   http://www.itdevcomics.com/ Sign in, share your stories.  Show the rest of the world just how BAD we have it.  Just how much we LOVE it.   Just how much it DRIVES you! Interesting, your stories from the front lines.  Whether you are an infrastructure guy, a DBA, developer or you do it all, share your stories and maybe you can star in Heros Happen Here comic! Posted Monday, January 21, 2008 9:02 AM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Launch 2008

• [Funnies] I'm Using Powershell

  (Sing it alone to 'Highway to Hell' by AC/DC) It's so easy, and it's free Download it now it'll take no time Get it in, use it now For to not would be such a crime Shell of Power, Pipes of Dreams Kiss your last wasted minutes away Party now, let's get down I can't wait to start this day I'm using Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell Cruisin' with Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell No Batch Files, Wasted minutes So much power I've to abuse Using Get, Add it in Clear data and Out it to you Hey Billy, Stevie B, Too much time on my hands Done my work, 'fore I started I won't ever use those other brands I'm using Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell Microsoft Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell Don't End Task! (Insane yelling sequence somewhat akin to a bunch of nerds loaded up on Rockstar and losing a 20 minute round on the Guitar Hero series) I'm using Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell Windows Pow-ow-er-shell Pow-ow-er-shell No systems goin' down........ On my waaaaaaaaaaatch. I'm usin' Pow-ow-er-shell. Posted Friday, January 18, 2008 5:08 PM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Funnies

• Heroes Happen Here, eh? What's going on up north for Launch 2008 Activities.

  If you remember way back - I posted the initial confirmation and tickler that Canada was having a major event on February 27th to mark the Launch of Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL 2008.  As you have probably read online over the last little while or so, the US have stepped up their marketing activities talking about what's going on all over the States. We just opened our Canadian Launch portal last week and started staging out notification emails and invites to people all across Canada... and so the noise begins. The Launch event in Toronto is February 27th and it's only 42 days away - I am constantly reminded by my 2008 Global Launch Wave countdown gadget in my vista sidebar - I figured that since now it's public, we're due for a no nonsense post about what's going on across Canada up here on the blog. I'd like to get something out in the open right away - we get a lot of email and comments on the blog asking us "hey you aren't coming to X - why not?".  Trust me - we hear you and we'd love to come out and see you and meet everyone possible, but you know, like any IT Project you've worked on before - we are constrained by three things. Time, Resources and Money. I say Time and Resources - hey, there are only 4 of us in Canada on the IT Pro side of the house - we each cover different geographies and the more places we visit - the longer we're out on the road and away from friends and family. Money? That's easy - the longer we are out and the more places we go - the larger the bills become and we have a budget that we have to work with. Not one of these resources are unlimited and each are connected to each other. All that being said - we're trying to do something a little different this time around and I hope that you like it. Let's talk about activities / events. There are currently 4 types out there in our Canadian Launch Activities. Launch Event, Technical Readiness Events, Community Connection Events and a US driven activity called Community Launch events (I didn't choose the name). Launch Events There are two of these.  What are they? Think Marketing, product positioning and keynotes with some serious demos and hardware involved. I don't want to use the term "high energy" (too marketing for me) but they will certainly have a lot crammed into the scheduled time slot. We've got Kevin Turner (COO of Microsoft Corp) speaking in Toronto and Steve Goog in Vancouver. I get the pleasure of being "10 feet from termination" driving some of the demos for Steve and Kevin - it should be a lot of fun.  There will be partner fairs, community zones for UserGroups and Professional Organizations, Ask the Experts areas with demo pods - it will be one wild ride.  At these events, since there is room and the venue is booked for the day - we're also putting a full Technical Readiness track for IT Pros and Developers (details below) as well as special mini tracks for IT Managers and Architects. Resources from this: The keynote and demos will be recorded as an entire session for viewing at your leisure. The demos will be screencast and available if you want to cut to the chase. The build and leadup to the keynote (how we did it, what we're using, how it all works) will be in a series of posts on the blog. Cities these will be at and registration links: Toronto February 27th Register now Vancouver March 4th Register now   Technical Readiness Events There are eight of these.  What are they? We're taking the technologies that are involved in the launch (Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL 2008) and choosing the highest impact features that you can take advantage of NOW within your existing environment while minimizing the disruption change brings. Don't worry - this isn't SlideWare with loads of "feature, feature, feature" talk which would leave you dazed and confused... To help ensure this content is relevant to you - we've been engaged with a volunteer content review board made up of IT Pros and Developers like you from across Canada who were pitched our ideas and approach, acted as a reality check safeguard and provided input throughout the entire development cycle of content.  (side note: this process was FANTASTIC and it's something we're planning on continuing to do going forward - but that's another blog post) There are two separate tracks (Developer and IT Professional) that will run simultaneously at the same venue.  Each track has three sessions - first one being more of a "this is possible - check it out" followed up with 2 deeper sessions focusing in on deeper knowledge and specialization. As I previously mentioned, we're coming at it from the angle that by the end of the session - you'll be excited and interested enough to start exploring how to get these technologies into your environment today without doing a major rip and replace or 24 month planning cycle. :) Let's face it - by implementing these technologies, you'll be solving problems you are facing today and you'll come out looking like a Hero! Resources from this: All the sessions will be screencast and recorded for viewing at your leisure. Demos will be screencast and available individually so you can see them whenever you have time. The pre-work leading up to the demos (how things were built. what you can do to set it up yourself. how you can scale it) will be in a series of posts on this blog. Post event resources including links, whitepapers, podcasts, additional readings will be compiled and shared throughout the launch events. Cities these will be at and registration links: Toronto February 27th Register now Vancouver March 4th Register now Calgary March 11th Register now Edmonton March 13th Register now Winnipeg March 26th Register now Montreal April 8th Register now Ottawa April 10th Register now Quebec City April 17th Register now Community Connection Events Building on the success of our recent Developer and IT Pro "Ignite Your Career" webcast series, we've decided to try something a little different. We're partnered with CIPS and ICTC to put on a special workshop format event that is designed to allow you engage with local experts and peers in order to discuss and gain insight on three important areas (Technology, Community and Career) that are having an impact on today's ICT professional. We're going to be taking 5 discussion topics that cover industry challenges across 14 cities in Canada and share the collective insight back with the community and the industry. Resources from this: An workshop workbook containing reference material and discussion topics a blog posts and/or podcasts from the events that share insight back to the community A growing resource page that summarizes the collective insight after the final event concludes. Cities these will be at and registration links: Toronto February 26th Register now Vancouver March 3rd Register now Victoria March 5th Register now Calgary March 10th Register now Edmonton March 12th Register now Regina March 18th Register now Saskatoon March 19th Register now Winnipeg March 25th Register now Kitchener-Waterloo April 2nd Register now London April 3rd Register now Montreal April 7th Register now Ottawa April 9th Register now Halifax April 15th Register now Quebec April 16th Register now Community Launch Events These are also very cool and completely driven by UserGroups, Professional Associations, MVPs and well - ANYONE who wants to put a flag in the ground and put on an event in your local neighbourhood.  Are you an uberGeek or are you passionate about Technology and want to get something started in your neck of the woods? If you decide to put on of these things on and host it in your neck of the woods - we're going to give you as many resources as possible to pull it off. There's online training, slide decks, demo scripts, virtual machine images - everything you need for an "event in a box" - including publicity. The website that you can inquire about events already scheduled in your area OR for you to APPLY to put one of these on can be found here at the Heroes Community Launch page. Because these events are going to be taking place later in the spring, a complete list for Canadian events is not available just yet. If you are interested in putting one of these on - you'll need to register your intent by January 21st on the site. Check back here for an update on how these are shaping up. Summary I hope I have been able to clarify a bit on the different approach we're taking to try and reach as many people as possible within the constraints we have. As you can see from the resources from each event - we're doing as much as we can to make these activities accessible to you, even if you are not in the city they are taking place. Do you have any other suggestions on how we can improve our outreach to you for this or future events?  This blog will be your best resource for connecting all the dots of what resources are available and giving you the tools and information to dig into the meat of what these products can do for you, what you can do with them and more importantly what you can leverage today to make a difference in your current environment and your current stage of your career.   Rick Claus IT Pro Advisor Content Development Lead for IT Pro track Posted Thursday, January 17, 2008 6:39 AM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Career, Events, Windows Server 2008, Launch 2008

• Open Value Subscription and You

  On New Year’s Day at 8 AM Pacific time, Eric Ligman (Microsoft US Senior Manager Small Business Community Engagement) announced on his blog that Microsoft will be launching the Microsoft Open Licensing Subscription Program across Canada and the United States. I asked Stuart Crawford from IT Matters, a Calgary based small business consulting firm (and small business owner) to explain what this means to small businesses and those who serve them. ------------------------- What does this mean to small business? According to Eric’s blog posting this new offering is based on feedback from partners and clients across the SMB segment. This new licensing solution will ensure clients and partners receive the maximum value from their investment in Microsoft solutions. Small Business clients can now leverage spread payments as part of the subscription program or utilize the benefits in Microsoft Financing to assist in keeping their cash flow healthy. Maintaining a positive cash flow is a challenge for many small businesses across Canada and the United States. Cash Flow is king for many small businesses. It is important to understand that this solution is another option that small business partners can use to ensure their clients get the most from Microsoft technologies. It is another solution available for you to leverage and provide a competitive advantage in your local marketplace. Small Business Specialist must have this licensing offering along side with traditional licensing options or leasing options that you may offer with a leasing partner. Look at it this subscription offering as another club in your business golf bag. Subscription based services is nothing new in the small business market. Antivirus companies and security firms have been using this model for a while now. In this industry, small businesses have been required to invest in an annual subscription to ensure that their security software and firewall devices are kept up to date. With the Microsoft model, clients can subscribe to Microsoft software in a lease like fashion similar to any lease that you may have on their business equipment today. Small Businesses have the option to increase or decrease the number of licenses they require, buy out the subscription and own the license or simply end the contract. In addition, if your small business client already has existing Microsoft licenses, they may be eligible for savings or benefits when they enter into the subscription agreement with Microsoft. It is important for Microsoft Small Business Specialists and Partners to understand that this solution is not a “Microsoft direct to the client” campaign. The partner will still be very much involved in the process and these new subscription offers will be available through all distribution partners. Just like with Open Business or Open Value sales today, the partner is very much involved in the entire process. So from a sales perspective, you resell the subscription to your client and pay your distributor, just like in Open Business and Open Value. The Microsoft Open Value Subscription will also include the benefits included with Software Assurance, such as network use rights, home use rights, training and support options. Successful partners need to invest the time to understand how this program will benefit their business, not pick it apart or see it as a threat to their business. This solution may not be a fit for every small business and that is OK, there are other programs in place that may provide your small business client with the solution they require. Microsoft is hosting a number of webinars on the Open Value Subscription program; visit Eric Ligman’s blog for additional information at http://blogs.msdn.com/mssmallbiz/default.aspx. ------------------------- Stuart Crawford is the Director of Business Development for IT Matters Inc., Calgary, Alberta’s award winning Microsoft Small Business Specialist. His second book has enriched the small business community empowering many small business specialists to reach goals that they never thought possible. It is available online today at http://www.doyouhaveitbook.com. Stuart is also an avid blogger on Small Business visit his blog at http://www.itsuccessmentor.com. He also believes in giving back to the community; join him monthly for a free conference call on marketing and sales at http://www.freeitmarketingseminar.com. Posted Wednesday, January 09, 2008 3:09 PM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Guest Bloggers

• [Funnies] Thank-You

  A thank you note to all of the spammers I would like to send a special thank you this year to all of those spammers who have been trying to reach me.   Your efforts have not gone un-noticed.  Because of all of your stock tips and the various lotteries, I am now richer than Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and that guy that own's Virgin combined. Thanks.   It's helped about the office lately at lunch time.   And the extra money has really come in handy with all the Viagra and Cialis.  I've stocked up so much I should be able readily re-populate the entire planet ten times over.  I'm going to need it too.  I mean, what with all the extra women who've been trying to get my attention BEFORE I won all this money,  I'm going to be spending a lot of time moving people across the border, I figure I'll be VERY busy in the next twenty years. And for all the extra efforts sent out by PayPal and all those banks (even ones I've never used!) I must say, some companies go to all efforts to show customer service.  It's a rare treat to see so many going that extra effort to email me about potential account problems.  Thank you! Now to the many people that sent me all those links to view their pictures, I'd love to have spent the time, really I would.   But there is only so much time one can spend. I mean with all my extra wealth I've just finished buying Microsoft and supplying food to twenty three different undernourished countries.  I'll be a little too busy (if you know what I mean) to check them out. Thanks anyhow, maybe better luck next year? Posted Friday, January 04, 2008 10:06 AM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments Filed under: Funnies

• MVP Profile - Mitch Tulloch

  I know Mitch personally as he was a HUGE help when I started writing.  He is a great mentor, a great friend and a great MVP.  I am glad to have him as the first MVP we are highlighting for 2008.  Chances are you have one of his books on your bookshelf and it is great to see a Canadian IT Pro having such success. Mitch Tulloch is a well-known industry expert in Windows administration, networking and security. Mitch was lead author for the Windows Vista Resource Kit from Microsoft Press. He is also the author of Introducing Windows Server 2008, the Microsoft Encyclopedia of Networking, and the Microsoft Encyclopedia of Security (all three titles from Microsoft Press); IIS 6 Administration (from Osborne/McGraw-Hill); and Windows Server Hacks (from O'Reilly Media). His most recent writing project was acting as Technical Project Lead for the Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 Resource Kit from Microsoft Press. Mitch has published almost three hundred articles on the topics of Windows administration, networking, and security on WindowsNetworking.com, WindowsDevCenter.com and other IT pro websites. Mitch also writes a weekly editorial for ITWorld's "Windows in the Enterprise" newsletter and has written articles for numerous other sites including WindowsSecurity.com, the Windows XP Expert Zone, and the Windows Vista Community Site on Microsoft.com. Mitch has also written feature articles for industry magazines such as NetworkWorld, BizTech Magazine, and MCP Magazine, and his articles have been widely syndicated on different sites ranging from ComputerWorld to CNN. Mitch's other writing activities have included writing technical articles and product roadmaps for Microsoft TechNet; contributing chapters to several popular books on Windows administration written by other authors; and managing online communities where IT professionals meet to share their expertise. Mitch is also a Professor at Jones International University (JIU) where he has developed and taught graduate-level courses in Information Security Management (ISM) for their Masters of Business Administration (MBA) program. Mitch is involved in his local IT pro user group community in Winnipeg, Canada, and has presented several times on different topics. He frequently gets questions via email from IT pros and end users from around the world and he tries to answer them as he is able. He often publishes his answers as tips on WindowsNetworking.com and ITWorld.com so more can benefit from his expertise. Before starting his own business in 1998, Mitch worked as a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) for Productivity Point. Mitch is currently based in Winnipeg, Canada and in his free time he likes to take walks, watch Bruce Willis movies, and read books by Donald Trump. For more information about Mitch, see his website www.mtit.com. You can also contact him at info@mtit.com with your technical questions about Microsoft platforms and products. What does being an MVP mean to you? It’s a great honor and it gives me the chance to tell others what a terrific company Microsoft is—their motto “Our Passion, Your Potential” is inspiring and it truly reflects the great people who work there. If you could ask Steve Ballmer one question about Microsoft, what would it be? I’d ask “Hey Steve, how about doing lunch together sometime?” What do you think the best software ever written was? Microsoft Windows (all versions) since it’s changed the way our world operates by putting enormous computing power in the hands of individuals. I mean, I can still remember mainframe days as a student when I had to carry a box of punch cards down to the University to run my Fortran programs on the mainframe… If you were the manager of Windows Server System, what would you change? Nothing, it’s a great suite of products. What are the best features/improvements of Windows Server System? Exchange Server 2007 is awesome—businesses just can’t get enough of it. What was the last book you read? Let me check…it was “The Real Deal” by Sandy Weill who created Citigroup. Great book and my second time reading it. What music CD do you recommend? Strawberry Moon by Grover Washington, Jr.—one of his best. What makes you a great MVP? I like to help people. I’m also friendly and cheerful—something every MVP should strive to be in their interactions with the user community. What is in your computer bag? My Motion Computing LE1600 Tablet PC and accessories—great machine and it boosts my productivity tremendously. What is the best thing that has happened since you have become an MVP? Having the opportunity to help more people with their technical problems. Becoming an MVP has given me more visibility, and there isn’t a week that goes by where I don’t get several people contacting me out of the blue with their problems. What is your motto? Same as Microsoft’s i.e. “Our Passion, Your Potential.” Great motto to build a business around. Who is your hero? Donald Trump, Sandy Weill, Steve Ballmer—anyone who has built something big that lasts and benefits others. What does success mean to you? Not having to worry about paying tomorrow’s bills! Posted Thursday, January 03, 2008 3:11 PM from Canadian IT Professionals | 0 Comments