Kurt Shintaku's Blog

<taken from a live event focused on the Citrix & Microsoft partnership>

Bill Burley from Citrix and Brad Anderson from Microsoft explain how the Citrix partnership with Microsoft will dramatically simplify VDI deployments while maintaining a great user experience.

When Citrix and Microsoft renewed their longstanding partnership, what does that mean for customers? This panel discussion from the Citrix-Microsoft live event on August 23 answers that question.

Microsoft Client Access License (CAL) Suite Bridges are used when you are transitioning from a CAL Suite (onpremises) to a comparable Product and Online Service combination.

This is an overview of the Client Access Licenses Suite Bridges and it contains details for Intune & Microsoft Enterprise Mobility Suite.

• DOWNLOAD: Client Access License Suite Bridges Overview
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/8/9/68964284-864d-4a6d-aed9-f2c1f8f23e14/CAL_Suite_Bridges_Overview.pdf

Microsoft has quickly become the market leader in cloud-centric Machine Learning due to its comprehensive, easy-to-access toolset & designer, it’s highly scalable, extensible & accessible cloud-based engine, and its key ability to share Machine Learning models between data scientists & modelers.

If you are interested in learning about this great service within Azure there’s a lot of training & references available at no cost:

• Azure Machine Learning Jumpstart
  https://mva.microsoft.com/en-us/training-courses/getting-started-with-microsoft-azure-machine-learning-8425?l=ehQZFoKz_7904984382
• Machine Learning documentation
  https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/services/machine-learning/
• Predictive Analytics with Microsoft Azure Machine Learning
  http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/26689.predictive-analytics-with-microsoft-azure-machine-learning.aspx

edX TRAINING COURSES ON MACHINE LEARNING
Additionally, edX has hosted a series of free training courses online in Azure Machine Learning that you can take advantage of:

• Data Science Essentials: https://www.edx.org/course/data-science-essentials-microsoft-dat203-1x-0#!
• Applied Machine Learning: https://www.edx.org/course/applied-machine-learning-microsoft-dat203-3x#!
• Principles of Machine Learning: https://www.edx.org/course/principles-machine-learning-microsoft-dat203-2x-0#!

MICROSOFT DATA SCIENCE SUMMIT 2016 RECORDINGS
Microsoft’s recent Data Science Summit (2016) also recorded all their sessions for folks to learn from, and they are available for viewing here:

• Microsoft Machine Learning & Data Science Summit 2016
  https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Machine-Learning-and-Data-Sciences-Conference/Data-Science-Summit-2016

AZURE MACHINE LEARNING STUDIO OVERVIEW & CHEAT SHEET
It is also possible to get a high-level view of the capabilities of Machine Learning Studio by downloading the Azure ML Studio capabilities diagram along with the Azure Machine Learning Algorithm Cheat Sheet and get help figuring out how to choose a machine learning algorithm for your solution.

• POST: Overview diagram of Azure Machine Learning Studio capabilities
  https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/articles/machine-learning-studio-overview-diagram/
• DOWNLOAD: Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio Capabilities Overview
  http://aka.ms/mlstudiooverview

REFERENCE: “Microsoft Azure Essentials: Azure Machine Learning” & “Data Science in the Cloud with Microsoft Azure Machine Learning and R”
We have available for download, the free ebook, Microsoft Azure Essentials: Azure Machine Learning (ISBN 9780735698178), by Jeff Barnes as well as a free eBook from O’Reilly on Azure Machine Learning entitled, “Data Science in the Cloud with Microsoft Azure Machine Learning and R”.

• DOWNLOAD: “Microsoft Azure Essentials: Azure Machine Learning”
  (all formats (PDF, Mobi and ePub): http://www.microsoftvirtualacademy.com/ebooks#9780735698178

• DOWNLOAD: Free eBook, “Data Science in the Cloud with Microsoft Azure Machine Learning and R”
  https://azureinfo.microsoft.com/CO-Azure-CNTNT-FY15-02Feb-Data-Science-in-the-Cloud.html

[a.k.a. What’s the difference between Outlook for iOS/Android & OWA for iOS/Android]

I’ve gotten this question a lot recently so I’m just gonna post my answer here.

“The new Outlook app replaces OWA for iPhone/iPad/Android. We are leaving the OWA for iPhone/iPad/Android apps in market for the time being because there are some advanced Office 365 and Exchange Server features which are not yet available in Outlook. Customers who require these advanced features can continue to use OWA for iPhone/iPad/Android until those features are available in Outlook.”

So to be clear: 
We are phasing out the OWA app for iPhone/iPad/Android.

• Microsoft is not making any further investments in the OWA app tool.
• There is no “next version” to my knowledge coming of the OWA app as it is not part of the long term roadmap for mobile clients.
• Customers should plan to support the new Outlook app in their strategic IT roadmap, not OWA app.
• The scenarios in which the OWA app still makes sense are when functionality is required from the list of features that OWA app still has that Outlook app does not.  This should be treated as a stop gap solution while these features are added to Outlook app. (I do not have a timeline for availability however all of these as I understand it, are under development)

WHAT ARE THE FEATURES THAT ARE MISSING IN OUTLOOK APP?
This is what I’ve gleaned so far, however I may be missing some differences, so don’t consider this definitive:

• Support for Information Rights Management (IRM) protected email
• Support for Apps for Outlook
• Attach hard file from cloud storage
  (i.e. Converting a cloud document to a hard attachment to send in a new mail from OneDrive/OneDrive for Business.)
• Certain specific Exchange Activesync Policies (Most policies do exist):
• EAS Policy – Pin lock (app level)
• EAS Policy – Wipe after N incorrect password attempts
• EAS Policy – Maximum inactivity time lock
• Empty Spam/Junk folder

• Hard delete from Deleted Item

NOW AVAILABLE ON-DEMAND

Moving into the future, increases in our technological capabilities will be powered by technology out of our sight. Harry Shum, Executive Vice President of Microsoft’s Technology and Research, calls this the “invisible revolution.” This revolution has become possible because of emerging technologies that didn’t exist a decade ago, like cloud computing, internet of things (IoT) and artificial intelligence.

Join our special event dedicated to how these emerging technologies are changing the world. You’ll hear leading researchers discuss and explore:

• What’s possible with artificial intelligence and machine learning.
• How IoT is being used to make farms more productive and feed more people around the world.
• Human-computer interaction and the next wave of user interfaces controlled by voice,
  gaze or gesture.
• How data storage is becoming cheaper and energy-efficient by putting data centers under water.

Review the agenda of 15 speakers in & view the On-demand Recording of the Emerging Tech Virtual Summit here:

• VIDEO: Emerging Tech Virtual Summit – On-Demand Recording
  (3 hours) https://vts.inxpo.com/scripts/Server.nxp?LASCmd=AI:4;F:QS!10100&ShowKey=33380

Visio Online is a new way to view and share Visio drawings on the web.

You upload a .vsdx file to the cloud on either OneDrive for Business or SharePoint Online. Then people can view the file in a web browser, even if they don’t have Visio installed.  (Reiterating, this is an online viewer within Office 365 Online & is NOT an editor for .vsdx files.)

Visio Online Preview works with the current versions of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Internet Explorer.

AVAILABILITY
Visio Online is currently in preview release so that customers can get an idea of what it’s like. Visio Online Preview is currently available to Office 365 First Release customers.  We expect Visio Online to be generally available by the end of 2016.

Here’s the online docs:

• WHAT IS VISIO ONLINE? https://support.office.com/en-us/article/What-is-Visio-Online-991f80ce-ffed-4ada-9b66-c51a114cdaac?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US
• VISIO ONLINE FAQ
  https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Visio-Online-Frequently-Asked-Questions-e6647040-2fca-42ec-9fa5-d16a4e39e0ee?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US
• BASIC TASKS IN VISIO ONLINE
  https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Basic-tasks-in-Visio-Online-ab1ba49f-1c04-40c1-a7ba-f6cc47a0cdf7?ui=en-US&rs=en-US&ad=US

Understanding how your users are using Microsoft Office 365 is extremely important to you as an Office 365 admin. It allows you to monitor adoption, plan training, and to report back to your management with meaningful insights.

In 2016, we are introducing a variety of new reporting capabilities including:

• Activity reporting dashboard in the Office 365 admin center, giving you usage details down to the individual user level
• APIs, making it easy to integrate the data into your custom apps
  (Usage Reports API Preview coming Q4 2016)
• Power BI Content Pack, letting you combine the data with your user’s information. 
  (Usage Reports PowerBI Content Pack Preview Coming Q4 2016)

Here’s some examples of the usage reports that are included in the Power BI Content Pack:

• Communications
• Collaboration
• Office Activation
• OneDrive Usage
• Top Users – OneDrive
• SFB Usage
• Yammer Usage
• Top Users – Office 365
• SharePoint Usage
• Top Users – SharePoint

Watch this demo-heavy session to learn about the new capabilities and hear how administrators have been using the insights to drive feature adoption in their company.

Official Ignite On-demand video:

• VIDEO: Understand your users: what’s new in Office 365 Usage Reporting
  https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos/1260
• DOWNLOAD: PowerPoint Slide deck
  https://onedrive.live.com/embed?cid=6B7CF2BD5F47F487&resid=6B7CF2BD5F47F487%21163&authkey=AIDzH-3Ge_x0yPs&em=2&wdAr=1.7777777777777776

HOW TO SIGN UP FOR THE PREVIEW
If you are interested in participating in the preview, please following these instructions as documented in the presentation:

1. Send an email with your tenant name to O365UsagePowerBIPreview *AT* service *DOT* microsoft *DOT* com
2. We’ll prepare your data.  This process will take about 1-2 weeks
3. You will receive an email with access instructions

(The original 2015 announcement of Usage Reporting is located here: https://blogs.office.com/2015/05/05/whats-new-in-office-365-administration-from-microsoft-ignite/)

Are you a web developer?  Check out this new infographic “How web devs can eliminate distractions and cut right to the code”:

• DOWNLOAD: Infographic of How Web devs can Eliminate Distactions
  https://microsoft.docs.contently.com/v/how-web-devs-can-eliminate-distractions

Cutting Right to the Code: A web developer’s guide to help eliminate non-coding tasks and get code done faster
Also download our latest eBook, “Cutting Right to the Code: A web developer’s guide to help eliminate non-coding tasks and get code done faster”.

Minimizing your attack surface area with network-level security is one pain point that every web dev experiences. There are also necessary tasks like backups, scale planning, and logging, that cost you precious time too. This eBook, along with the included code samples, sample apps, and ARM templates, helps web developers eliminate a number of non-coding tasks and get coding faster. Some of the key areas where you’ll gain insight include identifying usage patterns and trends, hooking into content distribution networks, customizing search implementation, implementing your app’s user and access story, and configuring servers to scale out automatically.

Grab it here:

• DOWNLOAD: eBook, “Cutting Right to the Code: A web developer’s guide to help eliminate non-coding tasks and get code done faster”
  https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/resources/cutting-right-to-the-code-web/
  (Direct download available here: https://microsoft.docs.contently.com/v/cutting-right-to-the-code-a-web-developers-guide)

Missed the Microsoft Machine Learning & Data Science Summit 2016?

There were over 40 sessions delivered in Atlanta on September 26 – 27, 2016 from thought leaders and Microsoft engineers on the latest Big Data, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Open Source techniques and technologies.

See recordings of all the sessions here:

• Microsoft Machine Learning & Data Science Summit 2016
  https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Machine-Learning-and-Data-Sciences-Conference/Data-Science-Summit-2016

Missed Microsoft Ignite 2016? 

Here’s what Corp VP Julia White says were the “best parts” of Ignite 2016:

• The best part of Microsoft Ignite? How about 10 best parts.
  https://channel9.msdn.com/Blogs/MicrosoftIgnite/The-best-part-of-Microsoft-Ignite-How-about-10-best-parts

Check out the recordings of the sessions and keynotes at:

• Microsoft Ignite On-Demand
  Watch 800+ hours of idea-provoking content including Microsoft Ignite keynotes, overviews, deep dives, and more.
  https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos