Kurt Shintaku's Blog

UPDATE 12/12/12:
I just realized that this table is out of date.  Way, way out of date.  Please don’t refer to this table until I’ve updated it.  I’m keeping it here just for reference but right now, as you can see from the Software Assurance 2006 reference this thing is ancient.  I have an updated chart to post.

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Recently, I had someone ask me the question:

What’s the difference between Microsoft’s ‘Professional Support’ & ‘Premier Support’?”

Really big question, but it starts with the chart below:

X = Service is available.

¹ Any product that is in the mainstream phase of the product lifecycle and is eligible for SA Benefits, except Developer tools and Developer editions of all server and Home and Entertainment products.

² After business hours, support will be provided on issues that are business critical. Support will be in English; however, some local language interpreter services may be available. For those non-English language products where interpreter services are not available, customers will be routed to an English speaking support engineer using English to troubleshoot the problem. For those non-English language products where interpreter services are available, customers will have the option of using interpreter services if they prefer to speak in their local language. If we cannot reproduce the problem or read the logs in the local language, we will attempt to resolve the issue using other available resources; otherwise, we will notify you that the issue cannot be resolved in the customer’s local language. Requesting support in a local language may significantly delay resolution. Please visit the Volume Licensing Service Center to verify local language support availability in your country.

³ Products as mentioned in the lifecycle program Microsoft Support Lifecycle. Currently excluded from Premier and Essential Support are the Groove products, Microsoft TV and Microsoft Windows Storage Server.

⁴ Visit the Volume Licensing Service Center to verify local language availability in your country.

⁵ 24×7 professional support covers problems associated with software and hardware development, network connectivity, server-based technologies, and business-critical systems. Issues can also include problems associated with configuration and deployment of business workstations and servers.

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For more information about the differences between Microsoft Professional Support, 24/7 Problem Resolution Support, & Premier Support, refer to the following links:

• http://support.microsoft.com/gp/offerprophone_new
• http://support.microsoft.com/sasupport
• http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftservices/enterprise_customers.aspx

Kinda surprised this hasn’t gotten more attention given that it’s sort of a first.

On December 7th at 6:00PM, Xbox Live will be live streaming the “10th Annual Spike TV Video Game Awards” with groundbreaking new live interactivity for viewers.*  Online conversations, voting, shoutouts, extra commentary & content, etc.  It’s gonna be a big deal. 

One of the sneakily mentioned features will be that people who own the Xbox SmartGlass app for Windows 8, Android and iOS will be able to get extra content during the live broadcast.

FEATURING…?
Hosted by Samuel L. Jackson & produced by Mark Burnett, the event will showcase the exclusive world premieres of:

• Gears of War: Judgment
• South Park: The Stick of Truth
• The Last of Us

Additionally, there’ll be musical performances by LINKIN PARK and TENACIOUS D.

AWARD CONTENDERS
Top contenders for awards include Borderlands 2, Halo 4, & Journey – each with 7 nominations a piece.  Game of the Year contenders include Assassin’s Creed III, Dishonors, Journey, Mass Effect 3, and The Walking Dead: The Game. 

See the full nominees list at the link below.

• PRESS RELEASE: Spike TV Announces Nominees For 10th Annual Video Game Awards
  http://www.spike.com/press/2012/11/15/spike-tv-announces-nominees-for-10th-annual-video-game-awards/ 

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* Yes, Xbox LIVE Gold subscription required.  Oh, quit your whining guys.  This stuff doesn’t happen for free and if you’re a customer of mine that really can’t afford <rolleyes> an XBLGold subscription, ping me & I will hook you up with a year’s worth.  It’s Christmas after all.

Holy bejeezus.  This massive sampler is 118MB, 907 page compilation of pure SharePoint goodness.

Curated from 21 different Microsoft Press books about SharePoint, this is the ultimate guide for SharePoint administrators & techs to what you might want to purchase from Microsoft Press to add to your reference library.

Samples are taken from:

• Designing Solutions for Microsoft SharePoint 2010
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Administrator’s Companion
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Plain & Simple
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Administrator’s Pocket Consultant
• Managing and Implementing Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Projects
• Microsoft SharePoint Designer 2010 Step by Step
• Inside Microsoft SharePoint 2010
• Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 Step by Step
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Developer Reference
• Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 Inside Out
• MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-667): Configuring Microsoft
  SharePoint 2010
• Business Intelligence in Microsoft SharePoint 2010
• Developing Microsoft SharePoint Applications Using Windows Azure
• MOS 2010 Study Guide for Microsoft Word Expert, Excel Expert, Access,
  and SharePoint Exams
• Using Microsoft InfoPath 2010 with Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Step by Step
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010: Customizing My Site
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010: Deploying Cloud-Based Solutions
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010: Creating and Implementing Real-World Project
• Microsoft SharePoint 2010: Business Connectivity Services
• Working with Microsoft Office 365: Running Your Small Business in the Cloud
• Working with Microsoft® FAST(TM) Search Server 2010 for SharePoint®

Download it now from here:

• DOWNLOAD: Sharepoint 2010 eBook Sampler
  http://cdn.oreilly.com/oreilly/booksamplers/msp/sharepoint-mega-sampler4.pdf
• MICROSOFT PRESS:  O’Reilly Web Site for eBooks
  http://shop.oreilly.com/category/microsoft-press.do

FYI: In case you hadn’t seen the news, we announced Unified Access Gateway 2010 Service Pack 3.  We expect to make it available during the first quarter of calendar year 2013 (Q1 CY2013).  Service Pack 3 will provide support for:

• Windows 8 with Internet Explorer 10 clients
• Office 2013 clients (e.g. Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Publishing Exchange 2013
• Publishing SharePoint 2013
• RDP 8.0 client for Windows 7 SP1 (KB 2592687)

More details in the posts below:

• NEWS: UAG 2010 Service Pack 3 is in the works
  http://blogs.technet.com/b/edgeaccessblog/archive/2012/11/26/uag-2010-service-pack-3-is-in-the-works.aspx
• NEWS: UAG support for Windows 8…and other new tech
  http://blogs.technet.com/b/ben/archive/2012/11/29/uag-support-for-windows-8-and-other-new-tech.aspx

BlueHat v12 educates Microsoft engineers and executives on current and emerging security threats in an effort to help address security issues in Microsoft products and services and protect customers.

Why Attend

The BlueHat conference serves as a great opportunity for invited security researchers to connect with Microsoft engineers who are passionate about security, furthering a bidirectional exchange of ideas at the event. Past events have included topics such as

• Threat Landscape
• Web application security
• Mobile/Wireless devices
• Cloud and Virtualization
• Penetration testing and fuzzing
• Architecture flaws

• Network design and compromise
• Reverse engineering
• Exploit development
• Intrusion prevention
• Cryptography
• Lions and tigers and bears

Agenda Overview

Thursday, December 13, 2012

• 9:00-12:30pm Anti-Fraud & Abuse
• 12:30-1:30pm Security Outreach at Microsoft
• 1:30-5:15pm Cloud & Online Services

Friday, December 14, 2012

• 9:45-12:30pm Vices & Devices
• 12:30-1:30pm OSSC Lunch and Learn
• 1:30- 5:15pm Hot Topics

Date/Location:
BlueHat v12 will take place December 13-14, 2012 at the Microsoft Conference Center in Redmond, WA.

More information:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/cc261637.aspx

Yes… yes, I DO know this guy.  I’ll bet you know this dude, too.  He lives in his parent’s basement & is frequently known to use the phrase “M$” and “Windoze”.

FYI:  Just released to the press this morning:

Read more at:
http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2012/11/29/next-up-for-the-surface-family-surface-with-windows-8-pro-pricing.aspx

The final edition of “Introducing Windows 8: An Overview for IT Professionals” is available now in 3 formats:  PDF, MOBI (Kindle), and ePub.

Introducing Windows 8: An Overview for IT Professionals (168 pgs):

• PDF ebook (8.44MB)
  http://go.microsoft.com/FWLink/?Linkid=268295
• Mobi format for Kindle (15.1MB)
  http://go.microsoft.com/FWLink/?Linkid=268298
• ePub format (8.98MB)
  http://go.microsoft.com/FWLink/?Linkid=268297

There are 11 chapters in this 8.44MB eBook from Microsoft Press.  Get a headstart evaluating Window 8—guided by a Windows expert who’s worked extensively with the software since the preview releases. Based on final, release-to-manufacturing (RTM) software, this book introduces new features and capabilities, with scenario-based insights demonstrating how to plan for, implement, and maintain Windows 8 in an enterprise environment. Get the high-level information you need to begin preparing your deployment now.

Topics include:

• Performance, reliability, and security features
• Deployment options
• Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit
• Windows PowerShell™ 3.0 and Group Policy
• Managing and sideloading apps
• Internet Explorer® 10
• Virtualization, Client Hyper-V, and Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack
• Recovery features

Does this situation sound familiar on your Windows 8 PC?

You try to start up a Windows 8 ‘Modern’ app and after a short pause, the app closes and leaves you in the START menu… or the desktop?  And sometimes the desktop looks like it’s restarting the EXPLORER.EXE process and is redisplaying the taskbar, the system tray, etc.

I’ve heard of this issue popping up on a few PCs.   This is often the graphics driver you’re using.  Two things to consider:

1. OLD GRAPHICS DRIVER?
   This may be an issue with your PC’s installed display driver.  The recent Intel integrated graphics driver update that was published on Windows Update as an optional update, for example, will fix this problem for many people that depend on the processor’s integrated GPU.  If you go to Desktop –> Control Panel –> Windows Update and look for optional updates you may see a graphics driver update that may fix this issue.
2. DISCRETE GPU ONBOARD?
   Alternatively, on systems that have both “integrated graphics” (such as the Intel HD 3000 Integrated Graphics) as well as a discrete GPU onboard, such as an AMD Radeon 6630M chip, this can get hairy because it could be caused by issues with the proprietary graphics display driver (which often switches between the integrated graphics & the discrete graphics chip to minimize power consumption. 
1. Check with your OEM for a driver update.  This is your best bet to a resolution.
2. As a backup plan, if you can’t get an updated graphics driver from the OEM/manufacturer, consider disabling one of the GPUs in the BIOS.  This has been known to work amongst folks I know.

EXAMPLE:  MY SONY VAIO S – SWITCHING INTEL/RADEON GPU
One example of this is I own a Sony VAIO S (Model VPCSA25GX) and it has a switching graphics driver that leverages the onboard Intel Integration Graphics in the Sandy Bridge chipset for power efficiency when I’m using Word, Excel, blahblahblah.  But when serious graphics are required for certain things like the START page or Starcraft 2, etc. the discrete AMD Radeon HD 6630M GPU takes over.

The originally published Windows 8 driver on Sony’s web site which I wrote about HERE, was frankly buggy and resulted in Explorer crashes and Modern App crashes all the time.  Just a couple weeks ago, Sony published an updated driver on their site, a whopping 321MB file, that fixed my issues.

For those of you with a Sony Vaio S, here’s the link to the driver:

• DOWNLOAD: AMD Radeon™ HD 6470M / 6630M and Intel® HD Graphics Update for Windows® 8 64-bit v9.1.0.0
  (Published 11/1/12 – 321.66MB)
  http://esupport.sony.com/US/p/swu-download.pl?mdl=VPCSA25GX&upd_id=8128&os_group_id=24 

Wanna see an 18min video demonstrating the key features of Windows Phone 8 care of Joe Belfiore?