Kurt Shintaku's Blog

It’s coming! 

The construction of the Microsoft Store at the Westfield Century City Shopping Mall is underway and now everyone down the street in Beverly Hills knows about it.  (http://westfield.com/centurycity/)

As you can see Century City Shopping Mall is an open air mall and a showcase of Westfield Shopping Centers.  Sitting across from the “Bloomingdales Men’s Department” – right near the sit-down tables of “Pinkberry” – the Microsoft Store’s footprint is large enough to stretch nearly completely across the north entrance/exit of Bloomies.  (It’s taken the spot of the old “Origins” nature store.)

So attention Los Angeles:  Soon, there’ll be a NEW full service location to buy a Windows PC at in Los Angeles from knowledgeable, friendly staff.  If you’ve lived around here, there’s really not too many choices for where you can go to get a Windows PC from a store with selection, knowledgeable staff, a service department, software, etc.  For desktop & laptop sales, the only major location around here for the average consumer is “Best Buy”.  (Fry’s Electronics, for you ubertechs, is a good 20+ min drive on Los Angeles’ freeways)  The only alternative with a broad selection is sadly… the Internet. 

So where exactly is it in the mall?

Parking is free at Century City Shopping Mall for 3 hours.  There’s a monster food court that caters to “the region” with such culinary delights as Korean Barbecue, multiple sushi restaurants, and even a “Lawry’s The Prime Rib”.

(Be forewarned:  This is one of the “malls to the stars” due to it’s proximity to Beverly Hills and BelAir.  You may actually see the craziness they call the ‘paparazzi’.  I’ve seen the TMZ camera crew there on more than one location.  Even Harvey Levin himself once.)

I guess while I’m posting, I’d might as post what tech podcasts I listen to religiously.  I have a Zune Pass but admittedly I listen to music maybe a couple times weekly.  On the other hand, I listen to podcasts on the other hand EVERY MORNING, NOON, and NIGHT.  In the shows, on the road, and in the evening while walking the dog – it’s the best way to keep up.

Here’s what I listen to:

• Tech News Today
  http://leo.am/podcasts/tnt
  Yes, I listen to this daily.  I like Tom Merritt and I admire him in the same way I have come to admire Leo Laporte.  Not for their understanding of technology which often times is shallow, but more for their incredible skills as broadcasters and notable achievements in such broadcasting roles.  Being a host is not an easy job AT ALL and I am always in admiration of their ability to transition, smooth over, and otherwise push forward.
• G4.com Web Shows
  http://g4tv.com/10play/podcasts/56/
  G4TVdotcomWebShows.xml
  This feed has some great commentary about games & the gaming industry – Sessler’s Soapbox & Feedback in particular.  I have mixed thoughts about this podcast feed however G4 forces you to download EVERY PODCAST THEY PRODUCE.  They don’t appear to separate each podcast into it’s own RSS feed probably because G4 reallllllly wants to have all their content viewed so they insist you download their “comic book” podcast and the “MMO” podcast – regardless if you ever actually want any of that.  Adam Sessler’s commentary however is enough to compel me to hit the ‘subscribe’ button however.
• Maximum PC No BS Podcast
  http://feeds.feedburner.com/maximumpc/1337
  If you like Windows & PC hardware, this podcast is for you.  A favorite of mine, listening to the Maximum PC podcast is like hanging out with your friends.  Some people ramble, others go off on tangents, some talk about stuff they did the other day, others talk about the state of technology.  They cover stuff that was reviewed in the magazine but more importantly they let Senior Editor Gordon Mah Ung rant – and rant he does – about basically anything and everything.  Listening to Gordon rant is like having the little voice in the back of your head have a turn at the microphone.
• KOXM Radio – The Official Xbox Magazine Podcast
  http://oxmpodcast.podbean.com/feed/
  Ryan McCaffrey, Official Xbox Magazine editor runs this podcast and talks about Xbox gaming from the magazine’s perspective… well, sometimes.  See, I keep going back and forth on this podcast because the host sometimes talks minimally about Xbox instead going off on some story about his iPhone or something completely unrelated to the podcast topic, otherwise wasting my time with things I’m not even remotely interested in.  Hey Ryan?  Reign it in or get a co-host to help you reign it in, like Paul Thurrott does with Leo Laporte.
• Windows Weekly with Paul Thurrott
  http://www.leoville.tv/podcasts/ww.xml
  And then there’s the big daddy of podcasting.  Paul Thurrott’s Windows Weekly podcast along with Leo Laporte, TWIT network founder & CEO runs the most successful tech podcast for Microsoft technology in the world.  Reviewing all things Windows and a lot of things “Microsoft”, Paul uses his decades of experience to weigh in on the importance of some things and the hype of others.  Windows Phone 7 users will want to definitely subscribe as Paul’s a big fan of WP7.
• Windows Phone Radio
  http://wpradio.podcast.windowsphone7.com/rss
  Produced by Brian Seitz & Matt Akers, the Windows Phone Radio podcast is an official Microsoft podcast that lasts usually no more than a half hour and goes over nothing by Windows Phone related matters… which is interesting if you don’t care what the perspective is.  Some days, they cater to the user audience.  Others they cater to the developer audience.  And yet others, it’s hard to tell who they’re talking to as they tend take odd tangents a lot.  Nonetheless, if you have a Windows Phone 7 device you have to at least give this podcast a try to see if it’s relevant to you.
• WPCentral Podcast
  http://feeds2.feedburner.com/WmexpertsPodcast
  The creation of Daniel Rubino, aka Malatesta, the WPCentral podcast was always informative and a very interesting 3rd party look at Windows Phone.  Malatesta tends to break news stories quicker than the other phone sites because he focuses exclusively on the Windows Phone platform.  Alas, they don’t broadcast regularly any more.  In fact it’s hard to tell WHEN they’re going to broadcast.  The last podcast?  MARCH 2011.  Sigh.  Here’s to hoping…
• IGN Game Scoop
  http://feeds.ign.com/ignfeeds/podcasts/gamescoop/
  Masters of the general gaming world and the new owners of 1UP, IGN is the top shelf reviewers of gaming in a world full of game reviewers.  If you’re not into Nintendo or Sony gaming and otherwise prefer Xbox 360 and PC gaming, sometimes this podcast can drag because it’s got so much content across so many different platforms.  But that’s what God made the fast-forward button for I suppose.  It’s definitely worth listening to.
• Xbox Live’s Major Nelson Radio
  http://feeds.feedburner.com/mnitunes
  The venerable Larry Hyrb, Xbox Live’s Major Nelson has one of the longest running gaming podcasts on the market.  What makes this podcast so interesting is his supporting cast, Xbox Live Operations Manager “E”, Xbox Developer Laura “Lollipop” Massey, and Xbox policy enforcement chief, Stephen Toulouse.  Hearing their banter and perspectives is always informative… even if Larry can’t seem to keep the podcast Xbox focused, often going off on cooking, BluRay, iPhone/iPad, TiVo, Nintendo portable gaming, etc.

Since I can’t seem to keep up with the blog due to either constant illness, emergency work, out-of-office situations or whatever, I thought I’d just post off the top of my head, the most awesome people I follow on Twitter in the tech field:

@edbott
The notorious ZDnet journalist and long time “Microsoft beat reporter”.  As long lived as Mary Jo Foley but a lot more fact-based, as intellectually astute as Paul Thurrott but a little less emotional… Ed’s twitter feed should be a staple in every IT professional’s Twitter account.

@winrumors
a.k.a. Tom Warren.  Think ZDnet’s Mary Jo but… male.  He has his sharp ear to the tracks in many respects better than Mary Jo does and comes up with a lot of scoops.  His accuracy deviates appropriately as well however so YMMV on the facts.

@johnobeto
Microsoft technology small business consultant and one of the single most active social media monsters I’ve ever read.  I thought I was good:  John is better.  I wish I had the nuclear reactor that powers his passion for all things Microsoft, HP, and Lakers.

@obinnaosobalu
Obinna is actually how I stumbled upon John Obeto.  A Nigerian IT consultant halfway around the world, Obinna reports on Microsoft stuff that you might otherwise miss.  A great feed to balance out a Twitter portfolio.

@everythingms
I don’t know who this is or what their motivations are but this feed duplicates everything I follow and some things I might have otherwise missed Microsoft wise.  Good feed to reiterate certain tweets.

@thewindowsclub
India-based Windows Club is easily one of the best feeds for Microsoft tools, tech, and gadgetry that are affiliated with Microsoft & Windows in particular.  This is a must-follow for anyone that wants not just concepts but details about Windows technology.

@maryjofoley
Mary Jo.  Well, I resisted following her rumor feed for a long time based on some past articles she’s written but I concluded that anyone that vested in Microsoft technology must not just be at least experienced but also somewhat wise in the ways of our company and that’s probably a good thing.  Besides… despite her often overreaching speculation, she seems like an honestly nice person from interviews I’ve seen and that gets a lot of points in my book.

@msonline
This is our Cloud Twitter feed specifically from the Office 365 & BPOS team.  If you have an interest in the our Software-as-a-Service play that utterly trumps Google Apps in virtually every way, you should follow them.

@msdave
My friend Dave Trupkin.  Dave’s got bags of experience with our Application Virtualization technology and if you believe – as you should – that App Virtualization is the future, then you should follow Dave.  Now if he’d just stop broadcasting his stupid Fitbit stats…

@msftsecresponse
Simply put – if the fit hits the shan security wise, this is where you’ll hear it first.  They rarely broadcast on this feed but if they do, you can bet it’s important.

@chapman
Stephen Chapman – long time Microsoft & Windows tech and current blogger for ZDnet around Search Engine Optimization.  He runs http://msftkitchen.com.  Also, he’s a genuinely nice guy.  A great feed for lots of stuff Windows wise.

@windowsphone
The official Twitter feed for Windows Phone.  Nuff said?  No?  Well, when new offers or new stuff comes up, this is where they post.  And post they do.  If you’re a user or a fan of Windows Phone, you can anticipate having your opinions echoed at least a little here.

@thurrott
Cranky.  Opinionated.  Intelligent.  Paul Thurrott is the famous creator of the WinSuperSite and long time follower of Windows technology.  Editor at Penton Media, Paul speaks on the Windows Weekly podcast with Leo Laporte on the TWIT network and is an must-listen for anyone in the IT field.  Just wish he’s stop talking about Apple – bad or good – and just get back to relevant Windows stuff.

@mosspuppet
Here’s the weird part:  MossPuppet – aka Walt Mossberg Puppet – is the creation of Brian Hogg and reports on real items of the day in his own irreverent, comedic way.  The thing is:  A lot of times, his reporting is actually accurate and educational.  It’s like Sesame Street for IT professionals.  Hey Brian… there’s an idea for you.

@robertmclaws
Master Windows expert and long time 3rd party blogger on Microsoft topics, Robert is never one to shy away from an opinion.  He knows that many people depend on Microsoft for their livelihood and doesn’t back away from supporting that.

@malatesta77
a.k.a. Daniel Rubino, Malatesta77 is one of the best Windows Phone reporters in the world and the keeper of the Windows Phone beat at WPCENTRAL.COM.  If I could, I’d send this guy any Xbox 360 games we sell just for keeping up with all the ups and downs of our ridiculous mobile strategy.  Hey Daniel… if you read this, consider it an open invitation.

I’m a tad surprised by this move because unlike a lot of other free “eBooks” published by 3rd parties that are often just shilling their other properties and IP, this is a really good book.  If you flip through all 170 pages I guarantee that you will learn something. 

For example:

• What’s the difference between scaling your desktop & simply changing the resolution?
• How do you take advantage of multitouch gesture support for capacitive touch slates/tablets running Windows 7?

Here’s the announcement:

I’m delighted to announce that my 170 page Windows 7 Power Users Guide is now completely FREE to download and own as an eBook. The book is for people of all technical ability from complete novices to IT Pros.

The book contains 16 chapters and is a guide on how to get the very best out of Windows 7 from installation to configuration and advanced operations. It includes step-by-step guides, screenshots and diagrams on every page, quick tips throughout the book and is presented in full colour.

Read more at Mike Halsey’s web site at:
http://www.thelongclimb.com/2011/05/06/the-windows-7-power-users-guide-ebook-is-now-free/

• DOWNLOAD:  Free eBook “Windows 7 Power Users Guide”
  http://www.thelongclimb.com/books/win7powerfree.pdf

You’ve doubtless heard the “buzz” about Windows PowerShell – it’s in everything from Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 to SharePoint 2010, Exchange Server 2010, and even SQL Server 2008 R2. But what is Windows PowerShell? A scripting language? A collection of command-line utilities? A .NET programming language? More importantly, what can you do with Windows PowerShell to make administration faster, less repetitive, more consistent, and more efficient?

Come find out. Don Jones, Microsoft MVP Award recipient, Microsoft TechNet Magazine columnist, WindowsITPro.com contributor, and author of the newly-released Learn Windows PowerShell in a Month of Lunches (Manning) shows you how Windows PowerShell works, and gives you a glimpse at all it can do. He’ll show you how everyone from the help desk to high-end administrators can benefit from the shell without scripting, and demonstrate how the shell can be used by scripters and programmers to create reusable tools. Most importantly, Don will introduce some of the key underlying mechanisms of the shell itself, helping you learn how to teach yourself administrative techniques in Exchange Server, SharePoint, SQL Server, System Center, Windows Server, and more.

We’re entering an age when a primary distinction between “high-end” IT professionals and “low-end” technicians will be their skill in Windows PowerShell. As Don once famously said, “it’s learn the shell… or start asking, ‘would you like fries with that?’” Don’s helped thousands of IT professionals get started on the Windows PowerShell path – why not make 2011 the Year You Learned the Shell?

TechNet Events Presents: “Meet Windows PowerShell – No Matter Who You Are”
Featuring Author and MVP Don Jones

TIME/DATE:
Starts: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 9:00 AM
Ends: Tuesday, May 10, 2011 12:00 PM
Time zone: (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)
Welcome Time: 8:30 AM

LOCATION:
Microsoft LA Office MPR 1&2
333 S Grand Ave
Suite 3300
Los Angeles California 90071

Registration:
Contact me for registration details if you are a customer of mine.

Wow.  An affordable ruggedized Windows tablet? 

This is a seriously beautiful tablet and is clearly designed for serious business use… and while capable, not for Angry Birds.

Running Windows 7 Professional (32bit), this unit is ruggedized for protection against moisture, heat, dust, and drops.  It also has a bright durable screen for outdoor viewing and sports a total weight of under 2 lb.

Here’s the specs:

• 10.1” wide HD LED-backlit display with 1366 x 768 resolution, feat. Gorilla Glass
• Intel Atom z670 ES (1.5Ghz) leveraging Intel Oaktrail chipset
• 1GB DDR2 RAM (2GB option)
• 32GB SSD (64GB/128GB options)
• Capacitive touch & Active Digitizer-based Stylus input (N-trig)
• Forward facing camera: 1.3MP
• Back facing camera: 3.0MP
• Integrated graphics acceleration with HD video playback
• Wireless AGN & Cellular
• Bluetooth 3.0
• SD card slot
• Integrated speakers
• 4 cell battery – 8 hour battery life
• Options:
• Keyboard
• Barcode reader
• MSR or fingerprint reader

There’s an AWESOME review of this device at RuggedPCReview:

• Motion Computing CL900
  http://www.ruggedpcreview.com/3_slates_motion_cl900.html

Some of you know I track our quarterly & annual earnings.  I even shared a sanitized version of my spreadsheet one year I think.

Here’s a snapshot of Microsoft REVENUE (i.e. money generated) year-over-year in Q3 FY11:

As you can see, there really hasn’t been much of a dip in overall sales of Windows.  Business division revenue (Office & Dynamics) burst out of the gate to lead all divisions due to Office 2010 purchases and what I assume is the long awaited upgrade availability of Dynamics CRM 2011.  Server & Tools continues to chug along consistently as expected and while Entertainment & Devices continues to grow with the market acceptance of Xbox 360 & Kinect, Online Services revenue is actually up (but barely relative to the other divisions) relative to last year with Bing’s marketshare growth.

Here’s a snapshot of Microsoft INCOME (i.e. profit) year-over-year in Q3 FY11:

This is obviously a little more interesting because it take into account expenditures.  Contrary to what’s being said in the media, Windows didn’t so much as lose sales as much as its operating costs increased (marketing, development, etc.) likely to sustain mindshare & momentum through to Q4.  Meanwhile Business division’s increases in revenue translated directly to increases in profit.  Server & Tools continues to grow consistently alongside revenue growth just as Entertainment & Devices does. 

Online Services however has a BIG sucking sound coming from it in the Operating Income department.  This of course is because of the massive operating costs associated with Microsoft’s datacenters & our bet on cloud services such as Office 365 & Windows Azure.  Until Office 365 is released or we finish building the datacenters out (Microsoft owns 4 of the 10 largest datacenters in the world), I don’t anticipate this getting better but it’s all strategic investment in an area of technology that as a company, we are betting the farm on, possibly more so than any other initiative we have at Microsoft.

Yes, this is an excuse.  I realize that there are people that somehow or another find my musings interesting – stuff that was never intended beyond my customer base.

And I’m fully cogniscent of the fact that not much has gone up on this blog and I’m sorry.  Basically, the net net is that I got into an accident that caused a head injury, had a family emergency that took me off line for a few weeks and subsequently came down with the flu.  Nice ‘eh?

Suffice it to say, I have a MOUNTAIN of raw information to process and post.

And believe me – if I had minions like in Despicable Me, I’d totally use them to process this crap.  I’ve got internal stuff, external stuff, stuff I’ve favorited on Twitter.  Stuff from RSS feeds I’ve collected.  Just STUFF.  And I just need a couple 5 hour Energy Drinks and about 96 uninterrupted hours to go through it all.

But that ain’t gonna happen.  ‘Cause I’ve got kids and I work for the company that never sleeps.

So, please bear with me.  I’ll get this junk out as quickly as I can.  In the meantime, here’s some of the Twitter junk that I have to process:

• Ribbon Hero 2 : Microsoft has turned Office into a Game!: If you’re going to spend time immersed in the inner wo… http://bit.ly/fAXPnD
• Didn’t know my eyebrows could raise this high. Firefox evangelist switches to Bing. Google search "completely useless" http://bit.ly/feymD3
• Microsoft releases Microsoft Safety Scanner, a free on-demand antivirus tool: Microsoft has just released an on-… http://bit.ly/fDAnAk
• Microsoft announces IE10 Platoform Preview at MIX11 http://bit.ly/gPJjBT
• There for all to see was a statement by the Department of Justice contradicting Google on one of its basic FISMA claims http://is.gd/l2vrBZ
• RT must read @MSFTnews: US court unseals documents revealing gov rejection of Google’s claim on security certification. http://bit.ly/epzOr5
• Intel Unveils New Atom "Oak Trail" Processor for Tablets http://bit.ly/eVSoUl
• Download Windows 8 Clock Screensaver for Windows 7: Inspired by Microsoft’s next version of the Windows operatin… http://bit.ly/gZxGrJ
• DaRT 7 Beta Now Available http://bit.ly/ifCIth
• Management and Security Enhancements for Enterprise Customers with DaRT and MBAM http://bit.ly/hxD4yB
• Are all WP7 phones created equal? WP Bench benchmarking software released http://bit.ly/fX72Bz
• Remove trial software with Slim Computer program http://bit.ly/g1BqZ9
• Via IntoWindows: IE9 Tweaker Plus: Personalize Internet Explorer 9 Browser http://goo.gl/fb/VLZsv

[artwork taken from http://leomanlapera.deviantart.com/art/Minion-despicable-me-195086389 – yes, it’s so pretty and well done, I wanna make sure that the author gets credit]

[I’m late posting this.  It was sitting in my drafts.  I thought I’d posted this months ago.  Sigh.]

Considering how little attention she gives to Windows on Tablets, (sob) you know this has got to be reasonably exciting if Mary Jo Foley actually decided to write about it on her “All About Microsoft” blog.  Yay!

• ALL ABOUT MICROSOFT:  Fujitsu Stylistic Windows 7 slate: Microsoft’s latest, greatest iPad competitor?
  http://www.zdnet.com/blog/microsoft/fujitsu-stylistic-windows-7-slate-microsofts-latest-greatest-ipad-competitor/8778

The Quick Rundown:

1. INCLUDES BOTH CAPACITIVE MULTITOUCH & ACTIVE DIGITIZER
   This means you can use both your finger on the screen to manipulate screen content and a built-in stylus for entering data via handwriting or otherwise.
2. BUILT-IN TRUSTED PLATFORM MODULE CHIP
   This is the only Slate device running Windows 7 that has a TPM chip in it, which can provide native DirectAccess (Secure VPN-less connectivity to corporate Intranets) and rich AES-secure BitLocker Drive Encryption.
3. 10 HOUR BATTERY LIFE
   This is also has a ludicrous 10hr battery life with a super-speed 32 or 64GB SSD drive & a highly efficient Intel Oaktrail chipset that enables high performance 1080p full screen video without killing battery life.

Fujitsu Stylistic Q550 Tablet Specs

• Runs Windows 7 Professional
• Ships with Fujitsu touch friendly UI
• Capacitive Multitouch Screen surface
• Optional Active Digitizer / Pen stylus and UI layer
• 10-inch display with 1366 x 768 pixels resolution
• Powered by an Intel Z670 Oak Trail processor
• 2GB of RAM, and 64GB SSD
• Front- and rear-facing cameras
• Extended 10 hour 4-cell removable battery
• USB port
• TPM security chip
• Optional 3G Cellular Networking
• Weight of about 1.5kg
• Digital fingerprint recognition system on board
• Smartcard reader for authentication
• Comes with two different docking stations
• Starting price at $799 (increases for optional components)

Other good articles:

• http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/28/fujitsus-tablet-is-easy-like-a-hammer-cozy-as-a-scarf-and-nev/
• http://liliputing.com/2011/02/fujitsu-stylistic-q550-slate-pc-to-ship-this-spring-for-under-800.html

Another Windows 7-based slate device has hit the market – this time from Acer. The Acer Iconia Tab W500 is a lightweight 2.14lb slate WITH A DETACHABLE KEYBOARD.

Let me repeat that: What makes this unit unique is the keyboard is detachable via a magnetic linking mechanism. Don’t let the photo to the right fool you – this device is a Windows 7-powered SLATE all the way & the keyboard can remain detached and in your laptop bag just for when you need it.

Awesome.

This device is built around:

• Dual-core AMD C-50 “Fusion” processor
  (with AMD Radeon HD 6250 integrated graphics)
• 10.1-inch LED-backlit display (1280×800)
• 2GB of DDR3 RAM
• 32GB solid state drive
• 802.11b/g/n WiFi & Bluetooth 3.0
• SD memory card slot
• 2 USB 2.0 ports
• an HDMI port
• Ethernet jack
• Both front-facing and rear-facing Webcams
• Optional 3G wireless

Uniquely, the device comes with high quality Dolby Stereo speakers & of course the screen is a glassy capacitive multitouch display.

More importantly:

1) PERFORMANCE: It gets general 2.8 performance rating purely on the basis of the CPU which is still above par for this class of device but everything else scores VERY HIGH in the 4.5-5.9 range. It’s NEW graphics acceleration provides full 1080p video & it’s capable of playing even the harshest graphical applications – including the game “Crysis”. For those that don’t understand what that means, here’s an English translation: “This device kicks butt.”

2) BATTERY LIFE: The unit is rated by the manufacturer to run 6 hours on a single charge running business applications & when tested gets a solid 4.5-5hrs of battery life running full motion 1080p video. Way more than enough for Outlook, Adobe Flash 10.2, Dynamics CRM, Internet Explorer 9.0, and the occasional game of Plants vs Zombies.

Great review of the device here on our Windows Team Blog:

• POST: Exploring the Acer Iconia Tab W500 – Dockable Goodness
  http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/b/windowsexperience/archive/2011/04/21/exploring-the-acer-iconia-tab-w500-s-dockable-goodness.aspx