Kurt Shintaku's Blog

A SIMPLER WAY TO CREATE HIGH-QUALITY BUSINESS APPLICATIONS FOR THE DESKTOP AND THE CLOUD

Microsoft Visual Studio LightSwitch gives you a simpler and faster way to create high-quality business applications for the desktop and the cloud. LightSwitch is a new addition to the Visual Studio family. Visit this page often to learn more about this exciting product.

QUICKLY CREATE HIGH-QUALITY BUSINESS APPLICATIONS

With LightSwitch, you can build custom applications that rival off-the-shelf solutions. Get a head start by using pre-configured screen templates that give your application a familiar look and feel. LightSwitch also provides prewritten code and other reusable components to handle routine application tasks, along with helpful step-by-step guidance. However, if you need to write custom code, you can use Visual Basic .NET or C#. You can deploy to the desktop, browser, or cloud to share your application with others more easily without the cumbersome installation processes.

EASILY ACCESS EXISTING SYSTEMS AND DATA

Applications created with LightSwitch support exporting data to Microsoft Office Excel for fast and easy sharing and reporting. You can also attach your application to existing data sources, which makes it easy to collect, analyze, and reuse information from a variety of data sources including Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft SQL Azure, SharePoint, Microsoft Office Access (post-Beta), and other third-party data sources.

BUILD FOR TODAY, PREPARE FOR TOMORROW

With LightSwitch you can create custom applications for the way you do business. Keep your technology and business options open, while building a practical yet scalable application that matches your current needs now and in the future. The pre-built templates and components in LightSwitch are fully extensible, so you can get the specific functionality your application demands. In addition, your application can grow to meet the increasing demands of popular applications using the Microsoft Windows Azure Cloud Hosting option.

EXTEND YOUR APPLICATION WITHOUT HAVING TO REDESIGN IT

With LightSwitch you can create custom applications for the way you do business. Keep your technology and business options open. Visual Studio LightSwitch includes a lot of pre-built components for the most common business application tasks; however, there will be times when you will want more custom functionality. LightSwitch applications are flexible enough to support extensions for templates, data sources, shells, themes, business data types and custom controls. Get extensions from component vendors or develop them yourself using Visual Studio Professional, Premium or Ultimate.

• REGISTER: Microsoft Visual Studio LightSwitch BETA 2
  http://www.microsoft.com/visualstudio/en-us/lightswitch

WARNING: **Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with SP1 can be installed ONLY on computers that are running the Enterprise, Professional, or Ultimate editions of Windows 7 or Windows 7 with SP1.**

Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with SP1 enables IT administrators to manage roles and features that are installed on remote computers that are running Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1 or Windows Server 2008 R2 (and, for some roles and features, Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2003) from a remote computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows 7 with SP1.

It includes support for remote management of computers that are running either the Server Core or full installation options of Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1, Windows Server 2008 R2, and for some roles and features, Windows Server 2008. Some roles and features on Windows Server 2003 can be managed remotely by using Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with SP1, although the Server Core installation option is not available with the Windows Server 2003 operating system.

This feature is comparable in functionality to the Windows Server 2003 Administrative Tools Pack and Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 (SP1).

• DOWNLOAD: Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) – 239.5MB
  http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=7d2f6ad7-656b-4313-a005-4e344e43997d

Hallelujah. I don’t think I need to say anything more than this, right?  A picture is worth a thousand words. 

Yes, AT&T finally released the NoDo update for Windows Phone 7 on their Samsung Focus, their LG Quantum, and I assume the HTC Surround – although I don’t know anyone that owns one of those.

Not that I was pining for this thing like some people were (cripes, some people are whiny) but I do think that the sound of people sighing with relief with AT&T’s release of the update is similar to the sound of a pressure release valve being opened.  And of course there’s a certain amount of satisfaction attained by finally getting this thing on there to speed things up, improve marketplace search, add cut & paste, etc.

BTW:  Here’s a list of what we’ve published is in NoDo – the first update for Windows Phone 7.  I say “what we’ve published” because as I understand it there’s over 75 actual significant changes made but many of them are developer oriented or optimizations of some sort that they simply didn’t bother articulating:

• INFO:  Windows Phone update history
  http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/howto/wp7/basics/update-history.aspx

Wanna check out Office 365? 

It’s now available in Beta form – just sign up at the URL below. 

WHAT WAS OFFICE 365 AGAIN?
Office 365 provide customers with the following application services… hosted in Microsoft’s datacenters:

1. Exchange Online 2010
2. Sharepoint Online 2010
3. Lync Online 2010

Additionally, as part of SharePoint Online 2010, the following web-based applications are available:

1. Word Web Access
2. Excel Web Access
3. PowerPoint Web Access
4. OneNote Web Access

WHAT’S SO SPECIAL ABOUT OFFICE 365?
Office 365 takes the pain out of application service delivery for your company.  All the major IT management & maintenance headaches become Microsoft’s job – not yours – allowing you to concentrate on administration tasks focused on your business.

1. ALWAYS AVAILABLE.  How does built-in redundancy sound to you?  Most companies don’t or CAN’T plan or budget for clusters or failover availability but with Office 365, everything is geo-clustered by default. 
2. ALWAYS PATCHED.  No more “patch Tuesday” for you.  We take care of the patching process.  Your services always run with the latest patches & security updates. 
3. ALWAYS SECURED.  Worry not.  Your services config, ports, and architecture are locked down & constantly reviewed with the same security practices, technology, & processes that Microsoft’s best & biggest Office 365 customers have including Coca Cola & JP Morgan.
4. ALWAYS BACKED UP.  Tired of budgeting & planning for backup?  Kiss backup licenses, storage/tape, schedules, and services goodbye with Office 365.  We keep everything backed up at regular intervals to disk to ensure high speed recovery along with 24×7 phone support when you need to “get that document back”.
5. ALWAYS PROTECTED.  Worrying about antivirus/antispam is a thing of the past.  Leveraging Microsoft’s industry leading Forefront Security for Sharepoint, Exchange, and Lync Services, along with Forefront Online Protection for Exchange, protection services for all your Enterprise applications are taken care of.  No extra charge.
6. ALWAYS SCALABLE.  Forget about having to “buying more servers for the farm”.  You’re using Microsoft’s massive Office 365 implementation now, which provides near limitless scalability that will grow as your business grows.
7. ALWAYS AD-INTEGRATED.  Can you say “single sign-on”?  With Active Directory Federation Services support, users login to their workstations in the morning and NEVER have to log in to any Office 365 services.  Passthrough authentication:  It’s beautiful thing.
8. ALWAYS MOBILE.  No need to ‘mobile-ify’ your services.  It’s already been done for you with Office 365, providing mobile synchronization for phones to Exchange, mobile access to SharePoint services, etc.
9. ALWAYS GUARANTEED.  Money.  That’s right.  99.9% FINANCIALLY BACKED Service Level agreements.  Documented.  And none of this, “We’ll give you service credit B.S.”  If something goes down, we write checks.

• BETA:  Office 365 Beta Registration
  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/online-software.aspx

Lack of awareness can sink a business concept—especially for local business owners. With people using paper directories less and online search more—even for local listings—a lack of online visibility could be devastating.

The all-new Bing Business Portal can fix that.

The Bing Business Portal does three important things:

1. Creates a basic business listing with contact information
2. Provides a platform from which business owners can highlight features and services, and reinforce brand recognition by adding photos and logos
3. Entice customers with deals that can be seen in Bing search results, on mobile devices and on the business’s Facebook page

Best of all, the Bing Business Portal is free.

There are two basic ways to get started. If the business was listed on the Bing Local Listing Center (LLC), they can claim their listing and get started. If not, businesses can start from scratch here.

To claim an existing listing, click on the link on the local listing page or visit the Bing Business Portal page and claim the listing via phone or PIN.

From there, businesses can add all of the fun features that help potential customers make better informed decisions. Add logos, photos, hours and payment options. Speak multiple languages? Mention it. Preferred parking? Highlight it. Does the business cross over into multiple categories? Select them. Then add links to the business Website, Facebook page and Twitter URL.

Restaurants and pubs can upload menus—and also have the option to create a mobile menu that customers can view from their mobile devices. They can even add categories and keywords to help refine the search and generate traffic.

And, because customers love a great deal, the Bing Business Portal enables business owners to create discount coupons, promotions or rebates. Simply use the Deal Editor to specify a category, a type (dollar amount, dollars off, percentage off, etc.) and add some descriptive information to help sell it in—like photos, an expiration date and disclaimer information—and then promote it for free on Bing search results, as well as on the business’s listing page and its Facebook page.

Any business that has a deal also will be highlighted on the Bing desktop search results, as well as the deal tab from the Bing for Mobile homepage.

To address the big pink elephant in the room, no, this blog is not dead.  I recently had some personal issues that took me completely out of the world of computing for a week but I’m back and will be posting again shortly.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. 

At least most of you.

Anyone looking for SharePoint Training specifically around architecting & optimizing ENTERPRISE SEARCH?  The following is available for free in case you haven’t seen this:

SharePoint Server 2010 Enterprise Search IT Professional Training

• Module 1: Search Management
• Module 2: Windows PowerShell for Search
• Module 3: Deployment and Scalability for SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 4: Monitoring and System Management for SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 5: Search Reporting and Analytics for SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 6: Connectors and Using the Business Data Connectivity Services in SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 7: Configuring User Interfaces for Search in SharePoint Server 2010 and FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 8: Federated Search in SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 9: Advanced Search Security for SharePoint Server 2010 and FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 10: People Search Administration and Management for SharePoint Server 2010 and FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 11: Advanced Deployment and Scalability for SharePoint Server 2010
• Module 12: Upgrading from SharePoint Server 2010 to FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 13: Deployment and Scalability for FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 14: Advanced Deployment and Scalability for FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 15: Linguistics for FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint
• Module 16: Relevancy and Ranking for FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint

BLOG: SharePoint 2010 Enterprise Search IT Professional Training
http://blogs.technet.com/b/tothesharepoint/archive/2010/10/25/sharepoint-2010-enterprise-search-it-professional-training.aspx

To relatively little fanfare – especially for a product that impacts so many endpoints – Microsoft Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011 was released to manufacturing and available to customers with Embedded devices.

Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011 enables enterprises to deploy, assess and update Windows Embedded devices, providing a single management solution that offers enhanced insight and control over IT infrastructure and systems by extending the capabilities of System Center Configuration Manager 2007.

It specifically provides the following capabilities – among other things:  (I’ve highlighted what each capability specifically means to Windows Embedded thin clients)

• Write filter handling (Critical to updating the thin client’s capabilities)
• Asset inventorying for device serial numbers, etc. (Important for tracking devices, the software revision they have, & their locations)
• End-to-end thin client provisioning, firmware tracking/inventorying, automated firmware upgrades.  (Mitigate security issues, upgrade thin client software images, etc.)

This is all above and beyond the thin client management capabilities of SCCM today. (WEMD requires SCCM2007 R2 or R3) We are working closely with Hewlett Packard, Dell, and other thin client/embedded device manufacturers on this product to ensure that integration modules are designed specifically to enable it to manage new thin clients at the product’s launch later this year. 

It will manage – AMONG OTHER THINGS:

• Windows XP Embedded based thin clients
• Windows Embedded Standard 2009 thin clients
• Windows Embedded Standard 7 thin clients

If you have embedded devices like Thin Clients, ATMs, PoS systems, Digital Signage, kiosks, etc, you’ll definitely want to take a look at this exciting new technology for System Center Configuration Manager.

• DATASHEET:  Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011 Datasheet (1.36 MB)
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/E/6/4/E64EF5B2-B30F-4D51-9A24-342EFBF340C0/WE-DeviceManager-Datasheet.pdf 
• PRODUCT SITE:  Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011 Web Site
  http://www.microsoft.com/windowsembedded/en-us/evaluate/windows-embedded-device-manager.aspx

New whitepaper that goes over the business level benefits of Windows 7:

Understanding the Benefits of Upgrading to Windows 7

The phone rings at 1:00 A.M., waking an IT professional with a call from the company’s key salesperson who is on the road in Asia. She needs access to confidential application data stored on the server back at headquarters. It’s an issue every enterprise faces—how can people be more connected from the road, without sacrificing the needed level of security?

How many times has this happened to you? What else keeps you up at night? Businesses need technology that helps people work better, but IT departments must balance end user flexibility with

tighter management of the infrastructure, data, and applications. This challenge is complicated by several additional forces competing for your time, attention, and resources: managing costs, planning for contingencies, and ensuring compliance with evolving industry and regulatory requirements. Exactly how well companies handle these forces in the context of their unique computing needs ultimately defines their efficiency, user productivity, and overall effectiveness.

Meeting both IT and end user needs in today’s business environment can be challenging. The Windows® Optimized Desktop relieves the common tension between end users and IT by providing the mobility and flexibility end users want while preserving the security and control that IT professionals need. The Windows Optimized Desktop—which incorporates Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows Server 2008 R2, System Center, and the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP)—helps organizations transform their desktop infrastructure from a cost center to a business enabler by helping IT make people productive anywhere, manage risks through enhanced security and control, and reduce costs by streamlining PC management. The investments in Windows 7 Enterprise have been shaped by the evolving needs of end users and IT professionals in the enterprise.

This paper explores the questions organizations should consider as they plan for desktop infrastructure that can help them better address client computing challenges. First, it takes a closer look at the issues many enterprise organizations face today, with questions in the first four sections to guide you in a desktop capability assessment for your own organization. Then, later in the paper, you’ll learn how Windows 7 Enterprise can help address the challenges you face.

• WHITEPAPER:  Windows 7:  For your Organization
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/0/8/E/08EA241F-243A-4663-92B5-B6D01B5B3B8F/Win7Org_LR_2011.pdf

INFO:  Microsoft Software Assurance "Interactive Benefits" Chart

A really cool document to help educate yourself about the different components of Software Assurance Benefits that are available.  It’s an actual interactive chart (PDF) that allows a person to click/hover over a given benefit and have its definition just appear on the screen.

It’s externally downloadable here:

• DOWNLOAD: Microsoft Software Assurance "Interactive Benefits" Chart
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/0/0/3/0039F316-45CF-4083-AA6E-C35DA9D25C1B/SA_InteractiveBenefitsChart.pdf

There’s also a companion Customer QuickStart Guide:

• DOWNLOAD:  Microsoft Software Assurance “Customer QuickStart” Guide
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/5/c/7/5c727885-ec15-4920-818b-4d140ec6c38a/SA_Customer_QuickStartGuide.docx