Kurt Shintaku's Blog

The folks at Directions on Microsoft have published their semi-annual roadmap of our (Microsoft’s) Systems Management Product Roadmap.

Unlike most of their materials however, this roadmap is being made for free online.  The article contains both a discussion of the different products and technologies as well as a printable visual roadmap of what to expect in terms of each product line:

LINK:  http://www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/sample/DOMIS/update/2008/06jun/0608smpr.htm

We have a DVD that we published that is a compilation of every document and whitepaper on the Springboard web site. 

“Springboard”, for the uninitiated, is a web site where we place all of our planning, testing, deployment, and management resources in a single location for Windows Vista.
–> http://www.microsoft.com/technet/springboard

Well, instead of making you download the whole thing, we put it on a DVD.  It’s not huge being that it’s mostly whitepapers, a walkthrough documents but it’s certainly worth a look see.

If you’re a customer of mine and are interested in getting a copy of the disc, send me a note and I’ll put one in the mail for you.  (You should already know how to contact me if you’re a customer of mine)

You can say I’m spinning this quote, but read it for yourself in the link below in it’s full context: 

“…I have just completed a report advising business users to avoid OS X.

…In examining whole disk encryption solutions (in a fair level of depth), I have found that there is no viable solution that meets the requirements of my clients. Furthermore, there really isn’t a viable whole disk solution, period…

…I’ve found myself concluding my report this morning by recommending that my business clients use {gulp} Windows.  There, I’ve said it. Somewhere out there an angel just lost its wings…

…I have a dream, that one day Apple will wake up and smell the market. Business users need whole disk encryption and advanced security features. Until Apple improves in these areas, I’ll be recommending the operating system that shall not be named.”

I never expected to see this in my RSS reader from Chad’s blog.

• Apple Encryption – It Ain’t All There
  http://blogs.csoonline.com/apple_encryption_it_ain_t_all_there
• Corporate break-in! Apple responsible?
  http://blogs.csoonline.com/corporate_break_in_apple_responsible

Some of my coworkers just started a podcast for Microsoft Unified Communications technologies.

Think Office Communications Server, Exchange Server, VOIP &Telephony, Unified Messaging, Interactive Voice Response, Microsoft Roundtable, etc.

It features the two UC specialists in our geography.  Besides talking about Unified Communications related topics, they have interviews with relevant partners such as an interview with Nortel on one episode, as well as an interview with Polycom on another.

They put a lot of hard work into it so if you’re interested in these technologies and want to pull it down to your media player or subscribe to it, check it out at:

LINK:  http://blogs.technet.com/swun

(Subscribe via http://blogs.technet.com/swun/rss.xml)

Are you a Project 2007 user?  Or a Visio 2007 user?  Are you looking for some reference material or training/guidance on how to use either product?

Check out these cool resources we’re making available for free: 
(NOTE:  These are physical items.  It’s an actual MS Press book and a professional training DVD that you’re ordering below.)

• FREE Microsoft Office Project 2007 Step by Step Book
  The smart way to learn Microsoft Office Project 2007—one step at a time! Experience learning made easy—and quickly teach yourself how to manage your projects with Project 2007. With Step By Step, you set the pace—building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them!
  
• FREE Inside Microsoft Office Project 2007 and Visio 2007 Training DVD
  Get more than 8 hours of Visio 2007 and Project 2007 training. This DVD gives you a look inside Visio 2007 and Project 2007 to learn the latest and most helpful pointers for these powerful applications.

ORDER:  https://ms.kpcorp.com/projvisio/AspxFiles/Home.aspx
(Shipping costs not included – limit 5 books & 5 DVD’s per order – offer good in US only)

We just released the Microsoft Office Sharepoint Conference 2008 DVD set… and it’s REALLY GOOD.

The DVD set contains two massive DVD’s of content from the March 3rd-6th, 2008’s Sharepoint Conference up in Seattle, WA.

COMPLETE PRESENTATION RECORDINGS
Each are about 8GB in size (dual layer) and contains over 100+ presentations & sessions from the event.  It provides you with a nifty menuing system that allows the user to access each session’s:

• Session Powerpoint (.pptx)
• Windows Media Video Recording (.WMV)
  (Audio & Video of the session screen)

OTHER RESOURCES
Additionally, there are other resources buried on the DVD’s including:

• Office Sharepoint Server 2007 Standalone Training (141MB)
  D:Additional_ResourcesOffice SharePoint Server 2007 Training (Standalone Edition)
• ALL Sharepoint Conference Hands-on-lab Manuals (Gobs of MB)
  D:Additional_ResourcesSPC 2008 Hands On Labs
• Additional materials & software for specific sessions
  For example:
  ECMS308 – Extending SharePoint Designer with Custom Controls, WebParts, and Workflow Activities
  –> All custom controls, web parts, and demonstration material are included in a .ZIP file on the disc accessible from the menuing system

MULTI-FACETED, MULTI-AUDIENCE
There are 7 categories of presentations:

– Keynotes
– Administration & Governance
– Business Applications & Solutions
– Collaboration & Social Computing
– Deployment & Migration
– Enterprise Content Management & Search
– Interoperability & Business Process   

The cost of the disks if you didn’t attend the event are $499.  (The cost is discounted if you attended the actual event.)

ORDER:  https://shop.ecompanystore.com/mseventdvd/MSD_productdetail.asp?EventID=70874&TYPE=SharePoint+2008+Technical+Resource+DVD

(NOTE:  If you’re a customer of mine, I may be able to to “comp” a copy for you IF you’re responsible for a Sharepoint Server 2007 implementation within your company.  Please contact me directly if you meet this criteria and would like me to pursue getting a set for your organization.)

Microsoft has a boatload of team blogs.  But subscribing to them is a royal pain because going to each and every site individually to subscribe to upwards of 100+ information feeds is a nightmare.

So what’s the solution?  Well, here’s an OPML file that you can import that lists all 100+ blogs that I know about and selectively.  This is based on some previous work done by our Premier Support team along with a dozen or so additions I’ve made from my own list.

http://cid-00da410c7f7e038d.skydrive.live.com/embedrowdetail.aspx/Miscellaneous/MicrosoftTeamBlogDirectoryJune2008.opml

Windows Command-Line Administrator’s Pocket Consultant, Second Edition, by William Stanek

Excerpted by Maria Gargiulo, content project manager, Microsoft Press
Windows Command-Line Administrator’s Pocket Consultant, Second Edition, by William R. Stanek, is a completely updated edition of the award-winning, number-one best-selling Windows command-line book.

This revised and expanded edition features more than 200 new pages and covers the essential command-line tools included in the Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 operating systems. Whether you are an administrator, developer, or power user, you’ll be able to use this book to master the core command-line tools and techniques, and to learn numerous timesaving ways to get the job done.

This book will be available from Microsoft Press in June. Following is an excerpt from the introduction.

Windows Command-Line Administrator’s Pocket Consultant, Second Edition, is designed to be used in the daily administration of Windows systems, and as such the book is organized by job-related tasks rather than by Windows features. Speed and ease of reference is an essential part of this hands-on guide. The book has an expanded table of contents and an extensive index for finding answers to problems quickly. Many other quick reference features have been added as well. These features include quick step-by-step instructions, lists, tables with fast facts, and extensive cross-references.

The book is organized into both parts and chapters. Part I, “Windows Command-Line Fundamentals,” reviews the fundamental tasks you need for command-line administration. Chapter 1 provides an overview of command-line administration tools, techniques, and concepts. Chapter 2 is designed to help you get the most out of the command shell. It details techniques for starting up the command shell using parameters, how to control command path settings, what redirection techniques are available, and how to use multiple commands in sequences. Chapter 3 discusses the essentials for creating command-line scripts. You’ll learn how to set variables, work with conditional controls, and create procedures.

Windows provides many command-line tools to help in the management of daily operations. Part II, “Windows Systems Administration Using the Command Line,” discusses the core tools and techniques you’ll use to manage Windows systems. Chapter 4 explores techniques for configuring roles, role services, and features on Windows servers. Chapter 5 discusses many of the key administration tools, including those that help you gather system information, work with the Windows registry, configure Windows services, and shut down systems remotely. Chapter 6 examines the logging tools available for Windows systems that can help you identify and track system problems, monitor applications and services, and maintain system security. You’ll also learn how to write events to the system and application logs. In Chapter 7, you’ll learn about tools and techniques for monitoring applications, examining processes, and maintaining performance. Chapter 8 provides techniques you can use to manage the way logging is performed, centralize event logging across the enterprise, and collect and generate reports on performance data. Chapter 9 discusses ways you can automate tasks to reduce the daily workload.

The book continues with Part III, “Windows File System and Disk Administration Using the Command Line.” Users depend on hard disk drives to store their word processing documents, spreadsheets, and other types of data. If you’ve worked with Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 for any length of time, you’ve probably used the Disk Management tool. The command-line counterpart of Disk Management is the disk partition utility (DiskPart). You can use DiskPart to handle most disk management tasks as well as to perform some additional tasks that cannot be performed in the graphical user interface. Chapter 10 provides an introduction to DiskPart and also discusses FSUtil, ChkDsk, and CHKNTFS. Chapter 11 discusses partitioning basic disks. Chapter 12 examines dynamic disks and how they are used. The chapter also examines implementing, managing, and troubleshooting RAID.

Part IV, “Windows Active Directory Administration Using the Command Line,” concentrates on the core commands you’ll use for configuring, managing, and troubleshooting Active Directory. Chapter 13 discusses many of the key directory services administration tools, including tools that help you gather directory information. Chapter 14 examines tools that help you create and manage computer accounts in Active Directory. You’ll also learn how to configure domain controllers as global catalogs and operations masters. Chapter 15 discusses creating and managing accounts for users and groups in Active Directory.

The final part, Part V, “Windows Network Administration Using the Command Line,” examines network printing, TCP/IP networking, and related issues. Chapter 16 examines network printing and print services. Chapter 17 discusses configuring, maintaining, and troubleshooting TCP/IP networking from the command line.

Appendix A provides a quick reference for command-line utilities discussed in the book. In Appendix B, you’ll find a quick reference for the contexts and commands available when you are working with the network services shell (Netsh). You can use Netsh to manage the configuration of various network services on local and remote computers.

Don’t miss this unique collection of DVDs—available approximately six to eight weeks after the conference—for only US$195.

Featuring streaming media files of the Breakout Sessions and Keynote addresses from both Tech·Ed 2008 Developers and Tech·Ed 2008 IT Professionals, the DVD set is the next best thing to being there.

Order the DVD set here.

Wow.  TechEd 2009 is going to be here in Los Angeles.

Sign up for the TechEd North America Newsletter for IT Professionals to ensure you receive notifications about the planning for the upcoming local TechEd event.

NEWSLETTER:
http://www.microsoft.com/events/teched2008/itpro/newsletter.mspx

Wow again.  This will mark the very first time that TechEd will be held in Los Angeles.  I’ve seen it in San Diego, New Orleans, Dallas, Orlando, Boston, Atlanta, but I’ve never see it here in Los Angeles.  This should be interesting.