Kurt Shintaku's Blog

Introducing the new Windows Live Foldershare!

Yep, that’s right.  Windows Live Foldershare released their first end user facing update on Monday.

• They updated the backend nodes to use Microsoft technology.
• They replaced the old web site with one that runs on Windows Server that has the Windows Live look and feel and improved usability. (http://www.foldershare.com/)
• They updated the Windows client to provide official support for Windows Vista along with improved setup, improved system tray tool, and a bunch of bug fixes.

In case you don’t know what Foldershare is, it’s a synchronization technology we acquired a ways back that allows you to keep one or more folders synchronized between one or more workstations or servers.  What’s interesting is that it works across port 443 so it penetrates firewalls and makes it possible to keep data between even your home systems, your work systems, and your laptops synched.

• Imagine always having the same Internet Favorites across every one of your machines…
• Imagine having all your My Documents folders synched across all machines…
• Imagine having offsite backups of all your information on another system of yours…
• Imagine having your .PST copied automatically to another system to keep it in sync with home…
• Imagine having your music available on every machine…

…and imagine it all being free, free, free!

Install it and give it a try!
DOWNLOAD:  http://www.foldershare.com/clientdownload.aspx

The SharePoint Capacity Planning Tool is a set of free models of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (WSS) and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS). The two models use the analysis and simulation features of System Center Capacity Planner 2007 (SCCP) to help you explore suitable IT infrastructure options for your SharePoint deployment, based on the SharePoint usage requirements for your organization that you provide to the tool. It can give you a head start on planning your SharePoint topology by producing a first approximation of the topology your organization needs. Architects, systems integrators, and deployment engineers will find it to be a valuable starting point for further refinements of the topology.

Feature Bullet Summary

• Simple installation and setup
• Built-in knowledge of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007
• Built-in knowledge of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0
• Recommended topology in a Graphical User Interface
• Export topology to Visio and server configuration to Excel
• Create custom hardware

The SharePoint Capacity Planning Tool depends on System Center Capacity Planner, which is available as a free download from Microsoft (see Related Resources).

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=dbee0227-d4f7-48f8-85f0-e71493b2fd87&DisplayLang=en

We’ve made a bunch of downloadable training available for Sharepoint Designer 2007:

PORTAL EDITION – Office Sharepoint Designer 2007 Training
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 offers a rich set of features that allow you to build and maintain powerful intranets and Internets for your company. You can manage workflow, maintain version control, connect to business intelligence applications, track key performance indicators for your business, add blogs and wikis to improve knowledge transfer and enhance collaboration, and more.

The Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer 2007 Training (Portal Edition) leads the learner step-by-step through SharePoint Designer features using easy to understand videos. Built with the SharePoint platform integration in mind and engineered to work efficiently with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, SharePoint Designer will help you customize your SharePoint sites to make it an even more powerful tool for productivity. SharePoint Designer is the ideal tool for Information Workers to build composite applications, design and customize workflows and tailor SharePoint sites to their branding needs.

You can easily add or remove training videos in this Training to fit your business needs. The Training also includes a reporting function that allows an administrator/trainer to track learners’ completed training topics. You can customize the Training to fit the look and feel of your own Office SharePoint Server site.

If you want to view the training without installing it on an Office SharePoint Server site, please click here for the Standalone Edition.

Notes:

• Please check the system requirements before downloading this Training
• A Standalone Edition is available if your system is not compatible with the Training Follow each step in the Install Guide for a successful deployment

Follow each step in the Install Guide for a successful deployment

DOWNLOAD: 
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=6a429664-a911-4ad3-9856-f1b0ae7a136e&DisplayLang=en

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STANDALONE EDITION – Office Sharepoint Designer 2007 Training
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 offers a rich set of features that allow you to build and maintain powerful intranets and Internets for your company. You can manage workflow, maintain version control, connect to business intelligence applications, track key performance indicators for your business, add blogs and wikis to improve knowledge transfer and enhance collaboration, and more.

The Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer 2007 Training (Standalone Edition) leads the learner step-by-step through SharePoint Designer features using easy to understand videos. Built with the SharePoint platform integration in mind and engineered to work efficiently with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, SharePoint Designer will help you customize your SharePoint sites to make it an even more powerful tool for productivity. SharePoint Designer is the ideal tool for Information Workers to build composite applications, design and customize workflows and tailor SharePoint sites to their branding needs.

If you are a server administrator and want to install the Portal Edition to your Office SharePoint Server site, click here. The Portal Edition allows you to add or remove content to help your users learn about Office SharePoint Designer.

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5b10f061-41d4-48ce-85cb-01d46772240d&DisplayLang=en

When you install this download, you can add preformatted document libraries to your Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services or Microsoft Office SharePoint Server site.

This download contains templates for the following document libraries:

• Invoices
• Specifications
• Press releases
• Customer site visit reports
• Meeting notes

Each library is configured with a Microsoft Office Word 2007 template that generates a new document in the library when the user clicks New on the library page. Each Word template includes a mechanism for binding data in the library with data in the body of each document.

For example, in the Invoice library, the “amount due” property in the library is populated with the “amount due” data in each of the invoices. You can set up views of the library to see reports of the data that is stored in the documents — in this example, the total amount due for all payable invoices.

Each document library is an .stp file, which you install on a computer that is running Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services or Microsoft Office SharePoint Server.

Each document library includes instructions for installing its .stp file and for customizing the library and its accompanying Word template. The instructions are in Word 2007 documents.

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=8a3f0bd8-8c15-4193-a0c8-42fa28196789&DisplayLang=en

The MSI Utility for Microsoft Application Virtualization is a new tool designed to extend virtual application deployment in certain key scenarios. In cases where a computer running Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server is not available, the MSI Utility allows delivery of sequenced applications directly to Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization for Desktops and Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization for Terminal Services.

The MSI Utility enables the distribution of virtual applications without streaming. Instead, it uses Windows Installer to load and configure virtual applications. By leveraging this standard format, the MSI Utility achieves Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 platform version-agnostic distribution of virtual applications if supported by organizational Electronic Software Distribution (ESD) systems. As such, the MSI Utility is a stepping stone to the richer deployment options available in Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server 4.5.

The MSI Utility extends application deployment methods to a broad range of ESD systems, including Systems Management Server 2003 and System Center Configuration Manager, as well as other methods such as network shares, removable disks, and memory keys. By using an ESD system to deploy virtualized application packages to disconnected SoftGrid Application Virtualization Desktop Clients, users can run virtualized applications without connecting to a computer running Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server.

Feature Bullet Summary:

• Deployment of virtual applications via ESD systems
• Deployment of standalone virtual applications via network shares, removable disks, and memory keys

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=37a9e590-4f55-44ac-93e1-36eb63a09240&DisplayLang=en

The ISA Server Best Practices Analyzer (BPA) is a diagnostic tool that automatically performs specific tests on configuration data collected on the local ISA Server computer from the ISA Server hierarchy of administration COM objects, Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) classes, the system registry, files on disk, and the Domain Name System (DNS) settings.

The resulting report details critical configuration issues, potential problems, and information about the local computer. By following the recommendations of the tool, administrators can achieve greater performance, scalability, reliability, and uptime.

The ISA Server Best Practices Analyzer is supplied with two supplemental tools.

• The ISA Data Packager enables you to create a single .cab file containing ISA Server diagnostic information that can be easily sent to Microsoft Product Support Services for analysis.
• BPA2Visio generates a Microsoft Office Visio® 2003 or Visio 2007 diagram of your network topology as seen from an ISA Server computer or any Windows computer based on output from the ISA Server Best Practices Analyzer Tool.

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=d22ec2b9-4cd3-4bb6-91ec-0829e5f84063&DisplayLang=en

This is a doozy but it’s a brand new catalog for the Asset Intelligence component of SMS2003 R2’s Software Inventory function:

Asset Intelligence enhances the inventory capabilities of SMS 2003 SP3 by extending hardware and software inventory. Many inventory classes improve the breadth of information gathered about hardware and software assets.

This update, which is mentioned in the SMS 2003 SP3 help file, is the first periodic update to the Asset Intelligence Knowledge Base tables, containing newly released software information.

Please note that this will update the SMS 2003 SP3 Asset Intelligence knowledge base and bring it to the same content level as SCCM 2007 RTM. This update is not intended for SCCM and is limited to SMS 2003 SP3. An update for SCCM 2007 will be provided with SCCM 2007 SP1.

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=3653e00b-6a0f-4226-87d7-02d3df2147d7&DisplayLang=en

The Operations Manager 2007 Windows Server 2003 Cluster Management Pack monitors the health of the Windows Server 2003 clusters. This management pack is designed to improve the availability, performance, and security of your Windows Server 2003 cluster deployment.

It can be downloaded at:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=ac7f42f5-33e9-453d-a923-171c8e1e8e55&DisplayLang=en

This software is an optional supplement to Windows Server 2008. In Windows Server 2008, the Streaming Media Services role (which includes the latest version of Windows Media Services) and remote administration tools are not included in Server Manager. To obtain the new features and tools available in Windows Media Services for Windows Server 2008, such as the built-in WMS Cache/Proxy plug-in, you must obtain and run the appropriate Streaming Media Services role installer file on the updated platform.

These Microsoft Update Standalone Package (MSU) files install either 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) versions (as noted in the file names) of:

• Windows Media Services and the rest of the Streaming Media Services role in Server Manager, on “full” installations of Standard and Enterprise editions of Windows Server 2008
• The Streaming Media Services Server Core role, on “Server Core” installations of Standard and Enterprise editions of Windows Server 2008
• The Windows Media Services snap-in for Microsoft Management Console (MMC) on a computer that is running the Business, Enterprise, or Ultimate edition of the Microsoft Windows Vista operating system

For more information on Windows Media Services 9.5, check out:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/forpros/serve/prodinfo2008.aspx

HOW TO INSTALL:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/934518

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=9ccf6312-723b-4577-be58-7caab2e1c5b7&DisplayLang=en

OH YEAH.  The Major League Pro Circuit tournament episodes from 2007 finally got posted to Xbox Live Marketplace for $2/episode.

For the uninitiated, the Major League Gaming Pro Circuit is the most credible professional gaming league I’ve found out there on Xbox Live.  There’s actually serious money paid out to the winners and the tournaments are very professionally run.  Not to mention they’ve got serious sponsorship top to bottom.

And for the most part, it’s nothing but Halo 2.  As of this November, Halo 3 will be played.  And if I recall correctly, they introduced Gears of War too.  The Halo 2 tournaments are basically 4-on-4, with over 120 teams competing and only the top 32 get into the championship tournament at the end of the year.  It really has the electricity of March Madness, except it’s all about Halo.

In all seriousness, these games are not just well played by amazingly skilled gamers – the best in the industry – the shows are extremely well produced with great polish.  It makes you proud to watch the episodes and be a fan, it really does.

In 2006, they had little excerpts where they not only showed the competition, they talked about the players themselves, where they came from, and how they got to where they are.  This was particularly interesting because famous players like Tom "T-squared" Taylor, one of the most famous Halo players in the world is paid on a million dollar contract and you kinda wonder how he got there.  The famous ‘Zyos’ of original Halo fame is also a participant as is ‘Walshy’ & the ‘Ogre’ twins – 3 of the most dangerous team players in the world. 

And then there’s ‘Karma’, the est one-on-one Halo 2 player in the world… and he proved it by not just winning the championship one-on-one tournament, but NEVER LOSING A ONE-ON-ONE TOURNAMENT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE SEASON.  (7 tournament wins, no losses.  As in not a single player in the league ever won a one-on-one tournament other than Karma.  How good is THAT?)

And as a bonus, they usually show the secrets of some expert techniques.  Like the famous BXR move from Halo 2.  Or the ‘peek shot’ technique.  Or how to get rocket launcher in Battle Creek without climbing the hill.

If you haven’t checked out MLG’s web site, go there at http://www.mlgpro.com, then go download an episode of the 2007 season on Xbox Live.  You’ll be glad you did.