Recent Articles published
I have been pretty bad about updating my article list, so here are the recent ones that have gone up over at Train Signal Training
Here is a quick rundown:
Microsoft Certifications — Past and Future
IIS 7: Install FastCGI & PHP on Server 2008
Install MySQL on IIS7 Server 2008
Install PHPMyAdmin on IIS7 and Server 2008
IIS7: URL Rewrite Extension on Windows Server 2008
Installing WordPress on IIS 7 - Part 1
Installing WordPress on IIS7 - Part 2
Live Writer - Windows Live Tools Beta 3
Microsoft Web Platform Installer Beta
Microsoft Web Application Installer
Install BIND DNS on Windows Web Server 2008 – Part 1
Wow, I really was behind! Enjoy!
getVIRTUALnow roadshow by Microsoft
On Monday I went to the Chicago stop of the getVIRTUALnow roadshow with a some of the Train Signal crew. I like the new direction Microsoft has taken with the product launch/showcase events. In the past I disliked going to these because of they showed very little tech and more marketing, though in the last two I have gone to, it has squarely been a technical show. Between seeing live demo’s by the people who actually implement and work with the product (not just a marketing guy), and having a hands on lab with walk through scenarios so you could get your hands on the product, it was a very informing event.
The presenters also stick around to sit in "Ask the Experts" tables down in the expo area so if you have something you want to ask that doesn’t get answered in the session. I have found this to be extremely cool to go and talk to these guys to get a more "inside" talk about the product as it might apply to your environment.
It wasn’t all sunshine and roses though. I found the Expo area pretty weak on vendors, especially for smaller/midsize business solutions. You would think in these economic times they would be willing to target whoever could buy, but this just wasn’t the case.
While I found the hands on lab very informative, it took a TON of time to complete even one of the labs because of the underpowered PC’s in place. I missed almost an entire session because I was waiting quite a bit during the lab because of the low memory on the virtual machines in the lab. While I realize the problem, someone else might not and think the technology is slower than it really is on a correctly provisioned box. I am not sure if it was a local company providing equipment or if it floats with the show, but I think if they are going to showcase it, they should at least make sure it can do better then the minimum specs.
The venue was nice, but a bit crowded for the show, but nothing too bad. At the end of the show, we got the free t-shirt, a voucher for free E-Learning Collection 6319: Configuring Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 from Microsoft Learning, along with a free voucher for Exam 70-652: TS: Windows Server 2008 Virtualization, Configuring! They will also be mailing out the session slides with some evaluation software to all attendees.
All in all, a good event, I would recommend it for anyone who wants to learn and see how Microsoft is implementing virtualization into its core product offerings.
There are only 5 more stops left as of today at:
Oct 31st: Boston, MA
Nov 3rd: New York, NY
Nov 10th: Washington, DC
Nov 13th: Philadelphia, PA
Nov 17th: Atlanta, GA
You can sign up at https://www.getvirtualnow.com/usevents/cityselect.aspx
Microsoft reaching out to the developer and IT Professional communities on Windows 7
Today marked a launch for two different blogs aimed at two different respective communities from the Windows 7 team and also the Windows Client team, which I take are closely related.
For the developer in you you can see the new Windows 7 Blog for Developers which promises in its first post to put Windows 7 new features into a context that developers can use to improve their code and make it “Light-Up” using this new version.
The other new blog, Springboard Series: The Resource for Windows Desktop IT Professionals, went online today with its first post being written by Celine Allee. It promises to allow IT professionals to connect with the Windows Client division. They are looking for feedback on what you need as a professional going forward from the Windows Client team.
I am always happy to find new avenues of information from Microsoft that have the potential to be interactive and I look forward to seeing how these blogs develop.
Microsoft’s Small Business Summit October 2008
For the next 3 days Microsoft is broadcasting live feeds of some very successful small business owners and secrets to their success for free on the site http://www.sbsummit.com
The three days are divided by topics and are setup as follows:
Tuesday Oct 14th: Sales & Marketing
Wednesday Oct 15th: Productivity & Security
Thursday Oct 16th: Financial Management
You can find a complete guest lineup at http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/summit/guests.aspx
Though it is absolutely free and you can ask questions if you sign in with a Live account, I had issues with it running in Firefox, so you will definitely want to use IE for this one.
Last call for 70-113 the new Virtual lab based exam
There is a post on Born to Learn today about them extending the registration for the pilot program. I wrote about my testing experience taking 70-113 back in August and how positive I thought the experience was.
As an added incentive if you are one of the first 3000 to take the exam you will now receive 3 exam vouchers for future use on any other Microsoft exam at Prometric.
Here is the registration info from the post:
You must register at least 7 days prior to taking the exam. Register before October 25th to take the exam before October 31st. Please use the following promotional code when registering for the exam: H640 (promo code is active till October 31st)
Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the pilot; we recommend that you register immediately.
- Go to the Prometric Website: http://www.register.prometric.com/ClientInformation.asp
- Select Microsoft exam 70-113: TS: Windows® Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring
- Enter Promo Code H640 (promo code is active till October 31st)
I highly recommend you go and signup and get experience with this new format before it is rolled out to the regular exams.
Free Microsoft Hyper-v Virtualization Training
So I was taking a break from writing to look through my RSS feeds and found a very cool post from Ken Rosen over at Born To Learn that has a link to free E-Learning courses from Microsoft that will help you get familiar with Hyper-V technology and the new Microsoft direction for Virtualization. In the same post Ken talks about some of the current and upcoming certification options for Virtualization experts.
I went through the first module of the course, and while it is sparse on practice elements, it is put together well enough to be informative and get familiar with Hyper-V, hopefully the later modules provide more examples and detail.
You should give Born to Learn and the E-learning courses a look over if you are interested in learning about Hyper-V.
Are You An MCP?
There has been a lot of confusion out there when it comes to the new certifications from Microsoft. This is partly because the old certifications are still in play, and the new ones don’t conform to the same framework of named designations as they have in the past.
Read more
Beginning C programming class
I started my beginning C programming class this weekend, with the obligatory first chapter of what a CPU is. Generally a waste of time that first week, but whatever. I hope C comes as easily to me as Fortran did. I am kind of stoked that the college I am working with offers all of its programming degree courses online, I could theoretically get my entire degree without showing up for a live class. Fits into my schedule very nicely!
You might ask why I am taking a programming class in addition to studying for my MCITP, as it has more direct impact on the work I do. I feel that by learning programming it makes me a more well rounded server guy, being able to create applications that can help me manage the server without involving a developer is a good thing
MCP Phone Support from Microsoft
Updates Below
So here it is a little over a week from when I passed my 70-620 exam and I have been anxiously waiting for my transcript to update so I can do a post on the difference between the MCP community and the MCP credential for some fellow know it alls at our favorite compute training company Train Signal. More on that in an upcoming post, but for today I tried calling support, was told they couldnt help and to scan in my score sheet and then e-mail it to them.
Quite a disappointment that they couldn’t do it right over the phone, but lets see how quickly this gets resolved through email. I have had less than stellar results with MCP support in the past.
Update: Well I have received two separate emails one confirming they received my email and the second one assuring me they have dedicated resources responding to this issue and they now “own” it, and should have it resolved in 3-5 business days. All this within 4 hours… I feel awfully warm and fuzzy! Hopefully the final resolution will be on the shorter end of those 3-5 days, but time will tell!
Server 2008: Active Directory Certificate Services
A overview of one of the most misunderstood services in the Active Directory family.
http://www.trainsignaltraining.com/active-directory-certificate-services/2008-08-14/