Archive for January, 2009

TechNet Magazine: February 2009 Issue Available

The February 2009 edition of TechNet Magazine is now online and highlights business intelligence and what you can  do to make your data smarter.  Some of the highlights are below.

• Microsoft Office – Business Intelligence with SharePoint and Excel – In my opinion SharePoint and Excel are two of the most powerful products we make; however most people don’t know how to take full advantage of them.  This article goes into some detail about how to use both of these products along with Excel services to build a comprehensive BI solution with tools you may already have.
• SQL Server – Understanding Logging and Recovery – Logging and recovery are not the most exciting features in SQL Server right?  But they are critical to any successful deployment; but often misunderstood.  This article goes into some detail about these 2 critical features which will help move your business along the path to a better performing database.
• Virtualization – Automating Virtual Machine Host Deployment – Ah Virtualization..one of my favourite topics of all.  This article talks about how Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 is simple to deploy and redeploy with just a few clicks.  There is even some sample code for you to have a look at.
• Microsoft Dynamics – Deploying Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 – This is not a topic I know much about but one that is gaining momentum all the time in the enterprise.  This article goes into details about planning for the right solution for your business.

Source- Technet Blog

Windows Vista SP2 RC1 screenshots

Windows Vista SP2 RC1 was released to the selected group of testers a couple of days back.This Service Pack is indeed much stable and faster then the Windows Vista SP1.The build number for this beta is Build 6002.16659.090114-1728

Here are the screenshots of the Windows Vista SP2 RC1

E7 Blog:Roadmap from Windows 7 beta to RTM

The Engineering Windows 7 Blog has posted about the path of Windows 7 from the current beta to the general availability of Windows 7.

Here are the main points from the blog post

The next milestone for the development of Windows 7 is the Release Candidate or “RC”. Historically the Release Candidate has signaled “we’re pretty close and we want people to start testing the release, especially because all the features are done.” As we have said before, with Windows 7 we chose a slightly different approach which we were clear up front about and are all now experiencing together and out in the open.

We will then provide the Release Candidate as a refresh for the Beta. We expect, based on our experience with the Beta, a broad set of folks to be pretty interested in trying it out.

With the RC, this process of feedback based on telemetry then repeats itself. However at this milestone we will be very selective about what changes we make between the Release Candidate and the final product, and very clear in communicating them. We will act on the most critical issues. The point of the Release Candidate is to make sure everyone is ready for the release and that there is time between the Release Candidate and our release to PC makers and manufacturing to validate all the work that has gone on since the pre-Beta.

We also continue to build out our compatibility lists, starting with logo products, so that our http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility site is a good resource for people starting with availability

Here is the summery of the Windows 7 release

Pre-Beta – This release at the PDC introduced the developer community to Windows 7 and represents the platform complete release and disclosure of the features.

Beta – This release provided a couple of million folks the opportunity to use feature complete Windows 7 while also providing the telemetry and feedback necessary for us to validate the quality, reliability, compatibility, and experience of Windows 7. As we said, we are working with our partners across the ecosystem to make sure that testing and validation and development of Windows 7-based products begins to enter final phases as we move through the Beta.

Release Candidate (RC) – This release will be Windows 7 as we intend to ship it. We will continue to listen to feedback and telemetry with the focus on addressing only the most critical issues that arise. We will be very clear in communicating any changes that have a visible impact on the product. This release allows the whole ecosystem to reach a known state together and make sure that we are all ready together for the Release to Manufacturing. Once we get to RC, the whole ecosystem is in “dress rehearsal” mode for the next steps.

Release to Manufacturing (RTM) – This release is the final Windows 7 as we intend to make available to PC makers and for retail and volume license products.

General Availability (GA) – This is a business milestone and represents when you can buy Windows 7 pre-installed on PCs or as full packaged product.

Live Search Add-in for Mozilla Firefox Released

The Live Search add-on for Firefox gives you auto-suggestions from Live Search right in the browser while you’re typing your query. For example, start to type "Bruce Springsteen" into the Live Search box, and you’re shown relevant suggestions. The list of suggestions refreshes as you continue typing or when you change the query. You can click the suggestion that best matches what you were searching for to speed you to your results. The add-on is available in the following markets: Australia (AU), Canada (CA), India (IN), Ireland (IE), New Zealand (NZ), Philippines (PH), South Africa (ZA), United Kingdom (UK), and United States (US).

The Live Search add-on for Firefox is available to install at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10434. It’s based on the Open Search standard and uses the JSON interface supported by Firefox to retrieve autosuggestions.

Source- Live Search Blog

Internet Explorer 8 Competition – New Zealand

Internet Explorer 8 Release Candidate 1 is now available for download. Internet Explorer 8 is the latest version of the familiar web browser you are most comfortable using, helping you get everything you want from the web faster, easier, more privately and securely than ever before.

We’ll be giving away some cool prizes!

Send a screenshot of your company’s homepage in Internet Explorer 8 to nzeditor@microsoft.com, and go in the draw to win some cool prizes:

· “I’m a PC” skateboard (1 to giveaway)

Board is outfitted with premium components, including Independent Stage 10 trucks and Ricta Natural wheels. The board is finished with Bullet bearings, grip tape and hardware. Deck is 7 3/4" and is the perfect competition shape and construction for all terrains. The best quality hard-rock maple decks and an unrivalled patent-pending printing process.

· “I’m a PC” hats (3 to giveaway)

How to enter:

Step 1. Download and install the Internet Explorer 8 Release Candidate

Step 2. Send a screenshot of your company’s homepage in Internet Explorer 8 to nzeditor@microsoft.com

· If you find a rendering problem on your company site visit the IE Compatibility Centre and read about the supported META tags.

You will go in the draw to win a prize, entries close 28 February 2009! This competition is only open to New Zealand residents. Terms and Conditions apply*

Check the source for more info

Source- MSDN Blog

Get Your Windows 7 Updates from Microsoft Connect

Damien Reynolds of Neowin.net has posted information regarding downloading and installing Windows 7 updates from the Microsoft Connect web site, no matter whether what we’re running the Windows 7 Ultimate Beta, the Windows 7 Home Premium Beta, or Windows 7 Server Beta.

These are some of the updates provided on the Microsoft Connect Site:

• Windows 7 Beta Critical WMP and WMC Critical Update - KB961367
• Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2 Beta Preliminary Release Notes
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) SDK and Symbols
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) WDK
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) WLK
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) Language Interface Packs
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) Checked Builds Client and Server
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) Ultimate
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) Server
• Windows 7 Beta (7000-0-081212-1400) Home Premium
• MCDiag (x64 and x86)

If you don’t have an invitation code to get in, a newsletter sent out from Microsoft to their partners provided one you can use: just enter the invitation ID Win7-3HQW-RF74 on the Microsoft Connect homepage.

Source- Channel 10 Blog

New version of XNA Game Studio Connect will be available soon

Michael Klucher posted some information on his blog today about an upcoming update that will be available soon for the XNA Game Studio Connect application.  XNA Game Studio Connect is the component that you run on an Xbox 360 in order to deploy, debug, test and peer review Xbox 360 games created with XNA Game Studio.

After the release of Xbox LIVE Community Games last fall, we ran into a few issues where the behavior of the game when running in XNA Game Studio Connect didn’t match the behavior after it is published and is run as a community game.  As a result, there were a few scenarios that were not possible for the developer or peer reviewer to test before the game was published, and in some cases a game that appeared to run fine during peer review would crash after it was published.

The upcoming update to XNA Game Studio Connect is intended to make the experience of running the game during development and peer review more closely match the experience of running it after it is published.  The update will be available in the next few weeks, and Michael includes more details about the changes that were made behind the scenes in his blog post so I encourage you to check that out as well.

Source- MSDN Blog

Windows Service Pack Blocker Toolkit

Here’s an update for those of you who have installed the Service Pack Blocker Tool for Windows XP or Windows Vista. This code temporarily prevents the installation of a service pack through Windows Update, typically for one year after general availability of the service pack. The expiration date for the Service Pack Blocker Tool for Windows Vista SP1 is April 28, 2009; for Windows XP SP3 the tool expires May 19, 2009.
For more information on the Service Pack Blocker Tool, please see the FAQ available through the Springboard Series on TechNet.

Source- Technet Blog