March 2008 - Posts

Why MOSS is a must-have for businesses?
Monday, March 31, 2008 11:14 PM

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/032608-microsoft-sharepoint.html?t51hb

Here's a couple of excerpts:

• Microsoft's SharePoint Server is ...the next must-have technology, offering companies tools for building everything from collaborative applications to Internet sites
• corporate users were enamored with a shiny new technology that seemed to have infinite uses
• Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007 is the fastest growing product in the company's history and seems to have as many uses as a Swiss Army knife. Its six focus areas are collaboration, portal, search, enterprise content management (ECM), business process management and business intelligence.
• The attention is a wake up call for competitors, especially IBM/Lotus, as SharePoint could pull customers  to other Microsoft software because it is closely integrated with Microsoft's unified communications stack, its e-mail server, Office and Office applications including back-end file sharing repositories for Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
• In 2008, SharePoint has evolved into the prototypical Microsoft tool – good enough for small-to-midsize businesses, adaptable to large enterprises, and, most important, plenty of financial opportunities for third-party independent software vendors and systems integrators.
• Partners involved in everything from directory management to archiving to single sign-on are reporting that SharePoint is improving their own revenue.
• Late last year, an IDC survey of 300 users found 61% were deploying SharePoint enterprise-wide, and that 28% of those using SharePoint in departments now are expected to expand usage to the enterprise within the next 12 months.
• "If it was just regular, out-of-the-box SharePoint we might not be using it today to be honest," he says...What's also becoming important are add-ons from partners.
• "The beauty of SharePoint is that it hits a number of sweet spots".

Of course, to be fair, the article also points out some of the limitations and less than optimal aspects of the technology as well.  But, the key point here is that Sharepoint, for any/all of it's limitations, is still a product with an amazing amount of potential for businesses large and small and really needs a "partner" to bring this potential to fruition.  Hopefully, all of you know that the Windows Sharepoint Services is essentially free and is now included in Windows Server 2008.  And, hopefully, you are already taking advantage of it to add value to your solution arsenal, but if not, perhaps this can provide some motivation.

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by snoor | with no comments

NASCAR Anyone?
Tuesday, March 25, 2008 2:59 PM

If you're an SBSC partner this ought to be really exciting news for you.  Microsoft is kicking off a deal with NASCAR to promote the SBSC brand on their Sprint Cup tour.  I'm having visions of 75+ millions NASCAR fans, many of whom likely work in the very small businesses that are potential SBSC clients, seeing this blue logo flash by and wondering if it's something that might be helpful to their "small business".  And, of course, SBSC members pop to the top of the list when folks search for "small business" solutions on Microsoft's website.  Get a look at the car and more details of this promo at:

Microsoft Small Business and SBSC in NASCAR

If you've read this and aren't an SBSC partner, then hopefully I've got your interest peaked. If you're interested now, check out my 11/28/07 blog for links on how to "get with the program".  Also, check out my blogs in late Jan-08 around the SBSC technical exam.   And Eric's blog has many links to more info on the SBSC program as well.  Zoom-zoom-zoom.

by snoor | with no comments

Microsoft Dynamics 4.0 Launch
Monday, March 10, 2008 8:32 AM

The US national launch tour kicked off its first full week of events to enthusiastic prospects and excited partners. During events in Tampa, Nashville, Orlando and Atlanta, eager attendees learned the business value of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 and Microsoft Dynamics CRM Live, saw live product demonstrations and saw the extensibility of the product in the ISV partner pavilion. The Tampa and Orlando events also featured Don Peppers of the globally recognized Peppers & Rogers Group, thought leaders in relationship marketing.

Tier 2 city events hosted by Microsoft regional teams and partners also kicked off to great success in cities including Houston, Birmingham and Rochester. And with Over 70 Launch Events across the U.S., there’s much more excitement to come. The National Tour continues the week of 18 March in New York City where we show over 600 registrants to date. Boston, Los Angeles and Orange County follow with great registration numbers as well. Go to www.dynamicscrmlaunch.com for the full event line up.

by snoor | with no comments

Windows Vista SP1 Installation How-to
Saturday, March 08, 2008 11:47 PM

Thanks to CharlesV for his work on this...

I received my DVD with Windows Vista SP1 on it and decided it was time to test it out.  Step 1 was to make a complete PC backup on an external drive to ensure I had a fall back plan.  I didn't take the extra step of testing the backup because I still have my backup Lenovo Laptop that I will repurpose once SP1 running well for at least a week. 

When I reviewed the documentation and looked at the footprint, I was happy it was provided on DVD since it was just at 1 GB in size.   The laptop that I am using for this installation is an HP Compaq 6910p, with 4 GB of memory and 120 GB 7200 RPM eSATA drive.

I started the clock at 12:32 PM to see just how long the installation would take to complete.  Before it got rolling, I reviewed the "What you should know before installing Service Pack 1" information, which was basic information about compatibility and hardware requirements, which was not an issue with my hardware configuration.

This was the EULA information which I read word for word to make sure I didn't miss anything.  :-)   If you believe that, I have ocean front property in San Antonio for you too.  Click the I accept and Next please...

This was where the fun began and the timer started to move really...  really slowly...

When the screen came up and mentioned it might take an hour for the installation, they weren't kidding....

An 1:04 minutes later, the installation finished, I rebooted and I was on my way.  Upon reboot, the system worked great.  All of the the important parts of Vista Ultimate, including Texas Hold'em continued running as smooth as they did prior to the installation.

So what's the point of this post?   Vista Sp1 is As you start planning upgrades to SP1, make sure you have plenty of time allotted for it.  If you are buying new systems for your customers, order them with SP1 installed to save yourself the hour of upgrade time it will take to get SP1 in place.

Learn more about the benefits of Windows Vista and SP1, how to find technical and sales and marketing readiness courses how to sell the benefits of Windows Vista to customers and ask questions or exchange idea on the Vista newsgroup by visiting https://partner.microsoft.com/vistasp1 on your Microsoft Partner Portal website.

by snoor | with no comments