DavidOverton.com
This site is my way to share my views and general business and IT information with you about Microsoft, IT solutions for ISVs, technologists and businesses, large and small.  

Microsoft
Sort By: Most Recent | Most Viewed | Most Commented

  • UK Technet Windows Vista Events

    For those who need more info on Vista, want to see it, and will be managing it, come along to: • 11 September 2006, London: Windows Vista System Integrity Technologies Windows Vista will ship with several new system integrity technologies, including code integrity, secure startup, service hardening, mandatory integrity control and Internet Explorer protected mode. In this session, Steve Lamb explores how these technologies work to thwart malware's attempts to take over your computer. • 14 September 2006, Reading: What's New in Administering Vista In this session, we will examine group policy functionality improvements that have been made with Windows Vista. We will describe the new and updated features and how these help to alleviate the problems that were present with previous versions of Windows. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Aug 7 2006

  • Real servers versus a DUD aka "Dressed up Desktop" for SBS use

    While I was at AMD yesterday I heard a term that is very useful to describe a really bad piece of hardware used to build a server - DUD - dressed up desktops. You know what they are - PCs that are desktops without any of that key server tech - do you know of one - let me know. As a minimum I would want to see the following in a decent SBS server: x64 CPU to enable migration to SBS Longhorn edition RAID disks to survive a disk failure - I'm not going to ret religious if they are SCSI or not, but remember that Domain Controllers turn off disk caching unless you have a SCSI like controller, so can have a big impact on performance 2GB of memory min - this is just me, but why skimp at the outset - if you are not going to start at 2GB, then please make sure there are free slots for an upgrade Descent power and cooling Backup capability of some form 2 NICs (even if you only use one - the option is there) Quality brands - don't save £5 and spend the next 3 years regretting it AMD do a great line in quality parts and have...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Jun 7 2006

  • Site up and down more frequently than something that goes up and down - like an lift (elevator for my US friends) at the "how do lifts work" world convention!!

    My trusty old SBS box that was a re-purposed server from somewhere else with old (very) cpus etc is crying at me lots. I've moved the databased elsewhere, but it won't be enough, so a new machine has been ordered. I hope to be able to put it together in the next day or two, however until it happens, the performance of the site will still stink a bit and might just hang every-so-often :-( Please bear with us, we hope to have normal transmission resumed as soon as possible
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, May 17 2007

  • UK Exchange, Vista and Office (EVO) Events from 25th October through to January

    As you may have noticed, EVO is the buzz word at Microsoft - we needed another acronym after all - and the training is underway. Find out more are the UK Events : Event details The Dates 25th October - ICC, Birmingham 6th November - Microsoft Campus Reading 8th November - UBC Manchester 9th November - Watershed Theatre Bristol 10th November - Cavendish Centre London 16th November - Microsoft Campus Reading 21st November - Showcase Cinema Leeds 16th January - UBC, Manchester The content This year Microsoft will launch Microsoft Exchange Server 2007; Windows Vista; and the 2007 Microsoft Office system (EVO). Microsoft has invested almost $20b in R&D and analysts IDC predict partner services opportunity to be around €47billion euros. Don't miss the launch for Microsoft’s EVO partner ready business at venues throughout the UK. Attend the EVO Partner Roadshow to learn about: How to get ready for the launch and exploit Microsoft’s largest ever technology release Solution selling scenarios and demos for EVO and the...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, Sep 28 2006

  • Microsoft makes Virtual Server Free and buys Pro-Clarity

    Well folks, I could not tell you this was coming (and only knew about the price change in Virtual Server), but it is quite a day for news. VS becoming free means that all you who wanted to look at it for Swing Migrations, or small projects can now do so, although check the requirements for licesnes inside the VMs. Anyway, the two News items are: April 3, 2006 • Microsoft Agrees to Acquire ProClarity, Enhancing Business Intelligence Offering Leader in advanced analytics adds to Microsoft’s comprehensive BI capabilities. • Q&A: Bringing the Benefits of Virtualization Technology to the Mainstream Microsoft delivers Linux support and makes Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2 available to customers at no charge as part of its ongoing effort to radically simplify IT management. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Apr 4 2006

  • FSB want to work with SBSC & Partner Group Partners

    I have just posted a forum entry to http://uksbsguy.com/forums/183/ShowThread.aspx#183 as several members of the FSB have asked me about working together with SBSC members to present to their groups. The FSB has over 192,000 members, so a large opportunity and they are all small businesses. Interest is rising in the use of technology to solve business problems with key topics today being SBS, professional mail, remote working, sharing data, customer / contact management and general upgrade questions. I can put people in touch with the regional officers for the FSB if desired. They think they can provide a bas or 70+ people to joint events!! ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Mar 24 2006

  • UK SBSC members can see more information about SBS 2003 R2 and ask questions

    One of the benefits of SBSC membership is the regular livemeetings with Microsoft and the ability to ask us questions. On Monday we have one for SBS 2003 R2. For more info on these go to http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/sbsc - you need to have passed the exams to see the exclusive content. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, May 22 2006
    Filed under:

  • Office 12 / 2007 - if you do have any Beta hints, tips or stories about how it is changing the way you do things...

    From the Office Pioneers blog ... Reaching the Pioneers Forgot to let you know, if you do have any Beta hints, tips or stories about how it is changing the way you do things, please drop an email to [email protected] to reach Gill and me :-) Source: Office Pioneer : Reaching the Pioneers
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Oct 17 2006
    Filed under: ,

  • Do you wish there was a good list of questions to understand a customers business and technical needs? Well you had better look at the Microsoft Business and Technology Assessment Toolkit FAQ (and win copies of SBS 2003 R2 to sell)

    I should have blogged on this ages and ages ago, but somehow I thought everyone knew about this already. It is a set of tools (pointers to documents, Q&A recording tool, customisation tool and general web based advice) to help you sell your services by understanding the needs of your customers and share this information easily around the business. The best place to start is the FAQ page ( Microsoft Business and Technology Assessment Toolkit FAQ: Toolkit Updates ), which has loads of good links - below is just the start of the good information. Also, if you do a few assessements and submit the data to Microsoft, you could earn a free copy of SBS 2003 R2 for you to do with as you will - give to your partner at home, sell to a customer, mount on the wall as the only free thing Microsoft has ever given you :-) Find comprehensive answers to your questions about how to download, install and use the Microsoft Business and Technology Assessment Toolkit (English only). For further information about the Windows Small...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sat, Apr 14 2007

  • Need to learn a bit about that developer thingy that goes on with Microsoft Technology? Never been "dot Netted" before (.Net to those in the know)? Now you can quietly get up and running with the Beginner Developer Learning Center

    This is shameless ripped from Beginner Developer Learning Center: Beginner Developer Learning Center Home as it looks just what some of us need. Overview Welcome to the Beginner Developer Learning Center - a centralized learning environment specifically targeted to beginning programmers. Here you'll find a rich array of learning content that starts with the very basics, and guides you through step-by-step to becoming a fully-fledged developer! No experience or programming knowledge required - so dive right in! For an overview of all the lessons available on this site, see My Learning Path . All lessons in the Beginner Developer Learning Center are organized into two development tracks: Windows Development and Web Development. Web Development Are you interested in creating dynamic web sites, or building online applications and services? Then this is the Development Track for you! Windows Development Would you like to customize your desktop with cool utilities or build fun Windows applications and PC games? Then...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Mar 7 2007
    Filed under:

  • Freezing in Bristol

    Yesterday I spent a couple of hours with the Bristol Partner Group (a Partner Group is a User Group, expect all it's members are partners). It was a great time listening to peoples needs and offering information from Microsoft. I have posted a note to the forum http://uksbsguy.com/forums/thread/102.aspx with all the details. It has also raised some great questions along the way that have been posted to the SBS and training areas. I have created a training forum found at http://uksbsguy.com/forums/21/ShowForum.aspx where you can choose to get e-mails when anything changes and I will post training information as I find it for you. ttfn David P.S. Why freezing in Bristol... well the reception was very warming, but once i left I found myself spending 90 minutes on a freezing cold platform waiting for a train heading Reading way.
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Mar 17 2006

  • Quick Vista keyboard tip - using ctrl with Alt-Tab and Windows-tab

    this is a really quick tip - if you press the CTRL key when pressing Alt-Tab or Windows key-tab, which brings up the task picker and flip-3d screens, then the screens will not disappear as soon as you let go of the keys. You can now use your mouse to pick a task or scroll through the windows on flip 3d. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, Sep 28 2006

  • We're Microsoft, we know everything... not

    I saw this little posting by Darren and it reminded me of several stories. One was the "mobile expert" around Denver this year and the other is the types of mails I sometimes get. I have had mails that say things like: My computer is not working, can you fix it for me I am having problems with Outlook Apple won't support iTunes on Vista, but I want to use it, so can you fix it for me? and my favourite I am having a problem where by people can't e-mail me back...... what e-mail address did they give.... What is really so funny about many of these is that they leave no contact details . Just their name. Now, even if I was able to fix their problems (and sometimes I can), without contact details it makes my life much harder to truly resolve the problems. Am I responsible for Windows Mobile Software? Today Gareth and I were walking along 16th Mall Street after having had some breakfast and I was wearing my Windows Mobile cap, as you do in Downtown Denver. I guy randomly stopped me and asked me if...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Oct 19 2007
    Filed under:

  • Want training for Windows SharePoint Services V3 - well it has started

    I saw this and thought people might be interested to see that we have various items of training available. The item on the webpage that caught my eye was: Introduction to Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Virtual Lab Implementing and Administering Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Virtual Lab If you are considering running extra WSS sites for your customers, then this is something to consider for the future. While SBS wizards may not support Office 2007, you might choose to upgrade the Companyweb site anyway, so this is important information. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, Jul 9 2006

  • After Vlad’s suicide note, and Susanne said people were changing their lives, what is happening in mine

    1 st off, go and read Vlad and Susanne's blog entries. Is this a so long and thanks for all the fish post? Have I been lying to you all this time and I don't really care about the community or the partners that toil in this part of the business? No, or at least not to it all, but my life has new perspectives now and this will have an impact. Lets' look at what happened - I went to the Worldwide Partner Conference and helped present at a couple of mobility sessions and attended the 1 st ever Small Business Symposium - 600 people attending to work out about partnering with Microsoft in the small biz marketplace. It was a storm. I also went to a few parties and very, very much enjoyed myself. Those of you who know me well know I don't drink much as I am nearly always driving - well not in Boston, so the drink was certainly flowing too. It got me thinking - what was my end goal in life? "To Live to Work, or Work to Live?" I have a new baby ( http://uksbsguy.com/lizzy ), a family and need...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jul 21 2006

  • Powershell is the new tool for managing Exchange 2007 and Windows Servers too - get a look at it on 22nd May in Reading or the Powershell User Group

    Again, something you will have to get to grips with in Longhorn and Exchange 2007. To find out about powershell go to http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/powershell/default.mspx . It is described as: Microsoft Windows PowerShell command line shell and scripting language helps IT Professionals achieve greater productivity. Using a new admin-focused scripting language, more than 130 standard command line tools, and consistent syntax and utilities, Windows PowerShell allows IT Professionals to more easily control system administration and accelerate automation. Windows PowerShell is easy to adopt, learn, and use, because it works with your existing IT infrastructure and existing script investments, and because it runs on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server “Longhorn”. Exchange Server 2007, System Center Operations Manager 2007, System Center Data Protection Manager V2, and System Center Virtual Machine Manager leverage Windows PowerShell to improve efficiency...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, May 13 2007

  • Get an extra go at a MS exam and free e-learning course for Windows Server 2008 and sample chapters on Exchange 2007

    Get an Extra Shot at Microsoft Certification For a limited time, you can get an extra chance to pass any Microsoft IT Professional, Developer or Microsoft Dynamics Certification exam - free. Register for this offer before your first exam and you'll get two shots at success. Sign up now After you register, you can take advantage of special training and certification deals from Microsoft. Windows Server 2008 Take advantage of free official Microsoft E-Learning courses and a free e-book that will help you develop expertise in this new generation of Windows Server technologies. View this offer and more Exchange Server 2007 Download sample chapters from new Microsoft Press books. Get the information that you need to transition your skills and prepare for the new certifications—from the experts. View this offer and more ttfn David Technorati Tags: MS exam re-take voucher , Windows Server 2008 , Exchange 2007
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, Nov 1 2007
    Filed under:

  • Why Microsoft Betas are often broadly available and the changes coming to the Office Ribbon Bar to resolve some of the biggest complaints about it

    Earlier Tim said he thought Microsoft betas were too common and that they were more like unsupported released products. Some would say that at one time, Microsoft used to release its products with all the bugs and charge customers full price to beta testing them. The truth is that we need more people to tell us what they think about our products. We need IT people, business people, customers and more, however the 1st group we need are our partners -if they don't think they can sell, use and build solutions with our product, then we have lost our sales force. That is not to say that we should not offer assistance here, but the critism and feedback is very welcome. I commented on the same blog back to Tim, so will not re-cover that ground again. So, Office and the Ribbon bar - the loss of menus in Word, Excel and PowerPoint has been quite a talking point and the replacement with the Ribbon bar has been refreshing. Finally, findign the function you want is easier - sometimes you even find things that have been...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jul 28 2006

  • I have added more RSS feeds into the "Roller"

    Howdy folks, I have added a number of RSS feeds into the roller if you want to see what I think is interesting. This covers SBS sites, technology sites and the Partner (User) Group sites. Pop along to http://uksbsguy.com/roller/default.aspx to see them in action ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Mar 24 2006
    Filed under:

  • New UK Vista Magazine, online portal and blogs

    I have been known to blow my own trumpet in the past and today is no exception :-). I currently have a utilities section in Windows XP Magazine and I have been asked to move this to a features column and blog on the Windows Vista magazine. Now they have not seen any of my material, so it is very possible that nothing will come of it, yet it is also possible that this might end up another important source of information regarding the world of Windows Vista and if I have anything to do with it - what small businesses can do with the technology. To visit the magazine, go to http://www.windowsvistamagazine.co.uk and if you want to see the blog, currently written by Jon Hicks, go to http://www.windowsvistamagazine.co.uk/page/windowsvista ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Jul 25 2006

  • We came, saw, listened to the feedback and now Office 2007 will work with Open Document Format documents to enable interchange

    So, what we are not doing is throwing away the excellent Office Document XML standards as these make accessing information inside a document a dream compared to other standards, however we are ensuring interchange can happen. Darren has more info on his blog . One thing, if you don't believe me about the two XML formats, create a document in both and see which is easier to extract the info from :-) ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Jul 10 2006
    Filed under:

  • Scripts for Windows Vista Magazine

    For this month's Windows Vista Magazine I discussed how to write a script to backup your documents folder and sending alert e-mails. While there are a lot of places to go for help (links below), you will need the following for the following script copies to your user directory (%userprofile). You can get to it by pressing start and literally typing %userprofile%. Create a file called backup_script.cmd with the following: @echo off REM @echo off stops you seeing the individual backup commands executing REM TITLE changes the title of the window REM echo prints the text on your screen REM the other commands are covered in the article TITLE Documents Backup Routine echo Do you want to do the backup – if not, press Ctrl-C pause RMDIR /s /q MD %userprofile%\docs_backups2 Move %userprofile%\docs_backups1 %userprofile%\docs_backups2 Move %userprofile%\docs_backups %userprofile%\docs_backups1 MKDIR %userprofile%\docs_backups Robocopy %userprofile%\documents %userprofile%\docs_backups /s /z exit That is the first...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, Oct 19 2008

  • Great Training on Small Business+

    Small Business+ has been seen as something that might be scary for a few partners - is Microsoft trying to take away the very business that most partners are searching for? This is interesting as I was talking to one partner last week who said that the types of questions that SB+ sought to answer were the ones that when they charged the customer for the support, customer got upset. The reason for this was that when a customer phones up and asks a question that takes just 5 minutes to resolve, how do you bill them - per the 5 minutes, by the quarter of an hour. If you try to track all of these, you end up in a admin mess and often a costly one at that. Since the original concern, not much in the way of bad press has aired, so I can only assume this was not the killer many had assumed. Also add to the fact that we are working on how to give a pre-selected partner contact details to the customer means that this can become a support service for both the partner and customer rather than a burden to the partner. Now...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Jul 24 2006

  • Poor Chris Parkes - he compares his people ready business life to the marketing message - and brings down the house!!

    I am not one to laugh at other's misfortunes... or at least not very often, but Chris had arranged to go to the Kent Partner Group meeting, when I asked him how it went he gave me some story about hit house falling down. Being the sport he is, this is part of his blog entry on the whole sad affair. I still say it is an extreme way to avoid meeting partners, but that is Chris for you! I am sure he will be at the group soon! Source: Chris Parkes: A PC is not just for Christmas... : A Day in The Life (of the People Ready Business) A Day in the Life of...Ken 8:00 - 9:00 AM Check email/voicemail messages 9:00 - 10:00 Review cash on hand and bank balances 10:00 - 12:00 PM Attend scheduled meetings 12:00 - 1:00 Have lunch 1:00 - 2:00 Meet with accounting staff 2:00 - 3:30 Review finances/prepare reports 3:30 - 5:00 Continue work on current projects/work on the To Do list generated from meetings 5:00 - 7:00 PM Review and respond to email messages/work on a facilities issue/go home A Day in the Life of...Chris 2:15 - 2...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Sep 26 2006
    Filed under: ,

  • Is it me, or is Apple using just slightly arrogant language aboutthe iPhone?

    I saw this and just decided I had to write about it. In the UK we are used to buying a phone at a cost, or for a lower to zero value with a contract. As I understand it, the iPhone will cost $499 in the states when tied to a contract. Wow, so I obviously just don’t get it as that is not up my street at all. Then I saw this and almost balked “realize that free mobile phones are worthless”. They are not free though – they are tied to a contract, so cost money each month. I found this offensive – obviously just getting sensitive in my old age. I still love my Windows Mobile phone J : Apple Expects Huge Demand for iPhones Apple's COO predicts that 10 million customers will pay at least $499 to buy an iPhone next year because they will realize most free mobile phones are worthless. I then saw this and it made me smile a little: Eight Reasons to Think Twice about Buying an iPhone With its hefty price tag, restriction to a single carrier, and departure from many traditional smartphone features, buying the iPhone requires...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Mar 7 2007
    Filed under:
« First ... < Previous 47 48 49 50 51 Next > ... Last »

(c)David Overton 2006-23