Blogs

A new blog has opened at Microsoft called "hackers @ microsoft". As many people know Microsoft is very strongly involved in the security arena. Part of this is having people who have hacked or now hack against our products to understand how to make them more secure. This group of people know have a voice in the blogsphere. Welcome to a new blog from Microsoft. The focus of this blog is likely to be a little different from most other blogs you'll see on blogs.msdn.com. Microsoft employs some of the best hackers in the world and actively recruits them and develops them. They work on all kinds of projects, whether it be in development, research, testing, management and of course security. Of course, there is controversy even in the word " hacker " but I don't think that should stop us from using it in the manner I think is the most appropriate. At his or her core, a true hacker is someone who is curious and wants to learn how systems work. This can and of course at Microsoft is done in...

I'm no great Halo Wiz - why, I don't have the reactions of a 21 year old to beat them in network play, but I do enjoy playing against the cpu inside the box (whenever I join a network match I nearly always end up dead in a few second.. ho hum). Anyway, the graphics of the xbox 360 always impress me as does the UI of some of the games. Halo 3 is coming and there is now a site with great trailer videos, background info and more. For those of you who don't believe that Halo is reality, have a look at some of the film (yes film, not graphics) that was shot and for example, see the Warthog that was used ( http://www.bungie.net/images/News/WeeklyUpdate/WarthogB110707.jpg ) Anyway, enjoy the site and enjoy building your own trailers too :-) ttfn David Technorati Tags: xbox 360 , Halo 3 , trailers

Hi, This is a bit of blowing my own trumpet, but I thought I would share the latest figures for my web site. As best as I can tell, about 61,000 people visited my site last month and about 17,000 bots (those are people, not page views). While the site peaked in June, it is still doing nicely, so thank-you for continuing to read the site. As always, if there is more you would like to see, let me know, in fact, this would be a great time to write a comment on what you do and don't like on the site, especially after all the changes. The most popular pages are still those associated with Vista and Office (together), be it the Office Assistance or problems having both loaded on a system at the same time. Peoples interest in my fingers has also slimmed down, but that can only be a good thing. Let me know what you think and thanks for the interest - hopefully it has helped to put a more human face to Microsoft and my role. ttfn David (back from holiday and reading lots of mail)

I saw this and thought it was amazing. If you have a template that is good and you want to make it available to others, simply package it up (save it without personal information in it) and pop along to this site ( https://services.office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/submission.aspx ) to post it. I like this - power to the people!! ttfn David Technorati Tags: Office 2007 , Templates , Community

I saw this and had to share.  In the samples on the site it includes a RSS reader, Outlook tool and more! Welcome to Acropolis The Microsoft code name “Acropolis” Community Technology Preview is a set of components and tools that make it easier for developers to build and manage modular, business focused, client .NET applications. Acropolis is part of the “.NET Client Futures” wave of releases, our preview of upcoming technologies for Windows client development. Acropolis builds on the rich capabilities of Microsoft Windows and the .NET Framework, including Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), by providing tools and pre-built components that help developers quickly assemble applications from loosely-coupled parts and services. With Acropolis you will be able to: Quickly create WPF enabled user experiences for your client applications. Build client applications from reusable, connectable, modules that allow you to easily create complex, business-focused applications...

I'm sorry to be so blunt. I get asked about this quite often, so thought I would write it down. The problem is that the Office 2007 applications will only run in a Terminal Server environment if volume licensing media and a volume license keys are used. Unfortunately the MAPS kit does not include volume licensing media, which means that the Office 2007 can not be used in a TS environment. There are some options on how to move this forward, which are: Acquire the Premium edition of MSDN via the Microsoft Open License Program. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/subscriptions/aa700832.aspx or For their own business use, Partners could purchase Office 2007 via the Microsoft Open License Program or one of the other volume licensing programs. Some people have commented that the same restrictions were not in place for the beta of Office 2007. It is worth noting that the beta code for Office 2007 software was created without regard to the channels that it will later be sold or distributed in. For this reason, Office...

I saw this and thought I would publish this to show that businesses will always put differences behind them if they think there is a buck to be made: Sun to Install Windows Server on Its Hardware Sun Microsystems will start selling its lineup of 64-bit, x86-based servers preinstalled with the Windows Server operating system within 90 days. and Microsoft/Novell Open Windows/Linux Interop Lab The initial focus will be around three projects involving virtualization, management, and identity federation. This just proves that all firms are commercial! Don't believe the religious hype! Of course, competition will still be just as fierce. ttfn David Technorati Tags: Sun , Windows , Novell

MSDN Webcast: Framework Masterclass: LINQ to SQL (Level 200) – Recorded Microsoft .NET Language Integrated Query (LINQ) provides a common way to work with data in your applications. In this session, we dive into how LINQ provides methods to work with Structured Query Language (SQL) databases, including how to query, insert, and manage data using the LINQ framework. MSDN Webcast: Framework Masterclass: LINQ to SQL (Level 200) MSDN Webcast: Framework Masterclass: LINQ to XML (Level 200) – Monday, September 17, 2007 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US & Canada) In other sessions, we have already seen how Microsoft .NET Language Integrated Query (LINQ) works with relational databases. In this webcast, we explore how LINQ can help you develop XML applications. We cover the basics of the XML helper functions, and we also dive into deeper topics. MSDN Webcast: Framework Masterclass: LINQ to XML (Level 200) MSDN Webcast: Programming SQL Server 2008 (Level 300) – Monday, September 17, 2007 1:00 PM Pacific Time (US & Canada...

SQL Server 2008 Solutions – Your Data, Any Place, Any Time SQL Server 2008, the next release of Microsoft SQL Server, will provide a comprehensive data platform that is more secure, reliable, manageable and scalable for your mission critical applications, while enabling developers to create new applications that can store and consume any type of data on any device, and enabling all your users to make informed decisions with relevant insights. http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinfo/futureversion/default.mspx http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinfo/futureversion/bi/default.mspx SQL Server 2008 Books Online – Overview (SQL Server 2008) Microsoft SQL Server is a database platform for large-scale online transaction processing (OLTP), data warehousing, and e-commerce applications; it is also a business intelligence platform for data integration, analysis, and reporting solutions. http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms166352(SQL.100).aspx http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb510421(SQL.100).aspx Online Transaction...

Documentation Windows Vista Step-by-Step Guides for IT Professionals These step-by-step guides provide instructions for deploying or migrating to Windows Vista, and various management tasks, including configuring security, monitoring performance, and managing printers. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=21&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d311f4be8-9983-4ab0-9685-f1bfec1e7d62%26DisplayLang%3den App Compat Prep and Implementation http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=24&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d02e01c4d-49a2-43e6-a9c5-8b174d1f089a%26DisplayLang%3den ACT 5 Step by Step Guides http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=25&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3dbc931bfd-d279-4060-b370-08fa52f97a8d%26DisplayLang%3den BitLocker Design and Deployment...

Managing Distributed Branch Office Environments with System Center and Windows Server 2008 Distributed branch office configurations within many enterprise organizations are increasing in number and growing in complexity. In this webcast, we highlight the Microsoft System Center portfolio of IT management solutions and Windows Server 2008. We discuss various IT solutions and architectures that can help you deliver quality IT service management for branch environments. http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7280989 Windows Server 2008: Management, Security and Improved Performance for Your Remote Infrastructure Join us for a Q&A on the new features in Windows Server 2008 that will help you manage and secure your remote infrastructure as well as WAN performance improvements included in the new TCP and SMB protocols. Ask our experts about Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption, improvements in Active Directory, Server Core, the Next Generation TCP stack and SMB 2.0. http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7280990 ttfn David Technorati...

foo bar baz - now to be entered as HTML foo bar baz ttfn David

I just know when a rebate offer goes up on the Microsoft web site that I will get an e-mail asking if it will be available in the UK. For this one the answer is most definitely YES. To prove that it is not a waste of time, I need you to USE the offer, i.e. sell SBS and claim back you money, CALs or D-Link wireless router. Below are the details from the UK web site, but if you go to http://www.sbsoffers.com you will be able to select your country. Since this is a limited time offer, the more you sell now, the more you make - you can make up to 50 claims under this offer!! Take advantage of these offers when you provide on-site, deployment services for Windows ® Small Business Server 2003 R2! Don’t miss this opportunity! From September 1, 2007 to December 31, 2007, the on-site services you may already provide to customers to deploy Microsoft ® Windows ® Small Business Server 2003 R2 could make you eligible to receive some great rewards. Provide on-site deployment services to your customer between September 1, 2007...