DavidOverton.com
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Blogs

  • 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
  • Use safety.live.com to give your customers PCs a quick health check - Anti-Virus, clean up & clutter removal and general tune up

    This is a great tool that you can easily get your customers to run themselves if things are looking a bit poor on their system. Simply go to http://safety.live.com and asn them to run a full scan, or a protection, clean-up or tune up scan. Note, it can take quite a time. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Jun 7 2006
  • Site usage statistics now published, plus the tool I wrote can be yours

    Once upon a time I was known as a hacker - not because of my ability to break into NASA computers (no, I have never done this), but because I am quite skilled at taking something someone else has started and hacking it around to do more. My site stats for May were produced by taking the vb.bet web analyzer starter kit and enhancing it. To see what I have produced, go to http://uksbsguy.com/usage_report/may06 . If you want the code, ping me and let me know. It is good to see the site usage going up too :-) ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Jun 7 2006
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  • Customizing companyweb WSS (Windows SharePoint Services) site

    While I was writting up my demos from the SB Ignite show I found ths site that has two great hands on labs: Learn How to Customize Windows SharePoint Services These training courses are Hands-On Labs Online (HOLO) and use live software. Each course provides a student manual that you can download and print: Windows Small Business Server 2003 - Customizing Windows SharePoint Services—Part 1 This course covers the following: Using the Small Business Server Company Web site Working with Lists and Document Libraries Windows Small Business Server 2003 - Customizing Windows SharePoint Services—Part 2 This course covers the following: Adding Functionality by Using Web Parts Using Dynamic Web Templates to Create a New SharePoint Site ttfn David
  • Next London SME IT Pros Group - Thursday June 8th

    The next meeting of the London Small Business IT Pro Group will take place on Thursday 8th June. Our guest this month is Ian Charles from Bulldog Terrier Systems who offer a hosted Kaseya solution. Ian will be talking about his company's offering. Doug Wilson from Hound Dog was also booked, but because I messed up the dates (sigh) he'll be coming later in the year (probably to our September meeting)..... If you are thinking of offering your clients Managed Service then come along and see how this offering will help you with the software side of that service. But as Amy Luby says, there's a lot more to Managed Service than installing a monitoring app! The meeting will be start at 5:30pm Thursday 8th June at Microsoft House, 10 Great Pulteney Street, London, W1F 9NB. Drinks (courtesy of Microsoft) and pizza (courtesy of our speaker) will be served and the meeting will finish around 8:30pm in time for those who travel any distance to get away and for the locals to retire to the pub :-) If you could let me know you...
  • Small Business Ignite Tour presentation posted

    I have posted the event presentation to the files section - http://uksbsguy.com/files/12/small_business_ignite_tour/default.aspx . This is a Office 2007 file, but converters are in the notes so you can open in Office XP or 2003. The demos last for 40+ minutes at the events, so if you want to book onto your local one at http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/training/ignite/default.aspx ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Jun 5 2006
  • Do you want access to beta software and cheaper support calls to Microsoft - use Technet then

    A Technet Plus subscription includes two free support calls to Microsoft - that makes the kit cheaper than the calls themselves - and then you get a bucket full of disks to try our software - including BETA software, which to date you have not seen in the action pack. OK, so Vista and Office betas will ship in the action pack, but if you want to see any others, or download them more frequently - get the Technet Plus pack. Info on the UK Technet Page can be found on http://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/default.aspx . P.S. There are many ways to get a discount on the initial purchase too, so ask me to send you a piece of advertising and you can get 20% off (it sells for <£400) or talk to the people at www.sbsbpi.co.uk and they can help you get even more off. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Jun 5 2006
  • Print to PDF and XPS to be a download feature for Office 2007, make sure you get it

    Hi, I don't follow the legal ups and downs of most products, but one of the nice things people like about Office 2007 is the ability to create PDF files. I now read in the news (so this is not an official annoucement from Microsoft) that to reduce the potential for legal moves, the PDF & XPS functionality will be a download. More information can be found at http://news.com.com/Office%2C+Vista+changed+in+wake+of+Adobe+threat/2100-1012_3-6079519.html ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jun 2 2006
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  • Watch and listen about Vista and Small Business

    The PTS-TV videos have been updated and this time it is two takes (I can never do things in one take) about Windows Vista and how it delivers simple value to small businesses. The videos of the team, including mine can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/blog/pts-tv/ and the rss feed so you can keep up to date is found at http://blogs.msdn.com/ptstv/rss.aspx . Should you be super keen and desire only to watch the video, they are streamed from the following URLs (downloadable versions are available from the site above) http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/blog/pts-tv_daveoverton1.wvx http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/blog/pts-tv_daveoverton2.wvx Vista is currently available for partners who have Technet or MSDN today and will be available for everyone as a community technology preview later this month. For more Vista information go to http://www.windowsvista.com ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jun 2 2006
  • Tell us how the Technology Assessment Toolkit helps you and earn cash

    You can get the Technology Toolkit from http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/sales_and_marketing/partner_initiatives/rightserver/default.aspx?page=sell which provides information on this tool and how it can help you spot, sell and close deals. If the toolkit is very useful then SBSC Members can also report their success to Microsoft and earn money to spend in the MS Merchandise store. To get details on the offer (which is available all over the world) can be found at https://www.mssboffers.com/Default.aspx ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jun 2 2006
  • How to feedback on Office Beta 2007 easily with the smiley and sad faces

    This is such a simple concept and such a great way to offer feedback. Simply press the faces if you are happy or sad with Office and a screenshot and your comments. How easy is that? You can download the tool or read more at http://blogs.msdn.com/jensenh/archive/2006/05/26/607768.aspx . If you want a deeper discussion, you can find out more at http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/default.mspx Ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jun 2 2006
  • Sophos Puremessage and ActiveSync

    If you are using Sophos Puremessage and are having problems getting Server-side ActiveSync to work with either your PPC or your Windows Mobile 5 (WM5) device then you might need to do the following: In the Puremessage console go to Jobs / Exchange Information Store / Databases tab and check Public Store Background Scanning and Private Store Background Scanning. Click the Apply button at the bottom of the console. I've never been able to get Server-side ActiveSync working since I bought my iPaq a year or so ago, but haven't had time to work out why not. A chance comment by someone in the UKSBSG Yahoo! group put me onto it. Thanks to James and Alexandre! Since I found this out I've discovered there's a Sophos KB article about it - www.sophos.com/support/knowledgebase/article/3186.html . It's great when you know what to look for isn't it
  • Are you a Small Business Specialist, a SBS 2003 Specialist, a small business technology specialist or an IT Techy?

    I have met a whole bunch of partners over the last couple of weeks, all requesting different things, and it has got me thinking - are you / do you want to be a specialist or generalist and then do you want to be all things to a business, or a super capable techy? First off, if you are a generalist, then this honestly means that you are a "Jack of all trades and a master of none" - well either that or you seriously need to get some more sleep. I prefer working with people who specialise in a few areas rather than those who try to do anything. If you do want to appear bigger and have a broader skill set, why not try relying on your local community of SBSC partners and farm out things you don't know well to those you can trust and become amazing at the things you do. If you fear competition with these guys, it is worth remembering a couple of things. 1st off, there are 4m small businesses in the UK and around 500 SBSC partners - that works out at 8,000 customers each - do you really think you are all going to compete...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, May 30 2006
  • Need to understand how to do things in Office 2007 - watch these short videos

    I love the idea of these. I will be putting WSS V3 on a SBS box soon to see the impact, but until then, you can watch the following by going to http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=BD5C77B0-F556-4136-8730-1D7FEEAE0A42&displaylang=en Building ASP.NET Web Parts for Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (AspWebPartsForWss3.wmv) Creating and Customizing Site Pages with SharePoint Designer 2007 (SharePointDesigner.wmv) Creating and Testing Features with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (WssFeatures.wmv) Creating and Using Content Types in Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (ContentTypes.wmv) Creating and Using Event Handlers in Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (WssEvents.wmv) Creating and Using Site Columns in Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 (SiteColumns.wmv) Creating and Customizing Document Information Panels with InfoPath 2007 (DocInfoPanel.wmv) Creating Custom Workflows with SharePoint Designer 2007 (SpdWorkflow.wmv) Extending the Office 2007 User Interface with a Custom Ribbon (ExtendedRibbon.wmv...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, May 26 2006
  • Small Biz Ignite - Could you improve your customers remote tools with SBS, need to get much more out of SharePoint Services (WSS), benefit from understanding what Live Communication server cam do and see what hosted solutions can offer....?

    If any of this sounds really useful, then why not book on a local ignite tour - for the 1st time we are coming as the small business team to your location. The events have plenty of technical show how (i.e. we will show it, might even show a config screen or two, but not build and install it in front of you). Click http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/training/ignite/default.aspx to book on the event and click on a location close to you on the map and select the Small Business Ignite or, if you are into CRM, the CRM one. Overall the event lasts 2 - 2:30hrs and is very interactive. While you may say you know everything about these technologies (and thankfully, to date, everyone has learnt something about the technology at the events) The existing ignite tours have been very well received - I got a mail today saying - if you liked the event and have already been to one, drop a comment and say how much you did so: "I always come away from your presentations fuelled with new ideas which I can implement for customers...
  • Office 2007 beta 2 is now downloadable – you can play with it online or download it

    Hi there, this is just a very quick post to say that Office 2007 beta 2 is available. For more info on how to play with Office, go to http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview - to understand how to get ready for the online test drive, go to http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/beta/testdrive.mspx?showIntro=n and if you want to download or order CD’s/DVDs now, go to http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/beta/getthebeta.mspx?showIntro=n . Small Business Information can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/smallbusiness/highlights.mspx and this is actually a very good quality set of information. Thinking specifically about the desktop and areas where small business owners can immediately see value, I see this coming in the following areas: Manage information better How many people are going to have less information next year Reduce the duplication Be more productive Loose the fear factor Stop using Office the 1996 way Look professional Make your documents look several notches above everyone elses...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, May 25 2006
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  • Vista beta 2 is now available – what can it do for Small Businesses

    If you get TechNet or MSDN , you have access to Beta 2 of Windows Vista now. If you don’t, then I am afraid you will have to wait a little bit longer. To find out when you can download if you do not have access, go to http://www.microsoft.com/technet/windowsvista/get_it.mspx to pre-register for the Community Tech Preview. The official Microsoft page at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/features/forbiz/smallbiz.mspx for information as to why it is applicable for small businesses is a little thin today. However, I have been talking to small businesses and small business partners for a while and the 3 hot topics on Vista appear to be: Make me safer Make it easier to do what I want to do Make my PC more reliable Depending on your point of view, these are either really simple, or really complex, but in terms of Vista, this is how I think it breaks down. There are obviously thousands of Vista features, but these too me start to make it a no-brainer Make me safer Better security features (admin users and virtualization...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, May 25 2006
  • getting 8 people to service 30,000 parnters is nothing compared to getting <1000 partners to service 4.1M busineses - that is the reality for UK SBSC members

    My boss, Steve Clayton recently noted how hard the job that the team I am part of has. We are responsible for working with, understanding and helping all UK partners, irrespective of size. To this end, he as written an excellent article " 30k divided by 8 just doesn't work ". This got me thinking, the ratio we have here is 1:3750 (PTS to Partners), but in the small business space where we have less than 1000 in the UK, to the 4.1M UK small businesses, we start to see a ratio of twice that at the moment, so while we feel pain, it really highlights just how difficult it is in the partner market. At the same time, it shows that for each partner, working together in community is very sensible as the number of times you are likely to compete with a fellow partner is a rounding error on a percentage. To this end, Susanne Dansey wrote an excellent posting http://www.uksmbgirl.co.uk/blog/archives/7 discussing the community and this was followed up by http://www.uksmbgirl.co.uk/blog/archives/8 and then http://www.uksmbgirl...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, May 23 2006
  • PTS-TV is now downloadable

    Hi guys, slowly our team are making snippets available about us and our roles. Tomorrow I record a session - probably about Vista and our partners. Anyway, if you go to http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/blog/pts-tv/ you can see all the sessions and download or stream the content. Now who says we do not listen and react to your feedback. ttfn David
  • Two more PTS-TV sessions - Security and Business Intelligence available

    At the PTS-TV site, we now have 5 sessions for your downloading and feedback pleasure. Go there ( http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/blog/pts-tv/ ) watch or download and then pump back questions. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, May 22 2006
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  • Small Business Ignite Tour - 15 cities in UK, come and get it

    We got the message - we need to come to more places and have a more blended technical and business session. This will last 2hours plus some MS funded food and it is at no charge to you!! The slides are written as are 40+ mins of David Overton Stylie demos and interaction. This is a use it or lose it situation - go to the site - http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/training/ignite/default.aspx - and book on the closest place and come along. give us your feedback, tell us what changes you want and next time it will be event better. While the event is billed as a non-technical event, there will be plenty of technology in view, on show and available for questions. As a snippet, the demos should show all this - and in such a short period of time - woo-hoo!!! If this is not to taste, reply in the comments!!: Collaborative Business How can I share information with my colleagues and partners - WSS Sites - Hosted Sharepoint - Office shared working documents How can I ensure only the right people see the documents - WSS...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, May 22 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
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  • Want do develop solutions based on Office – come to Office Dev Con – June 21st – 22nd – included WSS

    So, learn more about Office 2007 - a great set of tools for small businesses - I will blog why once the beta is launched - soon!! ttfn David Microsoft Office System Developers Conference http://www.microsoft.com/uk/business/devcon/ Microsoft Office System Developers Conference is the best opportunity for you to learn more about all the new solution technologies and capabilities in the Microsoft Office System 2007 wave of programmes and servers. At this two-day conference, members of the Microsoft product development and management teams will drill into the latest Office System 2007 innovations to show how developer extensibility will allow you to build powerful custom solutions. You will learn the latest techniques for creating applications around business intelligence, enterprise content management, collaboration, and more! You will also have the opportunity to meet and network with developers and architects on the Microsoft product teams and other customers and partners from the UK and Ireland. Key benefits...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, May 22 2006
  • Ways to find the Service Pack levels of products in SBS

    After a thread on the Yahoo! SBS list Don Murphy has put together a page of info on how to find the Service Pack level of the different components on SBS. You can find it here: http://reloadnuggets.com/archives/14 Thanks Don!
  • Find out about Longhorn Server – not SBS Longhorn, but Longhorn Server via online chat

    We will not have a version of SBS Longhorn for many months yet, but we do already know that it will be a x64 product only – as all Microsoft products are heading in that direction. Anyway, to the chase, on the 9 th June there is a chat on Longhorn. Details as below: An Introduction to Windows Server "Longhorn" Please join Bill Laing, General Manager of the Windows Server Division, and Iain McDonald, Director of Central Program Management within the Windows Server Division, for a discussion about Windows Server “Longhorn” Beta 2. Windows Server “Longhorn” is the next generation server operating system from Microsoft that will help IT professionals maximize control over their infrastructure and deliver a more secure, reliable and robust server environment. Join us to provide feedback, input into the product and to get answers to your tough questions. http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/chats/default.mspx ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, May 21 2006
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