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Technical RollUp : March 2008 - Technical Rollup Mail - Platforms (Windows, virtualisation, Active Directory, Core, Debugging, Terminal Services, Vista SP1 changes / new / implementation guides)

David Overton — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 09:37:03 GMT

As always, from the Technical RollUp : March 2008 - Technical Rollup Mail - Platforms blog posting. I've removed all the KB article stuff and it is worth pointing out that towards the end of the list are all the docs associated with what has changed with Windows Vista SP1:

Blogs and information

Windows Virtualization Team Blog
http://blogs.technet.com/virtualization/
The World Simplified is a Virtual World
http://blogs.technet.com/virtualworld/
Ask the Directory Services Team
http://blogs.technet.com/askds/
Ask the Performance Team
http://blogs.technet.com/askperf/
Microsoft Enterprise Networking Team
http://blogs.technet.com/networking/
Ask the Core Team
http://blogs.technet.com/askcore/
Microsoft Advanced Windows Debugging and Troubleshooting
http://blogs.msdn.com/ntdebugging/
Terminal Services Team Blog
http://blogs.msdn.com/ts/
The Hot Blog
http://blogs.technet.com/hot/

Downloads

Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1
Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1) delivers updates to corporate environments from Microsoft Update. This release fixes issue found since the release of the product.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=1&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3df87b4c5e-4161-48af-9ff8-a96993c688df%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1 Overview
This paper introduces Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1) and provides information about features, and server and client computer requirements.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=2&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d1b5eac37-bd48-41fd-869b-f9b06fa64a61%26displaylang%3den
Release Notes for Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1
These release notes describe known issues affecting Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1) and include recommendations and requirements for installing the application.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=3&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d8a283ea4-1545-47d5-a86c-5ca379bafb9c%26displaylang%3den
Step-by-Step Guide for Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1
This guide provides instructions for getting started with Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1).
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=4&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dc8fa2fd1-72f6-4f19-a1b0-f689dae14be6%26displaylang%3den
Deploying Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1
This paper describes how to deploy Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1).
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=8&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d208e93d1-e1cd-4f38-ad1e-d993e05657c9%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP1 Operations Guide
This paper documents the major tasks involved in administering and troubleshooting Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 Service Pack 1 (WSUS 3.0 SP1).
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=9&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d66d250fa-670f-4a49-95ec-2ffda7691f55%26displaylang%3den
Volume Activation 2.0 Technical Guidance
Technical documentation for planning, deployment, and operations of Volume Activation 2.0 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. Includes the Volume Activation 2.0 Overview Guide, Planning Guide, Deployment Guide, Operations Guide, Resources, FAQ and Technical Attributes.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=11&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d9893f83e-c8a5-4475-b025-66c6b38b46e3%26displaylang%3den
TCP/IP Fundamentals for Microsoft Windows
This online book describes the fundamentals of TCP/IP in Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=12&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dc76296fd-61c9-4079-a0bb-582bca4a846f%26displaylang%3den
Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 and .NET Framework version 3.5
The Windows SDK for Windows Server® 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 provides documentation, samples, header files, libraries, and tools designed to help you develop Windows applications using both native (Win32®) and managed (.NET Framework) technologies.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=13&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3de6e1c3df-a74f-4207-8586-711ebe331cdc%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Step-by-Step Guides
These step-by-step guides help IT Professionals learn about and evaluate Windows Server 2008.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=17&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d518d870c-fa3e-4f6a-97f5-acaf31de6dce%26displaylang%3den
Changes in Functionality from Windows Server 2003 with SP1 to Windows Server 2008
Describes features and technologies in Windows Server 2008 added or changed since Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1).
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=18&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d173e6e9b-4d3e-4fd4-a2cf-73684fa46b60%26displaylang%3den
Infrastructure Planning and Design
The Infrastructure Planning and Design (IPD) guides are the next version of Windows Server System Reference Architecture. The guides in this series help clarify and streamline design processes for Microsoft infrastructure technologies, with each guide addressing a unique infrastructure technology or scenario.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=19&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dad3921fb-8224-4681-9064-075fdf042b0c%26displaylang%3den
Windows Media Services for Windows Server 2008
These Microsoft Update Standalone Package (MSU) files install the latest version of Windows Media Services and related remote administration tools for the Windows Server 2008 operating system.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=20&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d9ccf6312-723b-4577-be58-7caab2e1c5b7%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008: Release Notes and Installation Information
Release documentation that contains known issues for the Windows Server 2008 operating system.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=22&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d1087a498-40ad-46ba-9ada-f32a58a94a85%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft IPsec Diagnostic Tool
Microsoft IPsec Diagnostic Tool assists Network administrators with troubleshooting network related failures, focusing primarily on IPsec. It is applicable on Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=23&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d1d4c292c-7998-42e4-8786-789c7b457881%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Security Guide
This Solution Accelerator helps organizations efficiently create, deploy, and maintain a secure environment for a variety of servers running Windows Server® 2008.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=24&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dfb8b981f-227c-4af6-a44b-b115696a80ac%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise
Windows Server 2008 helps IT professionals to increase the flexibility and reliability of their server infrastructure while offering developers a more robust web and applications platform for building connected applications and services.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=25&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d13c7300e-935c-415a-a79c-538e933d5424%26displaylang%3den
Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows Server 2008
This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files (.admx/.adml) delivered with Windows Server 2008.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=26&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d2043b94e-66cd-4b91-9e0f-68363245c495%26displaylang%3den
Demonstrate NAP DHCP Enforcement in a Test Lab
Test lab to demonstrate NAP DHCP enforcement
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=30&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dac38e5bb-18ce-40cb-8e59-188f7a198897%26displaylang%3den
Planning and Deploying Group Policy
This guide provides the information needed to successfully plan and deploy Group Policy using Windows Server 2008 and the Group Policy Management Console.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=32&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d73d96068-0aea-450a-861b-e2c5413b0485%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Technical Overviews
These technical overviews provide IT Professionals with information about how a Windows Server 2008 technology works.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=33&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d46dc26d6-af47-43f0-b3de-521831fe09d6%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Standard
Windows Server 2008 helps IT professionals to increase the flexibility and reliability of their server infrastructure while offering developers a more robust web and applications platform for building connected applications and services.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=37&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3db6e99d4c-a40e-4fd2-a0f7-32212b520f50%26displaylang%3den
Demonstrate NAP 802.1X Enforcement in a Test Lab
Test lab to demonstrate NAP 802.1X enforcement
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=40&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d8a0925ee-ee06-4dfb-bba2-07605eff0608%26displaylang%3den
System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2007
This download comes as a pre-configured VHD. This download enables you evaluate Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2007.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=41&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dd4e8bc52-3c3b-4bae-b937-987da892fad7%26displaylang%3den
Demonstrate NAP IPsec Enforcement in a Test Lab
Test lab to demonstrate NAP IPsec enforcement
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=42&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d298ff956-1e6c-4d97-a3ed-7e7ffc4bed32%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 KMS Setup Demonstration
This video demonstrates how to implement the Key Management Service (KMS) in your organization. The demo walks through setting up the KMS host on a Windows Server 2008 computer, how KMS clients activate with the KMS host, and how to review activation status using the slmgr.vbs command.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=43&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dbbf2eb61-2b30-4f2d-bccd-df53e220b8e9%26displaylang%3den
Internet Protocol Security for Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Intenet Protocol security (IPSec) support in Windows Server 2003 allows you to secure network traffic at the Network layer.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=45&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3de6590330-d903-4bdd-9655-81b86df655e4%26displaylang%3den
IEEE 802.1X for Wired Networks and Internet Protocol Security with Microsoft Windows
This white paper examines and compared 802.1X for wired networks and IPsec.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=47&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dd9aef757-f528-41be-a01f-99a60c9a855d%26displaylang%3den
Network Access Protection Policies in Windows Server 2008
You configure NAP health requirements and enforcement behaviors with Network Policy Server in Windows Server 2008.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=48&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d8e47649e-962c-42f8-9e6f-21c5ccdcf490%26displaylang%3den
Demonstrate NAP VPN Enforcement in a Test Lab
Test lab to demonstrate NAP VPN enforcement
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=49&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d729bba00-55ad-4199-b441-378cc3d900a7%26displaylang%3den
Introducing Windows HPC Server 2008
Learn more about Windows HPC Server 2008, and how it brings the power of high-performance computing (HPC) to mainstream while enhancing end users' and cluster administrators' productivity.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=50&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d360b83fb-4000-43e2-b6e8-be4373ad9c94%26displaylang%3den
SQL Server Compact 3.5 SP1 Beta for ADO.Net Entity Framework Beta 3
SQL Server Compact 3.5 SP1 Beta release for the Windows Desktop platform to support the ADO.Net Entity Framework Beta 3 and the ADO.Net Entity Framework Tools December 2007 CTP
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=6&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d68539fae-cf03-4c3b-aeda-769cc205fe5f%26displaylang%3den
Windows XP SP3 RC2
Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate 2 is available to the public. Specific registry settings will allow you to be offered SP3 via Windows Update. You can also choose to download standalone update packages.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=1&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d114f3599-12af-42b2-aab1-b969a62c68a7%26displaylang%3den
Release Notes for Windows XP Service Pack 3
Release documentation that contains known issues for Windows XP Service Pack 3.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=2&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d60807c3a-8969-4ddf-beb2-8bfac9ed416b%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft Assessment and Planning
The Microsoft Assessment and Planning Solution Accelerator is a tool that makes it easy for you to assess your current IT infrastructure for a variety of technology migration projects. It includes the features previously provided with the Windows Vista Hardware Assessment Solution Accelerator.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=5&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d67240b76-3148-4e49-943d-4d9ea7f77730%26displaylang%3den
Deploying Windows Firewall Settings for Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2
Windows XP Service Pack 2 provides Windows Firewall, an enhanced firewall that is enabled by default. This white paper describes the methods used to deploy Windows Firewall settings in a managed environment.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=13&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d4454e0e1-61fa-447a-bdcd-499f73a637d1%26displaylang%3den
Troubleshooting Windows Firewall in Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2
This article describes how Windows Firewall works, the common problems with using Windows Firewall, and the set of tools used to troubleshoot Windows Firewall issues.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=16&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3da7628646-131d-4617-bf68-f0532d8db131%26displaylang%3den
GPOAccelerator
The GPOAccelerator creates all the Group Policy objects (GPOs) that you need to deploy recommended security settings for your environment to save you hours of work that you would otherwise need to configure these settings. This Solution Accelerator includes guidance to assist you with this tool.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=18&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3da46f1dbe-760c-4807-a82f-4f02ae3c97b0%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft App Virt 4.5 Trial Guides
Trial guide that walks a user through the setup and use of the Microsoft Application Virtualization 4.5 system in standalone mode or with full infrastructure
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=22&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3daa787491-8d08-4d2f-8960-9e9f00226c7e%26displaylang%3den
Notable changes in Windows Vista SP1
Notable changes in Windows Vista SP1
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=1&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3dd69c4e1b-c81a-41be-b1f5-66e615ba5912%26displaylang%3den
Overview of Windows Vista SP1
Overview of Windows Vista SP1
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=3&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d39b802ea-b2cf-4585-8cea-2cc6a6247cb3%26displaylang%3den
Automated Installation Kit (AIK) for Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008
The Windows Automated Installation Kit (Windows AIK) is designed to help corporate IT professionals customize and deploy the Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 family of operation systems.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=4&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d94bb6e34-d890-4932-81a5-5b50c657de08%26displaylang%3den
Windows Vista SP1 Guides for IT Professionals
These guides provide instructions for evaluating and deploying Windows Vista SP1.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=5&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3de71f0083-1013-4f9c-a3f9-c56e7120a5e9%26displaylang%3den
Update for Windows Vista (KB943302)
Install this update to resolve a set of known application compatibility issues with Windows Vista.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=7&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d4758433b-11dd-49fc-9529-f8d7a914e1bf%26displaylang%3den
Update for Windows Vista (KB937287)
Install this update to enable future updates to install successfully on all editions of Windows Vista.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=8&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d5639710d-dfbf-4527-806e-9a1634d0cc8e%26displaylang%3den
Release Notes for Windows Vista Service Pack 1
Release documentation that contains known issues for Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1).
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=9&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3db5b681f5-f366-4ad2-ba10-6a7d209de7bd%26displaylang%3den
Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization MCS Sequencing Guide
MCS Guidelines on sequencing with Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=40&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d1c6a73b8-5da8-4a1a-838b-a41ca492c488%26displaylang%3den
TCP/IP Registry Values for Microsoft Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008
Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 allow you to modify TCP/IP behavior with registry values.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=41&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d12ac9780-17b5-480c-aef7-5c0bde9060b0%26displaylang%3den
Windows Server 2008 Developer Story
An executable containing the Windows Server 2008 Developer Story
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=46&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d056bb5f7-65ff-4c42-bdae-65754d96b021%26displaylang%3den
Windows AIK 1.1 Readme Document (February 2008 Update)
Updated readme document for Windows Automated Installation Kit 1.1 (Windows AIK) for Windows Vista.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=49&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d051091e8-51ea-4d2c-96b3-dc9863edebd9%26displaylang%3den
Testing Prep and Implementation
Setting up a testing environment, known issues and tools available - 2 page PowerPoint Presentation
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=50&srcdisplaylang=en&srccategoryid=&srcfamilyid=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3ffamilyid%3d02e01c4d-49a2-43e6-a9c5-8b174d1f089a%26displaylang%3den

thanks

David

Technorati Tags: Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista SP1, Vista SP1, Virtualisation

Photos, photography, JPEG XR, Photosynth, the future of photography and Seadragons - why all the excitement?

David Overton — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 08:42:00 GMT

It's funny working in an industry where if you are not going at 50,000 miles an hour you are considered to be standing still. One area where Microsoft is speeding along is photography. In this post I will explore the announcements, the demos, short and long term products and then the future that lots of people are beginning to see. For me, the fact that people are already seeing such a future and its possibilities is very exciting (both the visions and the fact they are having them without drugs!! (humour))

Look at the recent events:

Raw photo support in 2005 - Microsoft and Imaging Industry Leaders Unveil Support for Digital
Photo HD (which some people thought was a JPEG killer.. tut tut) - HD Photo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
JPEG XR - JPEG committee supports Photo HD as next gen JPEG TrustedReviews - Official Jpeg Successor Is Microsoft's HD Photo

Now this is all very nice, but so what - a better format for bigger pictures, that could be a bit like FAT disks getting FAT32 format, but it is not. Now read about Photosynth and Seadeagon and you realise that people are not just seeing a HD future, but a future where seeing details and accessing them is much, much easier:

The demos by themselves are awesome -

Chris Koenig : Seadragon and Photosynth
If you haven't already seen Seadragon or Photosynth, then you need to watch this video from TED 07. The speaker, Blaise Aguera y Arcas, is an Architect at Microsoft, and responsible for the Seadragon product.
This is AMAZING technology - absolutely unbelievable what they've been able to do here. You can try out Photosynth for yourself today, but Seadragon itself is not publicly available (I can't wait to get my hands on this Seadragon demo)!

The short term future is described by people like Pete:

Microsoft & Photography - Pete's Eats
I've been a heavy Photoshop user since v2.5 now but thought I'd do some research at Microsoft to see what kinds of things we have to offer too. I have to say, I was pretty surprised at the content I found and thought I should share...

Microsoft Pro Photo - a site devoted to professional photographers with news, blog, articles and events. I've only just started to explore this site myself but I'm pretty impressed so far. One of the recent news items there is announcing a partnership between Phase One and Microsoft.
Microsoft Photo Info - an add-in for Windows Explorer that enables you to see and edit the metadata of an image without opening another application. This is actually pretty handy.
Microsoft Pro Photo Downloads - a download site, linked from the Pro Photo site. Features some great apps, articles and utilities such as Synctoy and various Photoshop workflow pieces.
Microsoft Research Group Shot - use this to create a composite image from a series of photos. I haven't played with this yet, but it's from MS Research so should be worth it...
Photosynth - browse large collections of photo's in 3D. You have to see the videos to get this.
Seadragon - not specifically for photo's, but imagine being able to view large images like this if you're a pro photogrpaher... The speed is amazing and will be seriously useful in a studio environment I think.

So, some pretty good resources so far. I'm sure there are some more hidden depths to explore too...

In fact, the information already available has lead to some people being inspired to write their own tools:

Microsoft Releases SEAMonster "Content-Aware Image Resizing" Utility

In April, I saw SEAMonster demonstrated by one of the Microsoft Research guys. It's hard to quickly explain the amazing differences between simply "cropping or resizing an image" as opposed to "content-aware seam carving" -- so pah-lease:

Watch this quick video!
Download SEAMonster Beta

Can SEADragon be released next?

People are now also seeing further into the future with views on how the world will be different.

Two different perspectives are provide by Steve (my former boss and all things SaaS) and Pete Scargill (IT Chair of the Federation of Small Business and good friend, when we get time to catch up)

Steve Clayton: Geek In Disguise : Kindle is Software + Services

I haven't seen it yet and hear great things already but imagine the Kindle with Microsoft's SeaDragon technology embedded. Maybe it already has something like this but seeing the Blaise demo with Dickens' books made me think it's a match made in heaven. Maybe not though given the ambition to get books down to the device in ~1m and the size of some of the SeaDragon collections I have.

and from Pete who writes for Computing - it is very much worth reading the whole article, however, to give you a taster:

http://peterscargill.computing.co.uk/2007/11/travelling-thro.html

Travelling through time - a 3D tour of the world made real

I’ve just come out of the most AMAZING talk and demo.
This is superficially on the subject of photos – and what we (by that I mean the world) can do with them – I think you’ll find this very interesting, mind-boggling in fact, but you’ll have to bear with me as I take it through in stages – don’t try to skip any.…
Traditionally, most of the more elderly amongst us (myself included) used to go off on holiday, take pictures, take our films along to Boots, get the pictures printed, look at them and then shove them away in a draw to go mouldy.
Then along came digital cameras – the ones that some said “would never replace film” – well, they have, well and truly. So, many people now have digital cameras and go on holiday, take WAY more pictures than ever before… and put them on a disk to go, erm, mouldy. I’ve been taking pictures since the first digital cameras came out – all neatly categorized and stored in directories which no-one will ever see.
<snipped>
then along comes Microsoft Labs at the TechEd conference this week in Barcelona. These chaps been working for some time on something called Seadragon.
Stay with me – I’m making a point and it’s worth it.
So – Consider Google Earth – you can zoom in and out to any part of the world and go in with incredible detail - turned geography lessons upside down I’d imagine – I could not imagine not teaching a kid how to use this tool. Of course, you don’t hold data for the whole world in your PC – no, it’s pulled in from the web only as and when needed – as you zoom in from the entire world view which has very little detail, to someone’s back yard. And this is the key to the next stage.
Now consider a screen with thousands of little thumbnails of pictures, you can zoom into any one, and keep zooming. The only hit your machine is taking is the size of your screen – like Google Earth, it’s pulling in information only as it needs it – on the fly.
So, in the Seadragon demo they zoomed in through hundreds of tiny, side by side photos lying on the screen, into a tiny glossy car advert. But wait, in the corner of the tiny ad as they zoomed in, were some little car images taken at different angles – zoom in – they’re actually hi-res images with text - pages within pages if you like – almost ad-infinitum if need be. In another example one photo when zoomed in turned out to be the entire text of a whole book, chapter by chapter side by side – and you just zoomed in smoothly till you got what you wanted. Think about this for your web site – instead of lots of pages – you have one page – and just keep zooming in on the bits you’re interested in. A completely different way to think of publications.
<snipped>
And none of this is really new – a different slant on microfilm – bigger, better and faster – but then, along comes Photosynth… and here I’m coming to the interesting bit.
What the guys at Microsoft have done is to make software that analyses photos and gives them scoring points for all the features, angles, corners, colours and so on and assign a set of numbers to each photo – all totally automatically of course, no human interaction – making it possible to compare one photo with another and – wait for it – yes, they can actually tell how one photo relates to another and where the photographer stood when he/she took the shot.
So – take a few pictures of your house at various angles – all the way around and fire the photos at the software and it is capable of building a “mental image” of the original shape - and you’re right – they’ve managed to put those flat photos in a virtual 3D space - in the order and orientation that they relate to each other.
To explain – imagine you built a plaster model of your house, and on each wall or corner, stick a photo you’ve taken of the real house, hold it there with a pin, and let’s say you’ve a really nice door - as someone moves up to the door in the photo of the front of the house - well, you can’t do this in a real model – but imagine moving close up to the door, and the photo changes from an image of the front of the house, to the close-up of the door. Imagine an image of the door handle – look toward the handle – image smoothly changes to that image… one could go on ad nauseum.
Don’t get me wrong, we’re not really talking about a guided tour of your house. Taking a slight leap, we’re talking potentially about a guided tour OF THE WORLD!!!!! (minus boring fields and the sea of course)
That’s today, but what’s really exciting is this: Some time ago I saw a demo at a university of a very crude attempt to extract 3D imagery from photos – but this is WAY beyond that. They then briefly showed us a demo - same scenario, a church this time with about six photos. Move around the photos smoothly and you get an idea of the original church – but that was not good enough – all of a sudden the image smoothly moved around the outside of the building in full 3D. Amazingly they have demo software that figures out the original 3D image from the photos and lets you view and pan a complete, solid 3d image! All from a bunch of flat photos and NO human interaction.
Move forward to a different world to the one we have today… let’s say in a few short years at most (and most of this is conjecture on my behalf).
Consider something like Microsoft Virtual Earth – consider a system that lets you zoom down to the ground in full 3D, walk around at ground level in full 3D, up alleys, into shops, to anywhere in the world that Flickr etc have available in images in sufficient number. Not only that but the text that accompanies modern photos (metadata information) is used to tap into Wikipedia as required and extract useful notes for you.
Imagine sitting at the screen, descending to a shop in a street, going into the shop, let’s say a jewelers shop – and as you zoom along the shelves you spot a ring you like. Zoom in and you can see the crystal in every minute detail. Press a button and get complete information about the product – and how long it will take to get to you. Press another – credit card – and it’s yours. Within seconds the images changes on the shelf to “sold out” and everyone else looking in sees that change.
<snipped>

Finally a bit of background reading for those of you want to know more about JPEG XR:

HD Photo to become JPEG XR

Posted By PSN Editorial Staff
A new attempt to provide a higher-end sequel to the ubiquitous JPEG image standard is officially under way.
Source: CNET
Written by Stephan Shankland
The multiple countries participating in the Joint Photographic Experts Group, which created the JPEG standard, have approved an effort to make Microsoft’s HD Photo format a standard called JPEG XR, said Bill Crow, who has led Microsoft’s HD Photo effort and who just took over the company’s Microsoft Live Labs Seadragon imaging project. XR stands for “extended range,” a reference to the format’s ability to show a wider and finer range of tonal gradations and a richer color palette.
“The country vote is done, and it passed,” Crow said. “That means the International JPEG committee has decided to go ahead and create the standard. Now it’s just a process of doing that work,” a process that will begin later this month in a meeting in Kobe, Japan.

thanks and enjoy your photos, today and tomorrow

David

Technorati Tags: Photos, photography, JPEG XR, Photosynth, Seadragon

A selection of WPF-based (Silverlight) applications

David Overton — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 23:24:32 GMT

I saw this blog entry and just had to share it - a number of Silverlight application (don't know how many will work with the updated Silverlight builds) - WPF Cornucopia - A selection of WPF-based applications. Below are some of my favourites. There are many more on the blog entry

Some cool WPF and Silverlight applications that you can download or play with today. The deployment model has been added so that you know what you are getting into as far as installation goes. Lots are using ClickOnce .application files and .xbaps, so installation is trivial!

My Web Pages Starter Kit
New with Silverlight Demo
(Web Application)
New York Times Reader
Next-generation online reading experience for the NY Times
(MSI)
Microsoft Calendar Printing Assistant
Generate printed calendars from your Outlook schedule
(MSI)
Microsoft Expression Blend
Designer tool for building WPF experiences
(MSI)

Microsoft Expression Design
Illustration and graphic design tool
(MSI)
Microsoft Windows Live for TV
3D access to Messenger contacts from Media Center or IE
(MSI)
Wikipedia Explorer
3D exploration of related articles from Wikipedia
(Application)
iBloks
Mashup application for creating 3D movies
(MSI)
RikReader
RSS Reader that integrates with Internet Explorer 7
(Application)
Nostalgia
Yahoo! Flickr browser and photo manager
(Application)
Cine.View
Netflix movie queue manager
(Application)
Actipro Wizard
A control for building wizard dialogs in WPF
(XBAP)
British Library Turning the Pages
British Library's 'virtual viewer' for some of their most precious books
(XBAP)
ITN Hub Player
Video clips and news stories from ITN
(Application)
Evolution Media Center
HTPC Front-end with stunning animations and dynamic XAML-skinning
(ZIP)
WeatherNews
Weather visualization
(XBAP)

DOSV
Computer Configuration
(XBAP)
Roxio Central
DVD and CD Burning Software
(Application)

90 Degree's Radius
Reporting Tool for Business Data
(Application)

Forbes.com Reader
News Reader Application from Forbes.com
(Application)

Seattle Post
-Intelligencer PI Reader
News Reader
(Application)

Dev Components
Office 2007 Ribbon for WPF
(Application)

Daily Mail eReader
Online reading experience for UK Newspaper
(Application)

The North Face In-Store Explorer
Go to Store to experience
(Retail kiosk)

Windows Vista Magazine
Uses same viewer as the British Library app
(XBAP)

ttfn

David

Technorati Tags: Silverlight, WPF, Demos