March 2008 Archives

It seems like over the past 12 months the number of Top 10 lists on the Internet has exploded, and we keep seeing them because people seem to like reading them. They're an easy form of content to consume, and they seem to be popular on aggregating sites like Digg.

I think site publishers like them because they tend to spur on discussion, because everyone has an opinion on what was left off the list or should have been left off the list.

Windows Server 2008 is no exception. Let's enumerate some of the lists published recently. The first one offers a bonus reason:

• Top 11 Reasons to Upgrade to Windows Server 2008
  
• 10 Coolest Features in Windows Server 2008
• 10 Reasons to Install Windows Server 2008
• Top 10 Improvements in Windows Server 2008
  

There was a main launch event for the Heroes Happen Here tour in Birmingham, U.K., on March 19, and I came across the dates for the U.K. roadshow events on Steve Lamb's blog for those who are interested in attending. Each event will have a keynote and four sessions, as well as Q&A.

Here are the dates:

• Cardiff, 22 April 2008
  
• London, 24 April 2008
• Manchester, 30 April 200
• Glasgow, 12 May 2008
• Newcastle, 15 May 2008

If you missed the Birmingham event, you can catch the virtual experience online at http://www.microsoft.com/virtualevents/uk/.

Cheers.

This short video from the Windows Server 2008 launch features Citrix President and CEO Mark Templeton and Bob Kelly, corporate VP, infrastructure server marketing at Microsoft. Citrix offers full support for Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V.

As part of the company’s VM interoperability services, Citrix is also developing technology to enable the portability of virtual machines between XenServer and Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V. By supporting both the Xen hypervisor and Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V, Citrix will allow IT organizations to leverage heterogeneous virtualization environments for different workloads, datacenters, or business units within an organization.

Everything you need to know about Windows Server 2008 Certification, courtesy of Matt McSpirit's blog. There's a couple of Certification 101 Live Meeting conferences coming up during the second week of April.

There are also some special offers available that let you take the exams for a discount.

As for the Windows Server 2008 Certification itself, it goes something like this:

There are three Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certifications. To achieve any of these certifications, you must successfully complete one exam and demonstrate knowledge and skills in a key area of the technology: Active Directory, Network Infrastructure, or Applications Infrastructure.

Two job-role certifications, Server Administrator and Enterprise Administrator, will require a combination of MCTS and Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) exams. In total, five exams will make up the Windows Server 2008 suite of exams.

Just when you think you've become a master at deploying Windows Server 2003, things go and change on you. With the introduction of Windows Server 2008, the installation process for Windows servers has changed substantially for the first time since Windows NT 4.0. Windows 2008 deployment is more like Vista deployment.

Tim Mintner goes over all of this in his article from TechNet Magazine on Deploying Windows Server 2008 with System Center. If you used Remote Installation Services (RIS) to automate the install process to avoid having to be physically present at the server console or Automated Deployment Services (ADS), you'll see some changes.

Make no mistake, everyone involved would like you to attend a Heroes Happen Here launch event, coming throughout the Spring to a city near you. There's a nice list of events down the left side of the Windows Server 2008 Innovation Center front page. And you can register for launch events by clicking here.

But maybe you're just too busy; maybe your boss won't let you go; maybe the event in your area already passed; or maybe the event in your area is booked solid and they can't possibly squeeze you in without risking the wrath of the local fire marshal.

For those people, and for those of you who hate surprises and want to know what to expect when you get to a launch event, we bring you (courtesy of Chris Henley's blog) the launch event PowerPoint slides. Show them to that boss who won't let you go.

As you probably know by now, Heroes Happen Here is the slogan Microsoft is using for the launch of Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008. If you're an under-appreciated IT pro, then you might enjoy the humor. Or maybe alliteration is your thing. Or maybe you simply dismiss it as a marketing slogan because you've got a well-adjusted filter for things like that.

If you heard the remarks that Microsoft COO Kevin Turner made from Toronto for the Feb. 27 launch event, then you heard the story of Omer Celik, a developer who back in 1999 survived a 7.2 earthquake in Istanbul, but had to live on the streets with his family for five days (along with thousands of others) until help arrived.

The whole experience got Omer thinking about how technology can help improve the response to disasters like the Istanbul quake. He teamed up with a childhood friend named Oguz and they went to work with Microsoft Robotics Studio, Visual Studio 2008, Virtual Earth, Windows Server 2008 with IIS 7.0, and Silverlight. The end result:

They've created something called RoboTurk a robotic helicopter used in disaster situations to fly into areas that are so badly damaged so that you can stream video back to the rescue crews, so that rescue crews can get real time feedback on who and where they need to provide help.

Not everyone that installs Windows Server 2008 is going to use it on a project with the life-saving potential of RoboTurk. In fact, most people won't. But it's a good example of the power of technology and ingenuity. And I think it's a pretty good story.