October 2006 - David Overton's Blog

Howdy folks, I am well and truly back at my desk, but I received a little over 2,000 mails while I was away, so I am closing them down before I do lots of blog posts. Will be soon. thanks David

I almost forgot to say, but I will be on holiday for a week, so the blog will be very quiet. I have just popped into an internet cafe and have 8 minutes to go before I get kicked off, so don't expect more from me just now. ttfn David

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 atworkuk@microsoft.com to reach Gill and me :-) Source: Office Pioneer : Reaching the Pioneers

I have been to visit Fred Aldous in Manchester - the range of arts and crafts items was baffling to me, a non-artist, however with their help I was able to find the perfect things for my wife. The reason I was there though, was not to buy some paint, but to meet with the current family owners. They are an amazing showcase of what technology can do without damaging the fabric of what makes a family run business great. I have spoken about them before and yesterday someone asked me to provide the references, but the great success has been written up in the Daily Telegraph in the UK, so it is not something I can send out. A quick search of the Telegraph site has produced two stories on Fred's transformation - one as it was happening and one six months later. I strongly suggest a read to learn more! Victorian ledgers give way to age of Epos (Filed: 12/09/2005) A city craft shop founded in 1880 is going for the latest retail software to provide 21st century service, says Selina Mills Source: Telegraph | Money | Victorian ledgers give way to age of Epos and A crafty solution to a notable problem (Filed: 17/10/2006) A leap of faith with an electronic retail system has lightened Rob Aldous's paper load, he tells Selina Mills This time last year, Fred Aldous, the Manchester- based craft shop, had one ancient computer in a corner of an office that nobody used. Regarded as one of the most knowledgeable businesses in the trade, it relied on an ad hoc Post-it note system for ordering, stocktaking and reminders. Notes were everywhere, with urgent messages such as "order more" and "check with Rob" scribbled in a rush. Source: Telegraph | Money | A crafty solution to a notable problem

This has been around for a while, but it is no longet in beta - scan a PC to see how it is doing! Get a free PC safety scan Windows Live OneCare safety scanner is a free service designed to help ensure the health of your PC. Check for and remove viruses Get rid of junk on your hard disk Improve your PC's performance Fix specific PC issues Use the full service scan to check everything. To help fix particular problems on your PC, turn to the individual scanners below. Protection Clean up Tune up Source: Windows Live OneCare safety scanner: Free online tool for PC health and safety

I like Vijay - he never lets me get away with cutting corners and has an honest perspective on many things. His personal review of what Exchange, Vista and Office will bring to the world is refreshing because he can say he has been there!! Vista vs Linux October 13, 2006 on 6:51 pm | In Linux , Vista | As Vista nears the business launch date of November 2006 the articles doing a comparison are appearing thick and fast. Firstly, let me say I’m an advocate of Open Source and what it has brought to the world. It’s given us some great solutions and powers the heart of the internet as we know it and companies like Google have built their business on it. That’s not a bad achievement! However, Microsoft has a formidable offering to both consumers and businesses alike. This offering is only getting stronger through EVO (Exchange Server 2007, Vista and Office 2007) and issues such as the WGA debacle and delays in Vista aren’t going to make the impact of these new technologies any less dramatic. Source: iQubed Blog » Vista vs Linux

From bCentral : Small firms 'overlooking' networking benefits Thu, 12 Oct 2006 16:21:12 GMT Many of Britain's small businesses could be losing out to competitors because they are not making enough of networking opportunities. Many of Britain's small businesses could be losing out to competitors because they are not making enough of networking opportunities. The latest research report from Lloyds TSB Business and the SERTeam at the Open University found that two fifths of small firms do not believe that networking can boost their businesses' chance of growth and success. It also shows that one in ten small firms say they do not devote any time to networking, while 42 per cent admit they only get involved a few times a year. Lloyds TSB believes that those businesses that do become adept at networking are likely to gain significant benefits. It reveals how almost three quarters of firms have won new customers over the past year as a direct result of marketing, while two fifths have found new suppliers. more at Small Business News : Small firms 'overlooking' networking benefits

I was browsing Robert McLaws blog entry on Launch 2007 e-Learning Courses and notices a HUGE stack of training courses - well worth checking out. The ones I think you might want to focus on are below - more on the blog. The WSS ones are key for anyone looking at Live people!! ttfn David New 2007 Microsoft Office System - Home & Office Users Free for 90 Days! Course 4622: What's New in Microsoft® Office Access 2007 Summary: This online course introduces the new features and functionality in the latest version of Microsoft Office Access. There have been substantial changes to the user interface in this database application, and this course can help you get up-to-speed quickly. Course 4623: What's New in Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007 Summary: This online course introduces the new features and functionality in the latest version of Microsoft Office Excel. There have been substantial changes to the user interface in this spreadsheet application, and this course can help you get up-to-speed quickly. Course 4624: What's New in Microsoft® Office InfoPath® 2007 Summary: This online course introduces the new features and functionality in the latest version of Microsoft Office InfoPath. Designing and publishing Web-based forms has been made even easier in the latest release of this application, and this course can help you get up-to-speed quickly. Course 4625: What's New in Microsoft® Office OneNote® 2007 Summary: This online course introduces the new features and functionality in the latest version of Microsoft Office OneNote. All of your text-, voice-, and TabletPC-based notes can be saved in one easy to manage application and shared with others, creating a collaborative work environment. Course 4626: What's New in Microsoft® Office Outlook® 2007 Summary: This online course introduces the new features and functionality in the latest version of Microsoft Office Outlook. In addition to managing e-mail, schedules, and contacts, the latest version of Office Outlook provides enhanced task-management capabilities. Course 4627...

There was me ranting on security yesterday and then I spot this post by Susan that says it all Link to E-Bitz - SBS MVP the Official Blog of the SBS "Diva" : Now remind me again why it's a bad thing to exclude other vendors from the Kernel? enjoy David

The video on this blog is just amazing - this can be what it is like here, but a bit of planning and you can easily delay things to get time.. of course that delay might hit a product ;-) Link to The UsefulTechnology Blog : The Joys of International Working

Just saw this on the bCentral news site - always useful to know!! Of course, this can include IT solutions and of course, the MS Finance offers found at http://www.microsoft.com/uk/partner/sales_and_marketing/promotions/default.aspx?page=product can be used to cover the whole solution, so your fees, SBS server and desktops with Office... ;-) SME leasing identified as means to growth Thu, 05 Oct 2006 12:05:05 GMT Leasing has been identified as a cost effective option for smaller businesses, according to the Forum of Private Business (FPB). Leasing has been identified as a cost effective option for smaller businesses, according to the Forum of Private Business (FPB). Source: Small Business News : SME leasing identified as means to growth

This is something I have thought long and hard about and as such I have to caveat things by saying this is my opinion and that I am no more informed than any other member of the public or IT community. Having said that, I have done my time as a Windows Developer and even once worked on emulation systems such as Wine. These protections will be coming to all OSs - so Vista, Longhorn, SBS - all of them! I really think this is some of the worst mud slinging I have seen in a long time and much is wrong! So what have I seen in the Press. McAfee and Symantec have complained that they want the ability to ignore the APIs in Vista and bash at the Kernel directly for security services. However, Kernel code has to be signed for the integrity of the system. Microsoft will not stick to the rules above and will gain advantage by using unknown APIs That the security prompts and center can not be turned off That Microsoft is right to make these changes and want to increase the integrity of the system As someone who once worked on a large secure project I recognise the types of controls Microsoft wants/has to put in place on the Kernel - something that has been around since Windows XP 64-bit addition based on Server SP1 (yes it was). When you have a look at all the nasties out there, some (rootkits often) place drivers on the system to do the "hiding" from you. A driver sits in the kernel and can see and change almost anything that goes on in there - if you are compromised in the Kernel, they you are hosed!! You will never know it and your tools will tell you everything is fine. If you allow some people to not obey these rules, then the dishonest ones will not be hindered by it. Yes it can be disabled, but why would you as a user want to turn it off? I even saw someone say that the Kernel is where the holes are, so it is important that rather than fixing the issues, MS was better off leaving it to others. Well, why not have Ms produce a better kernel and then most users would be happy. Second, long, long before I worked for Microsoft...

Darren Strange wanted to make sure everyone knew that the Office launch is on schedule, so he wrote a blog entry called " the launch is not cancelled " and says: My days now seem to consist of queues of wild people, frothing at the mouth running at me like some sort of marketing shaun of the dead scene screaming "cancel the launch!". People, hear me, take a chill pill, we are launching and we are on track. :-) Things will go wrong when you run a launch. Customer projects deploying the beta are fraught with politics and yes sometimes bugs, shock horror, can crop up when you least need it. But we will launch. We will get our events together, we will sort out who attends, we will get that PO sorted, that content will get written, that speaker briefed, that customer PR form signed, that video will get recorded and edited and how can I be so sure??? ttfn David

From the IE Blog is the following - we have all heard that IE7 is coming, but that day is almost upon us, so time to get ready. I finally installed IE7 for my wife yesterday - for the 1st time in a long time she actually said "Oh, that is useful" when talking about technology - a win for everyone! IE7 Is Coming This Month...Are you Ready? The final release of IE7 is fast approaching … and I mean really fast … and will be delivered to customers via Automatic Updates a few weeks after it’s available for download. We want to ensure that you are ready and the information below will help get you there. Compatibility with sites, extensions and applications has been a very high priority for us as we develop new features, enhance the existing features and move the platform forward to be more secure and standards compliant. We are continually listening to feedback from our customers, partners and leaders in the industry to resolve major compatibility issues to ensure our common customers have a great experience with IE7. As we make key improvements in areas such as layout and security, some changes need to be made by site owners to work smoothly with IE7. We have produced detailed documentation, tools and other resources to assist site, extension and application owners in their testing and development efforts to ensure they are compatible with IE7. We have also proactively worked with hundreds of companies to resolve issues that were reported through our beta testing to ensure those issues were resolved before IE7 is released. These efforts have been ongoing since last year and have been extremely successful but we can’t ensure 100% compatibility without your help. We need you to test and ensure your sites, extensions, and applications are ready for IE7. We strongly encourage you to do the following ASAP: Download, install and test your products with IE7 RC 1 –This is the fastest and best way to test for compatibility issues. Download the IE7 Readiness Toolkit - This toolkit pulls...

CNET News.com's Charles Cooper says recent upset over Vista should put a rest to that lingering question . By Charles Cooper In the increasingly Google-YouTube-Web 2.0 age we inhabit, it's become fashionable to dismiss Windows as a relic. I always love these sorts or articles - before I even opened it up I knew what the answer was "no way is Windows Vista irrelevant". It is obvious to me. Sooo many partners, customers, ISVs all have their businesses wrapped up in Windows, even those who are opposing some of the changes. If Windows were not here, how would all those tools vendors sell their products for clients, if the clients were just web terms. How would people work on the move when disconnected (or in the UK - on a train)? So, of course Vista is relevant - people may have views as to how it applies to them, but that is true of anything. What is true is that it offers a great set of features that enhances both business and personal users. Of course, if you have a view, feel free to comment on the blog. ttfn David

I have been asked by a few people how to share feedback with the Office team around problems they are having with the latest Office Beta. The answer is to post an entry onto the community site http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/default.mspx and then follow up on there to resolve it, or have it rolled up for Microsoft to look at. That is it, simple ;-) ttfn David