Microsoft TechNet Ireland Blog : Communities

Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Technical Overview

endaf — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:41:00 GMT

The Irish Windows User Group will be running a session focusing on OCS, aka Office Communications Server. The speaker is John McCabe, a senior engineer with CDSoft.

Mobile users and mobile computing have enabled a more flexible workforce but there is a challenge in enabling communications that are just as flexible and mobile. OCS can be used to resolve these issues. For most of us, this is an alien world and we just wouldn't know where to start. This session aims to show you how you can use OCS to resolve communications issues in your business.

About The Speaker

John McCabe works for CDSoft Limited based in Celbridge, Kildare. He has worked for over 12 years in the IT industry in various different fields ranging from telecoms, security, deployment and design. Over the last 12 months he has focused his attention on pushing Unified Communications in the Irish market place. He has presented alongside Microsoft on “Tech Days” about Unified Communications and many times in Microsoft “Envision” Centre. John has attained the 088-924 and 074-924 Voice Specialization Exams from Microsoft further complementing his UC skillset

Where And When

Registration is mandatory for attending the in-person event at Microsoft.

The event will be held in Building 1 at the Microsoft European Development Centre (EDC), South County Business Park, Leopardstown, Dublin 18.

July 9th 2009

Registration: 09:00

Event: 09:00 until 12:00

Registration

To attend in person you must register.

Live Meeting

Although the best experience is to be on site for the presentation, we will be live webcasting the event using Live Meeting. You should use the installed (not the web) client.

There is no need to register for the live event if you only wish to tune into the webcast.

The URL for the meeting is: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/usergroups/join?id=OCSOverview&role=attend

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Excellent Exchange 2010 Session Coming Up on 12th June

endaf — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:42:00 GMT

On June 12th the Windows User Group will be running a session on Exchange 2010, also known as Exchange 14. The speaker, Nathan Winters, is an Exchange MVP, consultant and author with huge experience and a growing international reputation. As you can see from the session agenda, the world of email has evolved into a world of communications and collaboration, introducing many new technologies and offering new ways to access existing technologies with solutions for the major corporates and the small businesses. This will be an interesting session that will explain what's happening now and in the near future.

Agenda

Introduction: Nathan will discuss the history of email with a particular focus on Exchange, this sets up the rest of the presentation which is about the future of email (Microsoft Style!)
Software + Services: Whether this is the future or not, what Microsoft is doing, the BPOS suite, limitations, benefits, and customers who have used it. Nathan will also show a demo. He will touch on Exchange Lab@Edu which leads into Exchange 2010 – Approx 20 mins
Exchange 2010 will be the main section of the presentation: The basics (roles, prerequisites etc). Nathan will take a look at the aims of the product group and dive into depth around the new features related to each of the roles
A brief intro to Unified Communications: This section will give a very brief intro to Office Communications Server 2007 R2 and then end with a demo of some key work scenarios and features
Summary and Questions

Live Webcast

We will be using LiveMeeting to share this presentation live to the world! You can sign in here using this code: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/usergroups/join?id=46G74S&role=attend

Please use the free installed client instead of the web client. The web client has issues regarding audio sharing.

About Nathan Winters

Nathan Winters is a Lead Consultant for Dimension Data. He is responsible for the Microsoft Exchange practice in the UK. Nathan has been working in I.T. for six years and specializes in Exchange and Office Communications Server.

Midway through 2006 Nathan founded the Microsoft Messaging and Mobility User Group UK which holds regular meetings in the UK to discuss topics related to Exchange. In April 2007 Nathan was awarded an MVP (Exchange Server) for his work with MMMUG and regular contributions to the Mark Minasi Forum. Nathan is a regular contributor to the MSExchange.org website and Nathan's other articles have been published by Penton Media (Exchange and Outlook Administrator newsletter), Microsoft (TechNet Industry Insiders) and on the MMMUG website.

Registration

Anyone wishing to attend the event should register. This event is being held in Microsoft so registration is mandatory. As usual, there is no cost associated with this event.

Please spread word of the event to anyone you think may be interested.

Tech Days: Galway March10, Cork March12 (7pm-9.30pm)

endaf — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:29:00 GMT

Tech Days, a joint effort between Microsoft and the IT Pro community, is bringing exceptional up-to-date technical content to Galway and Cork. Register and learn more about these evening events @ http://www.microsoft.com/ireland/technet/techdays.aspx

Galway will cover Windows 7 and Client Deployment Tools, a session for the 'accidental' (or involuntary) DBAs and a great Integrated BI Solutions session.

Cork will look at Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (Live Migration!) as well as excellent technical demos and best practice sharing on Unified Comms and SharePoint.

There is no cost for attending the event and what's more, the TechNet team have sweeeeet prizes for give-away on the evenings: an Xbox elite and two TechNet Plus Subscriptions in each city.

Enda

Microsoft Community Tech Days

ieitpro — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:47:00 GMT

The countdown is on for MS Community Tech Days!...only two weeks until Galway and Cork at the time of posting this (Galway 10th and Cork 12th March). Blindingly good technical content to be caught! Learn more and register @ http://www.microsoft.com/ireland/technet/techdays.aspx.

Tech Days are a collaborative effort between Microsoft and the IT Pro community to re-deliver the highlights of Tech Ed Conference to IT Pros across Ireland. Register now to avoid disappointment! The core content will focus on Infrastructure, BI and Unified Comms & Collaboration. Most of the sessions will be delivered by a combination of Microsoft and Community technical presenters and we promise they will involve as much time spent demoing the technology, as possible.

March will see the four-city tour stop for evening events in Galway and Cork, with full day events in Dublin and Belfast. Our special guest speaker in Galway, Dublin and Belfast is Rhonda Layfield, who was voted one of the best technical presenters @ Tech Ed Europe and North America. Don’t miss this amazing opportunity to get up-to speed on the latest Microsoft technology (technical level 300) at no cost! We hope to see you there. Learn more and register here.

We are also running ‘Microsoft @ Home’ sessions in Dublin and Belfast in March, the timing of which line up nicely with the Tech Days. These sessions will look at Home Networking, Windows 7, Securing your Home and Digital Photography. So if you’re someone who has even thought about, using your Xbox 360 as a media extender for example, then you’ll certainly like this session. Learn more and register here.

Enda

Inaugural SharePoint User Group Meeting in Shannon

ieitpro — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 16:13:00 GMT

Great news for those of you over in the mid-West of Ireland! On March 3^rd, Westpark Business Centre will host the inaugural Shannon SharePoint User Group Meeting. The breakfast event will run from 8am until 10.30am and has some terrific speakers representing both multinational technology firms and local technology partners.

See below for the agenda and how you can register.

When: 3^rd March, 8.00-10.30am

Where: Westpark Shannon Ltd, 4000 Atlantic Avenue in Shannon (061 479111).

Email nforan@central-solutions.com to register for this event.

07:45 Registration & Complimentary Breakfast.

08:30 Introduction & Welcome.

08:40 Introduction to SharePoint: A brief overview of SharePoint, Quick wins with SharePoint, 5 ways to save money with SharePoint and a real life case study. Daragh Morrissey - Senior Microsoft Services Consultant.

09:10 Case Study by Central Solutions Ltd: Demonstration of SharePoint in managing cost centres, facilitating collaboration, managing projects and deploying intranets/extranets. Paul Conheady, Central Solutions.

09.30 Experiences with SharePoint: Dell's perspective on the use of SharePoint for cost savings and information management. Kieran Fitzgerald, Dell.

09.45 A User’s Perspective: Collaboration, Team and Project Management. Rick Dunphy, Intel.

10:00 Panel Discussion / Q&A.

10:30 Close

Enda

SBS 2008 BusinessSpeak and GeekSpeak with Harry Brelsford & Philip Elder LIVE SBS 2008 Server-side Setup

ieitpro — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 12:15:00 GMT

Your chance to see the SBS 2008 server-side setup process, learn more about the pre-requisite step of configuring your router\firewall.

6pm December 7^th, location tbc. Please register to receive updates. You must be logged in to register for this event.

There is a 5euro charge for this event; all money raised is to be given to charity, decided by attendees. To register click the lick, become a member of the site and register for the event here: http://www.partneroutreach.com/Events/tabid/54/ctl/Details/Mid/373/ItemID/4/Default.aspx?selecteddate=12/7/2008

SharePoint User Group Kick-off in Dublin: a forum for IT Professionals interested in SharePoint

ieitpro — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:50:00 GMT

Wahoooo!...Last night saw the inaugural meeting of the SharePoint User Group in Ireland and it got off to a flying start! The meeting took place in Sandyford in Dublin and the introdcutory topic was 'Setting up a MOSS Farm'. Stephen Cummins (local SharePoint User Group Lead and SharePoint MVP) presented for the kick-off sesion but attendees from customers, partners and MS all contributed to open discussion.

You can expect to see SharePoint UG meetings taking place in Dublin on a monthly basis, the next topic is planned to be 'SharePoint Governance'. A meeting is also planned for Belfast on January 16th and watch this space (or http://www.sugie.org/) also for details of a meeting taking palce in Munster.

Here's some of the useful resources that were mentioned by the Microsoft Consultants last night (thanks Aidan and Donal):

þ Patterns and Practices SharePoint Guidance: http://www.codeplex.com/spg

þ Best Practices Resources Center: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb736746.aspx

þ Governance Resource Center: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb507202.aspx

þ Interactive Road Map: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-gb/office/bb497969.aspx

þ Application Templates for WSS 3.0 (Fab 40): http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/sharepoint/bb407286.aspx

þ The same Fantastic 40 but deployed on a MOSS site so potential users can try them before downloading: http://www.wssdemo.com/application/default.aspx

SQL User Group

ieitpro — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:55:00 GMT

More great speakers coming to Ireland for the SQL User Group Meetings!

On November 10th, Arun Justus will hold a "Technical BI Workshop" in the Auditorium in the Atrium building at 18:00. Arun is a BI technical advisor for Microsoft in 12 countries. Registration for this event is here http://sql.mtug.ie/Events/EventInfo.aspx?ID=97175f34-dc28-4fa6-94ff-aa344e2fea29.

Finally, Kimberly Trip is returning to Ireland on December 4th to speak in the Auditorium in the Atrium at 18:00. I have no details on the presentation yet. However, you can still register at http://sql.mtug.ie/Events/EventInfo.aspx?ID=166a7fcc-6003-4980-aaa0-efe7641875f3. As you know, Kimberly is considered to be the #1 speaker in SQL Server today.

SharePoint User Group Launching in Ireland!

ieitpro — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:49:00 GMT

It's been on the cards for a while now...but I'm delighted to announce that, SharePoint MVP, Stephen Cummins is going to head up the Irish SharePoint User Group, which is due to have its inaugural meeting on the evening November 17th! Stephen is actually going to be the first speaker too - the opening topic is Planning and setting up your first MOSS farm: Hardware, Software, Licences, Capacity and Availability.

Please see http://www.sugie.org/ for full details of meeting and another date to be announced for a Belfast meeting.

TechNet Movie Night

ieitpro — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 16:07:00 GMT

Thanks to those of you who made it along the TechNet screening of Blade Runner last night - I think you'll agree that this movie is an absolute classic (extra scenes or not) and it's amazing how well it's stood the test of time!! A couple of beers were had after and it was a nice atmosphere for me to meet some of you - and I'm sure for you to network with your peers too. I appreciate the TechNet feedback you gave me last night - your input will go towards shaping how TechNet is run this year (and it won't be all Sci-Fi movies and free beer!).

See you next time I hope.

Kimberly and Paul Short Interviews

ieitpro — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:40:00 GMT

Bob Duffy (SQL Ranger and friend of TechNet), got a chance to pose some probing questions to SQL gurus Kimberly Tripp and Paul Randal, on how they felt about their experience in rainy Ireland last week and their opinions on the best bits of SQL Server 2008. Here are some short video interviews you can click into by topic (you may have to jack up the volume a bit).

Rain & Guinness

Book Fetish

2 in the Morning

SQL Server 2008 Best Bits

Watch this space for more interesting and informative interviews with technical subject matter experts coming your way soon!!

Windows Server Launch Event Feedback

ieitpro — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 21:22:00 GMT

Now the dust is settling over the Tripod in Dublin I'd love to hear some verbatims from anyone who attended the event. We had over 2000 through the doors in three sessions - there was a lot of activity in all the sessions. What did you like or didn't like about the event? Did you register for one of the hands-on lab sessions? What did you do with your free server software?

Let me know

Windows Vista Beta/Linux IPsec Interop Testing

ieitpro — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 16:22:00 GMT

This document provides an overview of Linux IPsec solutions as well as detailed discussions on configuring IPsec-Tools for interoperability scenarios between Red Hat Linux Enterprise 4

It describes the configuration and testing of IPsec interoperability scenarios performed between Linux and Windows Vista at the Microsoft OSS Labs. It provides an overview of the available IPsec solutions in Linux, detailed walkthroughs on the configuration of IPsec-Tools in Linux, and the results and insights obtained from the testing. The primary goal of the testing was to discover the level of IPsec interoperability between Linux and Microsoft's and Windows Vista Ultimate (all testing happened on the Beta).

Click here to read the full article on Port 25.

Cork - MTUG Longhorn Event

ieitpro — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:25:00 GMT

The Microsoft Technology User Group in Cork is hosting an event on Windows Server 2008 (Previously known as code name "Longhorn" Server).

In this session, Dave Northey will cover some of the scenarios which will make "Longhorn" server a must-have for IT organisations when it comes out later this year. Scenarios covered will include: Server Management, Security & Policy Enforcement, Branch Office, Centralised Application Access, Web & Application Platform, Server Virtualisation and High Availability.

Click here for more information and registration.

Ensure you are being informed of events such as this one on an on-going basis.

TOP Dublin Tech Community Event!

ieitpro — Thu, 24 May 2007 14:18:00 GMT

There is a great event on June 7th that MTUG.ie (Microsoft Technology User Groups in Ireland) have organised. The Irish Microsoft Technology Conference is an event by the Irish Tech Community for the Irish Tech Community. There is a brilliant line-up 18 expert tech sessions to choose from, covering a breadth of Microsoft technologies. This is one tech conference you can't afford to miss!

You had better register for it fast as I know it's selling out FAST!

Where: Cineworld complex, Dublin
When: Dublin - June 7th, 9am till late.
Register Online NOW

Here is the list of sessions – you will get to attend six. For more details click here.

Building Silverlight Applications using .NET (Part 1 of 2) - by Tim Sneath
Building Silverlight Applications using .NET (Part 2 of 2) - by Tim Sneath
Visual Studio "Orcas" and AJAX - by Steve Marx
Exploring Ajax Patterns - by Steve Marx
Designing Ultimate Experiences with Expression Studio - by Carrie Longson
Hacking Websites for fun and profit - by Barry Dorrans
CLR User-Defined Types in SQL Server 2005 - by Hugo Kornelis
How to Use Indexes to Speed Up Your SQL Server Database - by Hugo Kornelis
Service Broker - processing work asynchronously - by Simon Sabin
Windows Server Code Name ‘Longhorn’ - by Dave Northey
Visual Studio for DB Pros (aka Datadude) - by Alan Crowley
Microsoft’s Virtualisation Strategy and Products - by Dave Northey
Forget Passwords! Implementing CardSpace in Web Apps & Services - by Dominick Baier
Windows Mobile Development - by Andy Wigley
Game development with XNA - by Robert Burke
BizTalk and RFID - by Gar Mac Criosta
WCF Basics - by Paul Fallon
WCF Advanced - by Paul Fallon