James Akrigg .:. Out of Office : Technology Views

Microsoft Technologies - Today > Tomorrow > Futures Pt.4

James Akrigg — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 01:59:41 GMT

.: Presentation notes :.

SharePoint, SharePoint, SharePoint... That's all you would hear me talk about during my first six years at Microsoft. Now in it's third version it has become the fastest growth product in Microsoft's product history reaching $1bn faster than any other product. I put this down to several key attributes. First the capabilities of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS 2007) are now vast spanning collaboration, content management, portal, search, business intelligence and business process management and this makes SharePoint the ideal 'information platform' for business. Secondly I would say that the extensibility of this platform has enabled the solutions our partners have been creating to address a wide and varied set of business problems across business functions and company boundaries. Having a technology that can be used for Intranet, Extranet and Internet solutions is of great strategic value when considering skills needed to support and drive your information platform.

The slide is hard to see in the scaled down image, but it basically puts SharePoint in the centre and illustrates that it requires Windows Server 2008 (or Windows Server 2003) and stores data in SQL Server. To the right (as you look at the slide) it shows how you may protect your information platform using ForeFront for SharePoint and Data Protection Manager (part of System Centre) to help with disaster recovery. To the left we have SharePoint Designer. This is a design tool to make it easier to customize the look and feel of SharePoint sites and more easily create solutions based on SharePoint. Finally at the top of the slide we have 'user experience'. Tight integration with Office 2007 and Office Communication Server really brings the solution to life as users can use familiar tools to interact with SharePoint. (slide 1)

We have been using Office Communications Server 2007 (OCS 2007) at Microsoft for sometime now and it is transforming the way we do business. Using Office Communicator 2007 client application to see presence information for anybody in the organization I may wish to contact is fantastic but it becomes amazing when I add contacts in partners that I work with so that we can communicate and collaborate more effectively. Applications that contain contact information (e.g. Outlook, SharePoint etc) light up with presence information when signed into Office Communicator so that I can communicate in context. So that's my business strength presence and instant messaging taken care of and you would think that was good. Well in the tradition of going from good to great let's throw in PBX integration to voice enable Office Communications Server. In a recent trip to Los Angeles I was able to make calls from my Vista Laptop via the Wireless Internet connection in the hotel and conference centre and significantly reduce my mobile roaming charges. More recently I have been testing using a Netbook with a small bluetooth headset to make calls. Those that attended the event should remember the demo :)

Piloting unified communications using Office Communications Server 2007 and perhaps collaboration with SharePoint is a great way to see the immediate benefits you can get in using these technologies. Many partners are doing this today and sharing their real world experiences with customers looking at ways to reduce costs and improve communication and collaboration capabilities. If you are not seriously looking at SharePoint and Office Communications Server you should and with the release of Office Communications Server 2007 R2 in the first half of next year there will be even more solution possibilities. (slide 2)

.: Resources :.

SharePoint Server 2007 Homepage

Windows Server 2008

SharePoint Solution Templates

Office Communications Server 2007

Technical Resources for SharePoint Server 2007

Using the latest SQL Server 2008 features with SharePoint Server 2007

Using SharePoint Products and Technologies with Hyper-V

SharePoint Server 2007 Evaluation resources

Early information on Office Communications Server 2007 R2 and Launch Event Registration Link

Microsoft Technologies - Today > Tomorrow > Futures Pt.3

James Akrigg — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 01:51:22 GMT

.: Presentation notes :.

The turning point in user experiences with software is here. The transition from text based user interfaces to graphical user interfaces has been long and challenging. The Net Gen is far more aware of what makes a good user experience when using technology than every before. I would put much of this down to the advances in web technologies. The ability to get instant access to information. The mass of creativity in designing cutting edge web sites that fuse sound, animation, video and other effect to provide rich visual interactive experiences. This experience is far removed from the many business applications that were simple conversions from their original text based forms to good old grey forms. Now I'm not saying that everything should be rewritten to be in 3D and have surround sound, but what I am saying is ease of use and productivity can be greatly improved with good user experience design. (slide 1)

The biggest enabler in accelerating advances in user experience will be through the tools used to develop applications. We have invested heavily in R&D to improve the software development experience when using Visual Studio and now this is spanning into a new suite of tools called Expression. The Expression tools combined with Visual Studio are designed to create rich compelling user experiences spanning from the desktop to the web and to mobile devices. Using underlying technologies including SQL for data, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) for the desktop, using Silverlight for the Web and in the not so distant future using Silverlight for mobile devices will deliver greater visual representations of information and higher levels of interaction than every before. The opportunity is huge and it's here today. (slide 2)

.: Resources :.

Windows Forms and Windows Presentation Foundation

Official Silverlight Site

Expression Tools

Visual Studio Development Tools

SQL Server information

Microsoft Technologies - Today > Tomorrow > Futures Pt.2

James Akrigg — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:45:44 GMT

So here we are with the next part of the presentation...

.: Presentation notes :.

Looking at where we have come from and where we are today is a good place to start when beginning to think about changes for the future. John C Maxwell wrote a book called 'Thinking for a Change' which clearly inspired me for the sub title of this section of the presentation. (slide 1)

I always like to ask an audience which Microsoft technologies they are using and I especially like to ask this question when my audience is partners as I believe our partners make the best case studies when working with customers. I asked about Windows Vista. I asked how many people in the audience were using Windows Vista every day, not just looking at Vista, but actively using it day-in-day-out. With only a few exceptions (and you know who you are) most partners are working 'without walls' to use the current terminology. My team and I have long advocated the use of Windows Vista as the best place to work. That's where I go to work every day knowing that it is secure and allows me to easily connect to my software services wherever I may find myself literally without walls. (slide 2)

The final slide here was a bit of a nostalgic look back at where Windows came from and where it has evolved. I highlighted Microsoft's commitment through the many versions of windows to compatibility with previous versions. The key point raised here is in preparation for Windows 7. It's early days for Windows 7 but already we have released pre beta versions to thousands of software developers at the PDC (Professional Developers Conference) and to hardware manufacturers at WinHEC (Windows Hardware and Engineering Conference). The current view is that any software/hardware that works with Windows Vista SP1 or later will work well with Windows 7. So if you are deploying Windows Vista SP1 today you will have a much simplified upgrade path to Windows 7 when it ships and you can start to take advantage of the many improvements in user experience and security with Windows Vista now. (slide 3)

.: Resources :.

Windows without walls and I'm a PC information

Windows 7

PDC Session content

WinHEC Session content

Microsoft Technologies - Today > Tomorrow > Futures Pt.1

James Akrigg — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:55:28 GMT

I had an idea following the recent regional partner events to publish information on my presentation in a slightly different way. I know I can talk at a fast pace when there is so much information I wish to share and my passion for technology exudes ( I think the scientific term for this is 'high verbalocity' - high speed verbal delivery) and I know this perhaps means that it is difficult to make notes on everything that is presented. So I thought I would make some notes on my own presentation and share them. So here it goes...

**PLEASE NOTE: I'd appreciate any comments or feedback on this approach **

.: Introduction :.

Before the events I had been asked if I could provide an update on the technologies that matter to our partners success today, tomorrow and in the future. The timing for the events was critical as we were in the midst of making many public announcements at various global events about our next generation technologies that had previously been code names internally. (some are still code names, but at least they are public now).

.: Presentation notes :.

To set the scene I initially talked about how we are entering what is being called the '5th Generation of Computing'. We have been talking about evolving through the 70's, 80's and 90's technology eras ranging from monolithic to Client-Server through to Web enabled computing. Today we see many examples of where software is designed and delivered using service oriented architecture (SOA) to improve agility and integration. The question asked is 'What's next?'. Many, including Microsoft, believe we are entering into an era where computing evolves to where itself becomes a service powered by and complimented with software. (slide 1)

Microsoft is looking at how to provide the best user experience across the desktop, web and mobile devices that connect and interact with software services. Early visibility of this becoming a reality can be seen in the announcements made about Windows 7 (pre beta released to PDC and WinHEC attendees) and Internet Explorer 8 (available as a public beta). Don't worry we haven't been sitting back when it comes to mobile devices. Future versions of Windows Mobile will continue the theme of 'best user experience'. (slide 2)

So the vision is very much to provide the best user experience through platform advances. This will open up new areas for customers to use Microsoft technologies to deliver real business value and innovation by working with our partners. Key areas of focus are Virtualisation (including Management - System Center Suite), Software+Service (online, hosted and on-premise), Collaboration (this includes information processes and business intelligence) and Unified Communications (email, voice, presence, instant messaging and web conferencing). (slide 3)

.: Resources :.

Get the knowledge first by signing up to beta software using Microsoft Connect.

Service Oriented Architecture with Microsoft

Early Windows 7 information

Software + Services

Virtualisation from Microsoft

System Center Management Suite

Business Intelligence Solutions

Unified Communications

I have SharePoint 2007, but am I managing it correctly?

James Akrigg — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 18:30:00 GMT

I had the pleasure of presenting at a couple of events last week that covered Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007. One of the most common questions was from customers who had installed SharePoint to evaluate it, but were not sure if it was setup correctly or if they were managing it correctly.

I was asked to recommend any books that could help. Well you are in luck you can go to your traditional book shop or your favorite online reseller and get 'Office SharePoint Server 2007 - Administrator's Companion' TODAY.

Yes I know it's a Microsoft Press book and yes I work for Microsoft, but believe me I did look for other titles and this is currently the best available to buy today. If you are having problems finding it then I have included a link to it on Amazon UK.

Regards

James Akrigg

2.0 + 4 = 3.0??? .NET Framework confusion

James Akrigg — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 00:08:00 GMT

I have had a few conversations recently about developers not looking at .NET Framework 3.0 as they believe it is a completely new version of the .NET Framework. Well that is not strictly true and perhaps the version of the framework has confused a few people.

The .NET Framework 3.0 combines the power of the .NET Framework 2.0 with four new technologies (2.0 + 4 technologies): Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), Windows Workflow Foundation (WF), and Windows CardSpace (WCS, formerly "InfoCard").

It should be noted that Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007 uses the Windows Workflow Foundation as part of .NET Framework 3.0 to drive the workflow capabilities used in Document Management and Web Content Management. MOSS provides a great example of what can be achieved using .NET 3.0 WF.

James Akrigg

I don't believe in Coincidence but for £25,000 I could change my mind!

James Akrigg — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 01:21:00 GMT

WOW! This is a very clever idea and the fact that it's running in association with the XBOX 360 is very cool. As I mentioned in a previous post I'm not very well informed when it comes to sport. Normally Fantasy Leagues revolve around sport, mainly Football. Well all that changes with this cool idea for a 'Fantasy Music Manager' .
Play the part of a Music Manager for your own record company over eight weeks and see if you can win the grand prize of £25,000 and tickets for the BRIT Awards 2007. Sorry if you are reading this outside the UK, especially readers from the US where £25,000 is a lot of dollars, the competition is only open to UK residents over 18 years old.

If it wasn't for the Exchange, Vista and Office Roadshow our team is putting together I would not have been doing record company research and would not have come across this information. The first of our roadshow events is in Birmingham next week (not registered? Register now!) and it should all become clear if you are attending. I don't believe in coincidence so I find it very strange when this type of thing happens. Anyway back to the roadshow stuff, if you can't make Birmingham check out the registration site here for other dates and locations.

If you do read this post, enter the competition and then win, please drop me a comment back on my blog. I'd like to know I was able to help :)

James Akrigg

Don’t be Evil! Blah, blah, blah! Get Ready to be EVOL!

James Akrigg — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 00:10:41 GMT

New Products! New Thinking! New Opportunities! New dates for your calendar to meet Microsoft and learn all about Exchange, Vista, Office and Live. I've been in the office this week working through the details with Steve and Ben as we put the final touches to what I hope will be a great demonstration of just some of the possibilities this new wave of software will mean to businesses in the UK.

The Business EVOLution Roadshow will be all over the UK so I hope you can find a suitable date and location to join us. It's hard to believe that the last public beta of Office 2007 (Beta 2 Technical Refresh) and Vista RC2 (Build 5744) are out the door and we are just counting the days now until RTM (Release to Manufacture). Why not make time to ensure you have the information you need to help customers evolve into the New World of Work and deliver positive business impact.

If you are a Microsoft Partner then click here to register today.

If you don't think you are going to be able to make any of the dates we have. Then you don't have to miss out. Take a look at this sneak peak recorded at a recent Microsoft conference.

A Sneak Peek at Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office System, Including Exchange 2007 Server

James Akrigg

Live Search from Microsoft is on the Move

James Akrigg — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 11:41:00 GMT

More people will now be able to make use of Microsoft Live Search while on the move following the press release from Nokia yesterday. Advanced search capabilities are going to be available to Nokia customers powered by our Live Search for mobile that will include 'Encarta Answers'. If you have not used this capability I suggest you head over to www.live.com and give it ago. This service enables you to find answers to questions quickly and easily. For example:

For Statistic fans try - What is the population of London?

For Austin Powers fans try – What is a Laser?

For Quiz fans try – What is the capital of China?

The Mobile Search application is expected to be available with the Nokia N80 Internet Edition, Nokia N73, Nokia N93, Nokia N70, Nokia N71, Nokia 6630, Nokia 6680, and Nokia 6681, it is also offered as a free download for select Nokia S60 devices from www.nokia.com/mobilesearch.

James Akrigg

Today’s Special - ‘The Blog Frog’.

James Akrigg — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 14:36:00 GMT

In a recent article for 'Partner Perspectives' I promised to talk about why I had been blogless for so long. I have to be honest; I started out being a little sceptical about the whole notion of blogging. I had conversations with many people that blog, I read books/magazines and internet articles on the entire area of blogging (please see reading list at the end of this post), but I still had reservations in having my own blog. These included, but were not limited to, Why should I start blogging? (we already publish over 3.5 million pages on www.microsoft.com), Who would read my blog (with over 50 million other blogs already live) and how could I have a voice in such a busy arena? Finally why does Microsoft Word not understand the word blog and keep putting that wiggly red line underneath every time I type it? (This last one just came to me while typing this post).

It took a series of separate events to come together in my mind for me to begin writing a blog and I'd like to share them with you and if you're thinking of blogging, but have yet to get started, I hope it will help.

Compelling Event Number 1. I realised that this year is perhaps the year of greatest potential I have ever seen in my 20+ years in the IT industry. Microsoft is about to release over 20 billion dollars of research and development through product and technology releases. There is so much new opportunity that this will enable for customers and partners of Microsoft that I needed a way of communicating more of the details for both technical and business audiences. I wanted to compliment some of the great blogs my team and other colleagues had created by bringing my own insights and useful information to as many people as possible. The answer 'Blog'.

Compelling Event Number 2. If you have ever seen me present at an event you will know that I present with passion. This means that I have been known to speak with a high verbalocity (speaking very fast). I once received feedback (from a respected professional) that, and I quote, "I go like a train!" which I took on board and have tried to slow my presentation delivery. The problem is there is so much information and yet so little time to present. What I needed was a way to communicate the ideas from my presentations in a way that is at the right speed for everyone. The answer "Blog".

Compelling Event Number 3. Now I had a number of good reasons for why I should blog but I was still facing the challenge of how I would blog. Now for those who are expert bloggers you are perhaps thinking it's easy, you just create a hosted blog site and use some blog publishing tool (I use Microsoft Word 2007) and away you go. As you can see I had got that far but I wanted to ensure I created a style for my blog posts that I would be happy with and hopefully people would enjoy reading. I decided that I would create a 'Blog Style' similar to my 'Work Style' which would give me a voice in the ongoing conversations in the blog world. At work I try to ensure I maintain a healthy work / life balance and for my blog I hope to maintain a good balance between 'What I do' (the technology, solutions and people I engage with) and 'Who I am' (sharing my own personal views on business and technology). Now I could have done this through publishing articles on www.microsoft.com, but I wanted to engage in conversations, if possible, taking direct comments from readers and also enable readers to subscribe to new information. The answer "Blog".

So there you have it... I knew why I should blog, I even knew what style I would try and use for my blog. The only remaining question was when would I start to blog. (I'm not sure but I have a feeling there may have been a sweepstake running with my colleagues on this one.) This was on my mind for some time and like many people time management can make or break how successful you are with execution. Would I ever find the time to start blogging? I then had a revelation when reading a book called 'Eat that Frog' by Brian Tracy. I then knew where I was going wrong. The answer "Eat that 'Blog' Frog".

If you are a Microsoft Partner, Microsoft Customer, Microsoft MVP or just someone with a passion for technology innovation and you have a blog or have recently started blogging then please comment on this post with your blog link. If anyone is inspired after reading this to enter the blogging world then I would especially like to hear from you.

James Akrigg

READING LIST

Books : Blog Wild, The Corporate Blogging Book, Blog Rules and the essential Naked Conversations

UK Government gets Long Tail...

James Akrigg — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 11:15:00 GMT

This post is not a political post about a genetic variation. It's about how a book I read called 'The Long Tail' has opened my eyes to how the internet is changing business perspectives and developing business models that would just not be possible with traditional methods.

I try and catch up with what's happening with UK business by watching 'Working Lunch' from the BBC working lunch website. Last Friday a feature on how the UK government has helped private business provide a great solution for true flexible working.

Using the web, sms texting and agencies they have enabled a much smarter and more scalable connection to people wanting to work and employers that need someone at short notice and for varying slivers of time.

More details of this initiative can be found by search on the newly released Microsoft Live Search (Search for 'Slivers of Time')

I think that we are going to see more and more changes in the way we integrate the web into new ways of providing services and solutions. The technology, the tools and the connectivity needed are now ready and available and people’s use of the internet is growing year on year.

If you are using Microsoft technology to create innovative online solutions then I would love to hear from you. Just leave me a comment and I'll get back to you.

James Akrigg