On Wednesday May 6th, we’ll be broadcasting the Interop Road Show .  Actually it’s going to be a bit of a simulcast.  Matt Hester will be in Downers Grove, IL doing a live delivery of the sessions, and we’ll pick up the audio and demonstrations via the magic of Microsoft LiveMeeting. In addition to having Matt present the sessions, we’ll also have Kevin Remde and Shawn Travers onsite helping to manage the questions and get Matt’s attention.  And that’s not all.  I’ll also be helping

Some of you have attended the Interop Road Show events we are currently delivering across the USA.  At those events you have seen us install Apache, MySQL, PHP, Drupal and Wordpress on Windows Server 2008.  Astute observation will reveal some of the installs and tweaks aren’t particularly easy, and especially prone to error in front of a live audience. Want to do it the easy way? Introducing the Web Platform Installer ( Web PI ).  There are a couple of versions available.  The

Don’t forget we just started the Microsoft Interop Road Show and there are events in Dallas and Houston this week. The event in Dallas is actually at our office in Las Colinas, Texas (also known as Irving). Confused? Don’t be. See all of the information at http://www.technetevents.com/interop/index.htm . Irving Registration Link http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?culture=en-US&EventID=1032406100 Houston Registration Link http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?Culture=en-US&EventID=103240610

Is your IT Infrastructure fully dedicated to just one technology solution? Chances are you work in a heterogeneous environment that includes a variety of technologies from Microsoft®, Linux, MySQL and Apple. Integration becomes vital in order for your core business applications to maintain business flow and efficiency. How do you achieve identity integration? Run Open Source Software (OSS) on Windows Server® 2008? Ever wanted to leverage the power of SQL with your PHP applications? Session 1: Windows

Is your IT Infrastructure fully dedicated to just one technology solution? Chances are you work in a heterogeneous environment that includes a variety of technologies from Microsoft®, Linux, MySQL and Apple. Integration becomes vital in order for your core business applications to maintain business flow and efficiency. How do you achieve identity integration? Run Open Source Software (OSS) on Windows Server® 2008? Ever wanted to leverage the power of SQL with your PHP applications? Session 1: Windows

The January 2009 issue of TechNet Magazine is now available online. Learn about Identity Lifecycle Manager 2, delve into Group Policy Preferences, get an overview of advanced SQL Server troubleshooting with Extended Events, discover a handy free utility for managing USB flash drives, and more. FEATURE ARTICLES                                                                  

If you have not registered for the Windows Server 2008 launch events in the US, what are you waiting for?  REGISTER NOW at http://www.microsoft.com/heroeshappenhere/register/default.mspx .  Let's not forget we'll also be launching SLQ Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008 .  If that doesn't give you a killer platform to build solutions on, I don't know what will.

So you have that fancy new terabyte drive all dressed up and no dance partner, right?  Well, our server folks have been busy making plans on how to fill some space.  In fact, here's some killer (yet massive) downloads you should consider: Exchange Server 2007 SP1 VHD - 1.8GB download SQL Server 2008 November CTP VHD - 2.2GB download ForeFront and System Center Demo Toolkit - 1.8GB download System Center Essentials 2007 - 2.6GB download

As you can see at http://edge.technet.com , we are launching a new online portal for IT Pros. Expect to see lots of content in the form of podcasts, screencasts and videos. I have some interesting stuff coming. My EDGE id is KingCobra. Head on over and register if you want a cool name, before all of the cool names are taken. I used my Live ID for the registration process and recommend you do the same. The official launch is next week so be patient while some of the features are enabled this weekend.

FYI, there was a rather serious storm last night in the Pacific Northwest area of the US. As a result, many people are without power and that is having an impact on a variety of services. As I understand it, we won't be delivering the 10 webcasts that were scheduled for today. A lack of power has impacted people, process and technology in this case. Sorry for the inconvenience but I'm sure you understand. As you can see, the server that hosts my blog pictures is down. I'm actually surprised blogs.technet.com