TechNet Plus Blog

I'd like to see a return of the hard copy of the CD/DVD index in the monthly shipments so I know which CDs/DVDs to discard.

I'd really like to see a whole lot more training offered in anything that is available for download. Technet is an opportunity to try / evaluate new (to you) technologies, and training would enhance that evaluation.

Personally, I'd use training in Vista, SQL Server, and the Office products.

I stay in pretty close contact with the TechNet Subscription Program Management team. When I spot a product

I would like to see more VPC images for training purposes. There are a number now, but no where the number that you can get in the Technology Demonstration Toolkit. I don't mind if they are only available for download. I generally get 600 - 900 KBytes/Ssec downloads so a 4 - 8G download is no problem.

Also since most server products are moving to 64 bit it would be nice to have a multi-processor 64 bit Virtual PC or Virtual Server like you can get with VMWare so you can actually test in the 64 bit environment.

A third nice feature would be a native VISTA and Windows Server capability to mount ISO files and to write ISO files to CD/DVD since many downloads from Technet Plus are ISO images.

A fourth feature would be a utility to deactivate and decrement the use count of a product key so if I build a VPC and activate the software and then decide to delete the VPC image and rebuild it in a different configuration I don't have to phone license activation support and spend thirty minutes on the phone explaining I am using my Technet Plus on VPC images and I have destroyed one and I am just rebuilding it to retest a different configuration.

I want TechNet Plus to be free for all MCSE's.  Maybe free for other certification completions.

I have a download only subscription and do not miss the DVD's.

- Access to beta documentation for new products.

- Used/available licenses - not always sure how many times i have reinstalled test system and reregistered products.

- Reduced price for MSCE

- Samles of MSPress e-books (some chapters to download)

(did not notice the one change comment until now.. sorry)

I think that Technet Plus offers a great service at a good price, and to be honest there is not much I would change. I use the download only service and it works very well.

Additional training is a good suggestion that would fit well with the delivery of evaluation software.

Kathy,

Yes, just a simple summary of what's new and what can be discarded.  The index feature on the website is cumbersome to use at times.  To be honest, I haven't viewed the index web page in a while, so it may have been inproved since then.

I'd like to second the idea of a simple summary of which discs can be discarded from the Technet Plus Binders.  Maybe somewhere on the Technet front page have a link that says "What should be in my binder?"  I've searched the Technet web site for a list of what should be in the binder, but I can't find it.

I would like to see my details sent to me by email now that I have subscribed and my credit card has been debited. How long does this take?

An easier to understand filing system for our CDs and DVDs.  We keep the media since downloading just takes too long sometimes... But figuring out the numbering sequence is a joke...

Easier filing system.  I never know which disks to keep and which to discard!!!  There has to be an easier way!

I tourn arround, on this webpages, TechNet, MSDN, ... for a long, too much long time, without found prices for subscription. Baddly news is I didn't found them.

It's irrespective situation where MS is loosing my time. I want subscribe nothing in this way. whenever is one supplier proposing me with those/similar selling technics, then it is, for me, out of question to consider paying them something, out of my pockets, for their business proposals.

I believe then that they consider me as monkey. When MS/others put their PL as marketing teasing information then something is bad. It's out of question, for me, to buy something to them. I'm believer, then, that the situation is as the product is out of walue, and wouldn't never correspond to my expecttions.

It is elementary/I need to have in less than 20 seconds, on the page of selling product/service their ID information for ordering and on its side budget that is asked to me for.

It's elementary and then I consider that something there is good/real price estimated and I have no to discuss, instead of another argumentation says to me that at this moment it is promotional time at other price offering.

Other argumentations, thereafter, should be, will  be, can be, ...are accepted, as possibly honest to me.

...a download site that, you know, works?!? It's been something like three weeks now that the "TechNet Plus Downloads and Product Keys" page has generated errors. No explanation on the page itself, nothing on the web site announcing a problem, nothing. Concierge says "oh, that's a known problem, no ETA, they're working as hard as they can to get it fixed."

Color me unimpressed, including the lack of feedback mechanisms.

It is really tedious to work out what has been downloaded after a while and i was wondering why microsoft does not have a standard filenamning convention like  application/serial#  ie  windows-server-2008/99999 decremented after each download for that application.

example:

windows-server-2008/99996/RTM.img

windows-server-2008/99997/beta2-sp1.img

windows-server-2008/99998/beta2.img

windows-server-2008/99999/beta1.img

this could be further enhanced for the documents / release notes and would make the documentation of these files soooo much simpler.!

I'd like to see my shipments actually arrive within three days of the beginning of the respective month.  Here we are on the 12th of September and I haven't received my September shipment yet.  What's going on?

kathy,

I'd like to see an educational version of Technet priced for students.  I think we discussed this at Tech-Ed.

Thanks...Mike

Make the system easier to navigate, move around and access my benefits.  I've had a horrible time since I first received my subscription.  Having a system that keeps giving me errors, especially when you're closed and the support system itself is unable to provide answers makes me wonder how useful TechNet really is

1) I wish welcome kits provided a backlog of DVDs. Having moved over from Action Pack, I was used to receiving *all* software on DVDs. After taking pains to purchase what I thought was a TechNet Plus equivalent, I found out there's no such thing! A mere handful of DVDs are provided at the outset. I'd like to avoid downloads because FTM is so quirky.

2) I'd like more knowledgable support personnel. Nobody has *any* clue whether (not when) a new SKU will be available. Will PerformancePoint be made available via TechNet Plus? No one even knew the policy that might hint at an answer!

I think the idea about deactivating is a good one. However, I'm not sure that this is something for Technet.  It's more of a suggestion for Microsoft themselves.  There is never any problem getting re-activated over the phone if you explain the situation (re-format, new hardware, etc).  Given that, it would be much easier for us to just be able to do it online.

I would make sure the latest product offerings are available as part of the subscription. I'm a TechNet Plus Direct subscriber and I've participated in the betas for Windows Home Server. I was hoping that the final release of WHS would be available through my TechNet subscription, but it appears that this is not the case.

To continue what others have said since I find it so important:

1]  Provide a list of what DVDs are currently active.  Yes I can see what has been sent in any given month, but for the life of me, I cannot seem to find one complete list of what I should have so that I can tell what I no longer need.

2] When I look to download from TechNet, descriptions of the various files should be written out or, at least, give us a cheat sheet on the webpage to decipher all of the acronyms and initials.  It can be very confusing with all the versions and add-ons that are listed.

Earlier shipments.  My shipments used to arrive at the 1st of the month, now they arrive near the end of the month.