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WinFS Beta 1 is now available through the MSDN Subscriber downloads. At the install fest last Saturday, I had a comment from one of the attendees that he felt WinFS should be a part of Vista. It appears that gentleman got his wish! You can learn a lot more about developments around WinFS by visiting the official blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/winfs/
You can also look at this WinFS demo video on Channel 9!
Speaking of the install fest, the Toronto Windows Server User Group just received a bunch of photos and resources. The first batch of photos were submitted by Kevin Lewis and are available on the main page of our site: http://www.twsug.com
The second batch of photos (hosted on Flickr) are courtesy of TechNet Evangelist Barnaby Jeans. He also did a podcast which featured a member of Nerds on Site and Valentin IIliescu talking about his chess application. You can download the MP3 and WMA at the following links:
http://media.jeansfamily.ca/MS_Podcast/IT_Pro_Podcast_001.mp3
http://media.jeansfamily.ca/MS_Podcast/IT_Pro_Podcast_001.wma
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I'm happy to announce that our Windows Vista Install Fest was a smashing success! A very special thanks goes out to Bruce Cowper and the TechNet team for setting up and co-ordinating the event. The Nerds on Site were friendly and a great help also. Bruce announced on stage that this is likely the first public Vista related event ever set up by Microsoft. He also mentioned that Beta 2 is slated for around Christmas and will be a public Beta!
We had over 200+ attendees at the event (a large majority of them Toronto Windows Server User Group members and a good number of TASK members) and we collectively raised $250 for local charities and filled up a Volkwagen beetle with food! There were computers near the event entrance with Avalon-based feedback forms. If you came in with a USB key, you could also pick up a copy of the beta additions for VPC. All attendees received a 3 DVD set direct from Redmond: Windows Code Name "Longhorn" Beta 01/Professional x86, Windows Code Name "Longhorn" Beta 01/Professional x64, and Windows Code Name "Longhorn" Windows Automation Installation Kit. Don't even try contacting Bruce or I for a copy - they ran out like hotcakes! I even took a photo of a rare XBox 360 poster at the event using my phone.
There were great prizes at the event including Windows Vista ballcaps (these are the same ballcaps handed out to Microsofties at the Windows Vista Beta 1 ship event - you can see them on Robert Scoble's photo blog and in different videos on Channel 9), Halo 2, books, backpacks, shirts. Here are some of the highlights: Valentin Illiescu came onstage to give a great demo of his 3D Avalon chess application...I also had a few minutes in the spotlight to promote my upcoming book Professional WinFX Beta. Bruce demoed TweakVista - the "slowed down" animation registry tweak was especially effective.
If you would like to see photos of the event, check out the TWSUG website in the next couple of days. We will also post Bruce Cowper's slide deck and more information. Can't wait for the Beta 2 event! :-)
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It's our first year anniversary! To celebrate, we will have a lot of exciting announcements and prizes during the course of the meeting. The main topic of the evening is certification. It's a must if you want to get ahead in your career. In this presentation, you'll learn about a variety of training options and resources to help you get certified. You will also get a high level overview of the new Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCIP) designation. It's an event you won't want to miss!
Here are the meeting details:
September 2005 User Group Meeting - Certification
September 13, 2005 6:30 PM - September 13, 2005 8:30 PM
Welcome Time: 6:00 PM
Language: English
Microsoft Canada / Events Entrance
1950 Meadowvale Boulevard
Mississauga, Ontario Canada
L5N 8L9
General Event Information
Products: Certification
Recommended Audience: IT Professional
Meeting Agenda
6:00 - 6:30 - Registration and Dinner
6:30 - 6:45 - TWSUG Announcements
6:45 - 8:30 - Technical Presentations
8:30 - 8:45 - Draw for prizes & Future events
Signup link: http://www.twsug.com/Default.aspx?tabid=89
Website: http://www.twsug.com
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I'm a pretty big Star Wars fan. This weekend, I saw a great DVD of Episode 4 outtakes (called Deleted Magic). It contained some of the funniest "cutting room" outtakes from A New Hope. Here are a few memorable scenes from the movie:
LEIA: They're on Dantooine.
TARKIN: There. You see Lord Vader, she can be reasonable.
Continue with the operation. You may fire when ready.
LEIA: What?
TARKIN: You're far too trusting. Dantooine is too remote to make an
effective demonstration. But don't worry. We will deal with your Rebel
friends soon enough.
LEIA: No!
VADER: Commence primary ignition.
(An off camera production assistant yells out): Bang!
LEIA: And you call yourselves human beings...
Here is my absolute all-time favorite:
VADER: Your powers are weak, old man.
BEN: You can't win, Darth. If my blade finds its mark,
you will cease to exist. If you strike me down, I shall
become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.
On the DVD, you can actually see and hear Alec Guiness reciting the lines. Alec was once quoted as saying that (he) "couldn't go on speaking those bloody awful, banal lines. (he) had enough of the mumbo jumbo." Some purists will disagree with me but I'm glad George didn't include them in the final cut.
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The Toronto Windows Server User Group (TWSUG) has two exciting events coming up! The first event is our August 2005 User Group Meeting on Exchange Server Disaster Recovery solutions. The presentation on August 25th will be delivered by expert Jude Silveira and will be held for the first time in downtown Toronto, at the Main Reference Library. We have over 100+ members signed up for the event - it should be a great time. If you bring in a non-perishable food item at the event, you will be eligible for a special prize! All proceeds will go to the Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank (http://www.dailybread.ca). To learn more about this event, please visit the following link: http://www.twsug.com/Default.aspx?tabid=87
On a personal note, the second event is especially exciting for me. Microsoft TechNet Canada, the TWSUG and TASK are proud to be hosting a Windows Vista Install Fest! at Microsoft Canada on Saturday, August 27th! If you don't have an MSDN subscription or access to the betas, this is the perfect opportunity to install and play around with the latest version of Windows Vista (formerly known as "Longhorn"). Bruce Cowper has already posted a few technical guides, information about Vista and the event, so be sure to check it out!
Please note that the install fest is only open to user group members! To attend, be sure to sign up with the TWSUG (membership is free as always). For more details about the Windows Vista Install Fest, click on the following link: http://www.twsug.com/Default.aspx?tabid=88
On a related note, my book "Professional WinFX Beta" will be published very soon and coming to a store near you! Stay tuned for posts on Indigo and insights on the writing process...
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The Toronto Windows Server User Group will be holding a meeting on Exchange Server at the Toronto Reference Library on August 25th. Visit our website (http://www.twsug.com) to learn more about this event and a very cool members-only event I can't talk about here. :-)
Here are the details of our August 2005 User Group meeting:
August 25, 2005 5:30 PM - August 25, 2005 7:45 PM
Welcome Time: 5:30 PM
Language: English
Toronto Reference Library - Beeton West Room
789 Yonge St (one block north of Yonge/Bloor)
Toronto ON M4W 2G8
Phone: 416-393-7000
Website: Click here to visit the Reference Library website
General Event Information Products: Microsoft Exchange 2003
Recommended Audience: IT Professional
Exchange Server 2003 Disaster Recovery
This presentation will show you how to prepare for disaster recovery, how to recover items & mailboxes from backup, and how to rebuild a destroyed Exchange 2003 Server. We will also cover best practices for backing up your Exchange server.
Registration Link: Click here to register for this event
Event Details: Click here for event details
About The Speaker
Jude Silvera has over 15 of experience working as an IT Professional for companies such as IBM, Microsoft, Symantec, Dell and Rogers. Jude is certified in a wide range of products and and currently lends his expertise Beta testing software and hardware. He specialties include Microsoft Exchange Server and administering Windows Client and Server products.
Meeting Agenda
5:30 - 5:50 - Registration and Snack
5:50 - 6:00 - TWSUG Announcements
6:00 - 7:30 - Technical Presentations
7:30 - 7:45 - Draw for prizes & Future events
* Bring in a canned food item and get the chance to win a special prize!
All proceeds will go to the Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank! (http://www.dailybread.ca/)
Prizes
We will be giving away the book Disaster Recovery Planning: For Computers and Communication Resouces by Jon William Toigo (Courtesy of Wiley Publishing) (valued at $110 CDN!)
This book examines the causes of computer systems failures and explains how to create a disaster recovery plan that will help businesses to avoid many disasters and/or minimize their impact. It incorporates the recovery requirements of new technologies, including PCs, LANs, departmental processors, and communications systems. It provides a detailed analysis of disaster avoidance systems that can prevent some disasters from occurring. And, it covers the politics of disaster recovery planning from selling management and securing the cooperation of departmental managers, to negotiating effective contracts with vendors of disaster recovery products and services.
More details: http://ca.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0471121754.html
Visit Wiley Publishing at: http://www.wiley.com