Posts Tagged ‘Community’
Vote for me for SMB150 2013 Award.
Saturday, January 5th, 2013
I’ve been nominated for the SMB 150 again this year (many thanks). I’m not going to launch some massive campaign to get votes, but I will ask this once… if you feel I’ve contributed and am worthy of a vote, please got ahead and vote for me here. Many thanks!
Tags: Community
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Windows Server 2012 Essentials–the way it should have been done.
Thursday, July 12th, 2012
I’m hoping that Microsoft has learnt a few things over the last week from the announcement of the phase out of SBS as we know it and the introduction of Windows Server 2012 Essentials into the market place. I’ve done a few blog posts on the subject as you can see below.
What is Windows Server 2012 Essentials
What’s next for SBS and SBS customers and resellers?
What’s in the box of Windows Server 2012 Essentials?
Windows Server 2012 Essentials – I’d like that in writing please – from Microsoft
The Windows Server 2012 Essentials word of the day is Transmogrify
What strikes me across all this is that the real issue here is one of communication. Microsoft basically did not communicate enough good news with the bad news. Susan Bradley and Amy Babinchak from Third Tier did a wonderful presentation yesterday (recording to be available soon) on Windows Server 2012 Essentials that had nearly 200 people attending at one point. The content delivered was on target for the market place and the technical audience. IT’s what Microsoft should have done in the first place. Advertise “hey guys – there’s a new product replacing SBS and we’ll show you how freaking cool it is in this webcast”. I’m sure that they will do better in future.
What’s next I hear you ask? Rumour has it that a public beta will be coming out REAL SOON NOW… so keep your ears open so that you can get involved in it yourself and find out how well it suits your business needs and those of your clients.
Tags: Beta, Community, Future Products, Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 Essentials
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Are you an SBS Survivor?
Wednesday, May 9th, 2012
I just love this concept by our Sydney SMB IT Pro president Robert Crane. Robert has been planning our next twilight workshop and he’s come up with a very novel idea for it… his words below…
In a ‘post-apocalyptic’ universe where evil ‘cloud terminators’ dominate the technology landscape there remains a ragtag handful of SBS specialists roaming the streets surviving only by selling managed services and fixing broken technology. This rare band of highly skilled, but socially awkward individuals, comes to together but once a year to pit their skills against each other in a battle of nerves and speed. Their challenge is to build a Microsoft Small Business Server (SBS) 2011 Server on a virtualized base in the shortest possible time.
There are few rules in this arena, where only the fastest survive to be crowned ultimate ‘SBS Survivors’. The challenge pits two teams together in the same room with the same hardware against each other and the clock. They are allowed to use any means , fair or foul, to achieve the result, however they will not be provided with the domain name of their network until the day of the challenge. The winner will be the team that achieves an SBS best practices analyser report with no errors or warnings.
Clans are now being recruited so fly the flag, show your colours and join up with your peers to smash the opposition in this unique challenge. Spectators are also more that welcome to attend and witness the spectacle (heckling, jeering and cajoling is also more than encouraged).
To register for the event visit – http://smbitpro-syd.eventbrite.com.au/. The cost is $44 INC GST for SMBIT Professional Members and $ 99 for non-members. To register for either Team Ravenclaw or Team Gyffindor please email director@ciaops.com.
May the best ‘SBS Wizards’ win!
Well given that Ryan Spillane and I set the World Record for installing SBS 2003 R2 back in 2006 at SMBNation, we can’t let this one pass at all. I’m up for defending my crown and I’ve already got quite a few tricks up my sleeve… now the only choice for me is which team do I pick to be on… or do I try and throw a real game changer and invent my own team… <evil laugh>
One way or another this next SMB Twilight workshop is set to be a good one. Lots to learn between now and then for sure. The only question is… will YOU be there…
Tags: Community, SMB Community, SMBiTPro
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Want free consulting in Australia?
Tuesday, March 13th, 2012
Well respected community leader Karl Palachuk, is launching something a little different. Karl is launching a Freeday Friday hour, where you can call in to an open line and get free advice without any price. Karl is launching this new initiative this week and has a special time slot just for us Aussies – wooho – thanks Karl. Anyone who has spent more than a few minutes with Karl will know he’s a hive of information – not just technical but also business and life related info. Well worth and hour of your time to be part of this. First event is this Friday at 9am Sydney time. Check out more details here
Tags: Business Focus, Community, SMB IT Professional
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Karl is running a conference with a twist.
Thursday, February 16th, 2012
Long time buddy Karl Palachuk is up to some new and interesting ideas as always. His most recent adventure is to run his own 3 day conference. What’s that I hear you say? “Not another conference that I need to fly to and attend…” Well – this one is different. Karl is running an online conference that you can enjoy from the comfort of your own office. Kudos to Karl for thinking outside the box.
Here’s Karls official Press Release for you to read more.
Author Karl Palachuk to Host 3-Day Online Conference for Computer Consultants
Best-selling technology author Karl Palachuk announced that he will be holding a 3-day online conference for computer consultants in June 2012. The conference will focus on building successful business processes and will feature some of the best business and technology speakers in the U.S.
Sacramento, CA, February 15, 2012 – Best-selling technology author Karl Palachuk announced today that he will be holding a 3-day online conference for computer consultants in June. The conference will focus on building successful business processes and will feature some of the best business and technology speakers in the U.S.
The online conference – Managing for Success 2012 – is the first event of its kind targeting technology providers and computer consultants. The conference registration and information site is at www.smbonlineconference.com.
“We have a great line-up of speakers,” said Palachuk, “Including several international super stars from the worlds of marketing and technical innovation.”
Two of the keynote speakers are Stephanie Chandler and Patrick Schwerdtfeger. Chandler is the author of seven books, including Own Your Niche on the Internet and Beyond (Authority Publishing, 2012). Her Business Info Guide web site – www.BusinessInfoGuide.com – is an extremely popular destination for small business owners. Patrick Schwerdtfeger is an internally recognized authority on social media marketing and the author of several books, including Marketing Shortcuts for the Self-Employed (2011, Wiley).
Other speakers include some of the most influential pioneers and opinion leaders in the world of technical consulting. But this is not a technology conference, says Palachuk. “This is a business focused conference for I.T. Professionals. We want to help computer consultants to be better business people, with a vision for the future and strategies for success.”
“That’s why we named the conference Managing for Success 2012,” he says. “Conference sessions will cover managing a business, marketing a business, creating standard operating procedures, building a strong team, and even buying up your competition.”
The conference is online only and will run 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM on June 26-28, 2012. Attendees can choose to listen live or also have access to the recorded sessions. In all, the conference will broadcast eighteen hours of programming in three days.
The online format is new for this kind of conference, says Palachuk. “We’re well into the fourth year of a recession and the large national I.T. conferences just haven’t had the turnout they used to. People have smaller budgets. Consulting companies are stretched thin. So an online conference saves time, travel, and money. It also means we don’t have to charge as much since we’re not paying for hotel meeting rooms and catering.”
Palachuk will start each conference day with a presentation of the “theme of the day” and then provide a discussion of some standard operating procedures related to the theme of the day. Palachuk is a prolific blogger and is well known for his SOP Friday series at smallbizthoughts.com. The SOP Friday series picks one topic each week and explores the standard operating procedures that technology consultants might adopt.
To learn more about Managing for Success 2012, visit www.smbonlineconference.com.
About Karl Palachuk
Karl is an author, speaker, and trainer who focuses on helping computer consultants and I.T. Professionals improve their business practices. He is widely regarded as someone who provides click-by-click instructions on how to be a successful technology consultant.
Karl is the author of nine books (available at SMBBooks.com). His blog – SmallBizThoughts.com – has more than 40,000 visitors a month and is considered a training resource for many I.T. consultants. The blog has experienced an audience growth rate of almost 600% over the last year.
Karl has been named SBSer of the Year by SMB Nation; he has been on the MSPmentor 250 list every year since it was started; and was named to the SMB 150 list by SMB Technology Network (SMBTN) and SMB PC magazine.
About Small Biz Thoughts
Small Biz Thoughts is the training and content division of Great Little Book Publishing Co., Inc. Their programs are geared specifically for the Managed Service Provider and SMB Consultant communities. Their focus on future trends has helped them to build a reputation as a trusted advisor to fans and friends around the world.
Media Contact:
Karl W. Palachuk
916-248-4301
Tags: Community, Conferences
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Looking for a community mailing list for Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials?
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012
Then look no further. Long time SBSer – Grey Lancaster has started a more traditional mailing list on yahoogroups. The group is in it’s infancy right now, but you can sign up below and get involved.
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/WSSE/
Tags: Community, Mail, Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials
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Robert Crane awarded Office 365 MVP
Monday, January 2nd, 2012
Well – it had to happen sooner or later, local SMB IT Pro identity and long time cloud advocate Robert Crane was awarded as an Office 365 MVP this week. Robert has been playing in the cloud for some time now and is certainly the place I go to when I need to find out about Office 365. Roberts long term dedication not only to Office 365, but SharePoint and SBS before that has meant that it was only a matter of time before he was awarded as an MVP.
Roberts blog is here
You can also check out the SharePoint Operations Guide that he publishes as well – full of great info for SharePoint and how it can be used day to day.
Congratulations Robert – welcome to the family.
Tags: Community, MVP, Office 365, SMB Community, SMBiTPro
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I have all my passwords on a piece of paper…
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
I was talking to Jessica Devita aka The Uber Geek Girl over lunch last week at SMBNation about passwords. One of the challenges that we face is teaching users about good passwords. I showed Jessica my passwords that are on a single piece of paper and she initially freaked out. When she took a look at them however, she realised that this is actually a very basic form of two factor authentication – ie – something you have plus something you know. The something you have is the piece of paper, and the something you know is how to interpret the piece of paper. You can see below a sample of my password card. You can get your own from the Savernova website.
How does it work? It’s a bit like a crossword really. Only you will know where in the grid your passwords are. You will know that for instance, your banking password starts at D4 and goes across to the right for 8 characters. You can use this also the same card for other passwords and all you have to remember is where it starts, which direction it goes, and how long it is.
This is of course, one way to keep track of your passwords and there are others – what do you use?
Tags: Community, Security, SMBNation
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Microsoft MVP awarded again – 11 years running
Sunday, October 2nd, 2011
Wow… It’s that time of the year again when Microsoft announce the MVP awards. I just received email from them indicating that I’ve been nominated for another year of service to the community. Thank you. Below is what Steve Ballmer says of the MVP community. In particular the thing I value the most is being an independent voice to Microsoft of the views of the community. In that respect I’ve always tried to “beat them up” when it’s needed and at the same time, give them positive feedback when they’ve done well.
As the independent voice of users worldwide, your influence on technical communities is felt in many ways—enhancing people’s lives and contributing to our industry’s success. We’re deeply grateful to you for sharing your feedback, comments, answers, and expertise with technical communities. In recognition of your commitment, Microsoft is pleased to honor you with the Most Valuable Professional Award. Thank you for empowering the community with your outstanding leadership!
Steven A. Ballmer
Chief Executive Officer
Microsoft Corporation
Tags: Community, Microsoft, MVP Program, Personal
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Third Tier Brain Explosion Event at SMBNation – get into it!
Saturday, August 13th, 2011
Last year I was part of the Third Tier Pre-Day even at SMBNation in Las Vegas. This brain exploding day gave deep deep insights into facets of SBS and the SMB technology stack that few could obtain elsewhere. This year, whilst I’m not involved in the Brain Explosion event, I’d still highly recommend it. Amy and the gang have announced the content for the day and if it were not for the fact that I’ll be getting in too late, I’d be attending myself.
Check out the Third Tier blog announcement here and get along to it – it’s well worth while.
Tags: Community, SMB Community, SMBNation, Third Tier
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