A quick note of congratulations to the two new Microsoft SBSC PAL’s (Partner Area Leads) for the UK for 2009/2010, Andy Trish of NCI Technologies, and AMITPRO’s very own Steve Wright of BMS. Great appointments from Microsoft to two noted Community figures – which can only mean good things for the UK SBSC Community in the year to come!

Andy (pictured right) is immediately making himself busy by hosting a Live Meeting on Windows Small Business Server 2008 Configuration this Thursday. Full details below:-

“Are you prepared for the SBS 2008 Configuration exam 70-653? If you haven’t already taken it and you are looking for study guidance then join your peers in the first of a series of Microsoft Live Meetings where SBS MVP Andy Trish will be giving an overview of the features you’ll need to learn and guidance on exam taking for those that haven’t yet experienced Microsoft testing before.

The live meetings will be intensive so be prepared to answer questions thrown at you and you’ll be given homework to prepare for the next one with the intention of all candidates being able to complete the live meetings and take their exams prior to the end of June.  The cost of attendance is free however if you don’t have a voucher the exam cost will need to be funded by yourself but as Andy says, this is a great investment you are making in your future both for you and your customers.

Exam 70-653 will be one of a choice of exams required to be SBSC in the upcoming changes Microsoft are making in the Partner Community so get out your notepads and join in. The first event is Thursday 28^th of May at 3:30 and is due to last 1.5 hours

The registration link is https://www.livemeeting.com/lrs/0000000379_116/Registration.aspx?pageName=9jp66cq70v4t53q2”

Having come away from an SBS Migration training day held this past Saturday, led by Microsoft’s own Dave Overton (pictured right), and held exclusively for members of our local Microsoft Partner User Group, AMITPRO, I thought it would be a good time to briefly re-iterate three of the values we’ve found in engaging with our peers and becoming part of our local user group over the past two years or more:-

1. Why re-invent the wheel? Every problem you’ll face as a business owner or technician will likely have already been met and solved by one of your peers – doesn’t it make sense to learn from others rather than isolate yourself?
2. There are hundreds of vendors with thousands of products out there – you could spend all day, every day researching, via White Papers, reviews and magazine articles, their latest and greatest offerings. Or you could visit your local user group each month and hear directly from your peers about what works, what doesn’t, and most months actually meet the vendors directly to discuss their offerings.
3. Ever come across a project job you were under resourced to tackle alone? Are you a “one man band” or similar and can’t remember the last time you took a day off, or worry about what you’ll do if you’re off sick and unable to work? Wouldn’t it be nice to build relationships with your peers that would help you tackle this situation?

So if you’ve not visited your local user group recently, I’d encourage you to pop along and get involved. At worst you’ll have an evening spent talking shop with some fellow business owners and technicians over a pint! If you’re not sure where your local user group is based or who to ask for more details, drop me a note and I’ll hook you up with the right person, or check out Emily Lambert’s UK SBSC blog for more details.

My own local user group, AMITPRO, which covers the Midlands area and beyond, is meeting this coming Tuesday 12th May, 17:30 at our regular venue of the Arden Hotel, Solihull. The agenda (thanks to group lead, Steve Wright) is as follows:-“

“This month we have 2 sessions, first off we have Sally Ross who is SMB Channel Development Manager for Citrix. Sally will be presenting on how to Extend SBS with Citrix's SMB remote access offering including:

· No certification required

· Includes TS CALs

· Wizard Driven

Citrix isn’t just for the big boys and Sally is going to tell us why! Sally will be accompanied by Kathryn Whyte who is a Citrix and Microsoft Product Sales Specialist from Ingram Micro.

Second up is our very own Andy Parkes who is demoing Microsoft Infopath. For those that don’t know what Infopath is check out:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/infopath/HA101656341033.aspx

Looks like being an interesting and informative evening! See you all on the 12^th May, Arden Hotel. 5PM for a 5:30 kick off.”

If you’re interested in coming along for the first time, and I can tell you that there are at least a couple of other first-timers attending this month, then do feel free! If you’re like me and worry about not knowing anyone when you turn up, then just drop me an e-mail before hand and I’ll introduce you to the gang when you arrive. :-)

Look forward to seeing you there!