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October 2007 - Posts

Wednesday, October 31, 2007 1:39 PM

If you see someone trying to sell "AE" software to businesses, RUN!

A Partner forwarded me an email earlier showing a website offering Microsoft Office "AE" Edition: (Click image for larger size) The "AE" stands for Academic Edition, and unlike what they state in the image (circled in red), there are special requirements
Posted by mssmallbiz | 1 Comments
Wednesday, October 31, 2007 9:52 AM

This is the same Microsoft, right???

Sometimes you just have to sit back and ask yourself, "Now how does that happen?" Often times, those are times when you have to laugh to yourself about how the basics just sometimes get overlooked. This morning was one of those times and I caught myself
Posted by mssmallbiz | 9 Comments
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Wednesday, October 31, 2007 8:56 AM

Get 15% off when consolidating into Open Value

Do you have customers with multiple Open Business Agreements coming up for Software Assurance renewal? Want to make their lives easier by having only one agreement instead of multiple and get them the benefits of the Open Value program instead of the
Posted by mssmallbiz | 5 Comments
Wednesday, October 31, 2007 8:00 AM

Offer from D&H for SBSC Partners

If you are looking for a Microsoft licensing distributor and your company is a Microsoft Small Business Specialist, D&H has an offer that you may want to consider. They are offering a D&H credit of up to $200 on your first Microsoft Licensing
Posted by mssmallbiz | 6 Comments
Tuesday, October 30, 2007 8:31 AM

Side-effects of being a System Builder

Now I know I have been told that sometimes I don't quite follow the beaten path... You know what they say, "Old habits die hard." Being a former system builder myself, I can say that habit remains the case. Quite often when someone sees my desk here at
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007 6:48 AM

Windows Server Promotion now available for single server purchase

In case you did not notice this on the Microsoft Incentives website , the minimum number of Windows Server Licenses + Software Assurance required to qualify for the Partner subsidy dollars was lowered from three (3) to one (1) recently. This means that
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
Monday, October 29, 2007 2:02 PM

What is going to be in "Cougar?"

There have been a few questions floating around about "Cougar," the next version of Windows Small Business Server, and what it will include and be based on. I thought I would post some of the information that is publicly available to help address some
Posted by mssmallbiz | 18 Comments
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Monday, October 29, 2007 12:33 PM

If I added Software Assurance to my OEM Office Professional 2003, what do I have rights to?

With the release of Microsoft Office 2007, some of the Editions of Office were enhanced or updated to include additional items or technologies, such as Office Professional Plus (offered through Volume Licensing), which includes Microsoft Office InfoPath®
Posted by mssmallbiz | 11 Comments
Monday, October 29, 2007 11:38 AM

If you are a local system builder, be sure to check out the "Buy Local" promotions running now

For those of you who are local system builders, you may recall the original "Buy Local" campaign we kicked off back in 2005 . Well, the System Builder Team just launched the latest "Buy Local" campaign to help local system builders who build their PCs
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
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Monday, October 29, 2007 9:00 AM

A few Partner resources for Windows Server 2008 on MS Readiness

With the upcoming launch of Windows Server 2008, I thought I would remind you about the resources available to you through MS Readiness that you can utilize, including these examples: Windows Server 2008 Partner Preparation Windows Server 2008 Technical
Posted by mssmallbiz | 1 Comments
Thursday, October 25, 2007 9:54 AM

No, you don't need Windows Vista to use Microsoft Office 2007

I have seen several comments and received several questions around Office 2007 and Windows Vista and whether you need Windows Vista in order to install and run Microsoft Office 2007. The answer is, No, you do not need to be running Windows Vista in order
Posted by mssmallbiz | 6 Comments
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Wednesday, October 24, 2007 9:26 AM

Did you know you can offer Select and Enterprise Agreements to your larger clients too?

So I'm currently back in Chicago yesterday and today as part of a two day seminar presenting to a group of around 50 Partners from all across the United States on, yes you guessed it, licensing. But here's the catch that prompted me to post this. The
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
Wednesday, October 24, 2007 8:48 AM

Did you know that the free "second shot" offer is available right now?

For those of you not aware of it, the free "second shot" offer allows you to get a free, second shot at any IT professional, developer, or Microsoft Dynamics certification exam if you happen to not pass it the first time. From time to time we offer these
Posted by mssmallbiz | 4 Comments
Wednesday, October 24, 2007 8:30 AM

Get useful tips and information from the Office Team blogs

For those of you that have not seen these yet, the Microsoft Office Blogs are available with some helpful insights and information that could come in handy for you or your clients. There are Blogs for many of the components, such as: Word, Excel, PowerPoint,
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
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Friday, October 19, 2007 2:22 PM

Hey, Eric... Where's your presentation from Monday at SMB Nation?!?!?

In the past 24 - 48 hours I have received multiple messages asking me where the copy of my presentation is from the " Building an Open License Business " presentation I gave on Monday morning at SMB Nation. Back on the 3rd I had posted that the SMB Nation
Posted by mssmallbiz | 3 Comments
Friday, October 19, 2007 6:56 AM

So, who are you trusting your critical business systems to?

Some business owners look at IT and technology as a part-time thing that their brother-in-law, the neighbor's kid, or the son of the friend of the butcher who lives down the street who's taken a computer course can look at once in awhile for them. Is
Posted by mssmallbiz | 5 Comments
Thursday, October 18, 2007 1:25 PM

Engaging with your PCM and PAM - Register today

In my, " SMB Nation 2007 is just around the corner. Are you registered yet? " post at the end of August, I mentioned a session taking place at SMB Nation that was being presented by Darren Harbaugh and Arlin Sorensen entitled, “How to work with Microsoft
Posted by mssmallbiz | 6 Comments
Wednesday, October 17, 2007 1:48 PM

Replays of SMB Nation Keynote available online

From some of you unable to attend SMB Nation this year, I have received questions about the announcements and programs discussed in the SMB Nation keynote address that Arnie and I gave. Well, you now have a chance to view a replay of the entire keynote
Posted by mssmallbiz | 10 Comments
Wednesday, October 17, 2007 8:32 AM

No, the Windows XP Home qualification for Windows Vista Upgrades is no longer available

Some of you may recall my post earlier this year: No, Windows XP Home is not a qualifying Desktop Operating System for the Windows Vista Business Upgrade or Upgrade + SA through Volume Licensing .  In that post I called out that we had added a clause
Posted by mssmallbiz | 6 Comments
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Tuesday, October 16, 2007 2:39 PM

TS2 Power Series Events

Here is a series by the TS/2 Team that you may be interested in attending in a city near you. If you’re interested in taking greater advantage of the training and services available to Microsoft Partners, we invite you to attend our newest offering: the
Posted by mssmallbiz | 4 Comments
Tuesday, October 16, 2007 6:21 AM

Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Best Practice Analyzer

Microsoft has just released the Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Best Practice Analyzer for download. The Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Best Practices Analyzer examines a server that is running Windows Small Business Server
Posted by mssmallbiz | 4 Comments
Monday, October 15, 2007 11:15 AM

Where are those &@%&$# commands in Office 2007?!

Are any of you or your clients who moved to Microsoft Office 2007 still learning where the commands you used to use most frequently in Office 2003 are in the new Office 2007 interface? If so, we have new interactive command reference guides available
Posted by mssmallbiz | 5 Comments
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Friday, October 12, 2007 3:00 PM

Are the 4 Virtual Operating System licenses included in Windows Vista Enterprise also included in Windows Vista Ultimate?

Since the Windows Vista Enterprise Edition was announced as an exclusive benefit to customers with Software Assurance on their Windows desktop operating system licenses, there have been several conversations about the additional benefits included in the
Posted by mssmallbiz | 2 Comments
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Friday, October 12, 2007 1:37 PM

New Resource: SBS 2003 R2 Test Drive for Partners

Here’s a great new resource for SBS Partners: Based on partner inputs, the SBS 2003 R2 Test Drive is a Web-based tool designed to help partners demonstrate key SBS components to SMB prospects and customers. With the Test Drive, you can guide prospects
Posted by mssmallbiz | 6 Comments
Friday, October 12, 2007 9:05 AM

When upgrading a PC, when do I need a new OEM Windows license?

In several of the online groups and offline emails I have been seeing the question about, “When do I need a new OEM Windows license when upgrading hardware components in a PC?” once again, so I thought I would post the information here for all. Here is
Posted by mssmallbiz | 12 Comments
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Wednesday, October 10, 2007 9:20 AM

Did I get your attention? (Fire your consultant!)

As I expected, since publishing my, “ Business owners: Fire any consultant who tries to sell you Office 2003, especially Retail Box ,” post, I have received several comments on the Blog as well as many offline emails, etc. regarding the post and the headline
Posted by mssmallbiz | 16 Comments
Wednesday, October 10, 2007 6:37 AM

SBS Partner Subsidy promotion expanded

Some of you may remember back in July when we announced the SBS Partner Subsidy promotion for all purchases of SBS Server through Open Value and Open L+SA: Another offer just announced! Microsoft Small Business Server 2003 R2 Partner Subsidy Promotion
Posted by mssmallbiz | 11 Comments
Monday, October 08, 2007 10:57 PM

Get up to $1,000,000 from the BSA if you know someone running illegal software

Yes, you read all of those 0's right. On October 1st, the Business Software Alliance (BSA) announced that they are extending their $1 Million rewards incentive program for information leading to prosecutions and fines of organizations running illegal
Posted by mssmallbiz | 12 Comments
Monday, October 08, 2007 5:03 PM

Business owners: Fire any consultant who tries to sell you Office 2003, especially Retail Box

I post this because I actually saw a reseller earlier today trying to locate Office 2003 Retail Box product to sell to their customer. If you are that customer and you read this, it may be time to find a new consultant! Why? Many, many, many reasons but
Posted by mssmallbiz | 30 Comments
Monday, October 08, 2007 12:13 PM

Registration Link Updated for Virtual Licensing Bootcamp for Partners

I received messages from several readers regarding my " Virtual Licensing Bootcamp for Partners " post from Saturday stating that the " Register Online " link for the session was not working. I have followed up with the events team to verify the link
Posted by mssmallbiz | 7 Comments
Saturday, October 06, 2007 12:06 AM

Virtual Licensing Bootcamp for Partners

During the, " Building an Open License Business " presentation I delivered at SMB Nation, I spoke about Licensing Bootcamps we do in various places across the US. For this one, we are doing it virtually through Microsoft Office Live Meeting which means
Posted by mssmallbiz | 13 Comments
Thursday, October 04, 2007 7:35 AM

My last day at Microsoft Headquarters in Redmond

If someone would have told me years or even months ago that today I would be sitting here at my desk in Redmond surrounded by boxes being packed and taking down pictures from my wall, knowing that this was my last day coming to work here on the Redmond
Posted by mssmallbiz | 5 Comments
Wednesday, October 03, 2007 9:13 AM

Windows Server 2008 in-person Partner training courses available

If you are a Partner interested in getting some in-person training on the upcoming Windows Server 2008, we are offering 3-day instructor-led courses in 25 different cities across the US. Here is some information about these courses: OVERVIEW: This 3 day
Posted by mssmallbiz | 5 Comments
Wednesday, October 03, 2007 7:15 AM

SMB Nation 2007 Keynote presentation posted

Several people have asked if the presentation from the SMB Nation keynote was posted anywhere. Harry and Beatrice have posted a PDF of the presentation on the SMB Nation website and you can download it HERE . Also at this link, they will be posting PDFs
Posted by mssmallbiz | 4 Comments
Tuesday, October 02, 2007 6:00 AM

Microsoft Announces Response Point Phone System Pricing and Preorders

Some of you may recall the announcement at the Small Business Summit of the new phone system being launched by Microsoft called Response Point. Since that day, many have been asking about when it will be available and how much it will cost. Today, we
Posted by mssmallbiz | 7 Comments
Monday, October 01, 2007 11:48 PM

Open License Renewals Workshop

As a follow-up to the, " Building an Open License Business " presentation I delivered today at SMB Nation where we talked about the opportunity the Open License renewals present and the resources available to help you go after them, I wanted to post about
Posted by mssmallbiz | 8 Comments
 
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