Tom Archer's Blog

My name is Tom Archer and I'm a Senior MVP Lead. Our team is tasked with recognizes, rewarding and enabling exceptional technical community leaders who foster the free and objective exchange of knowledge by actively sharing their real world Microsoft p

Moving blog homes

Just a quick note that I've moved my blog to WordPress: https://tomarcher.wordpress.com/

Author: Tom Archer Date: 10/25/2007

Joining the MVP Team!

On 25 July 2007, I officially started my new job as a Senior MVP Lead!! While I enjoyed my time as a...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 08/09/2007

Windows Vista September CTP and Compatibility Matrix Update

The Windows SDK team has now released their September CTP to match the Windows Vista September CTP....

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/22/2006

Microsoft Acquires SysInternals

From the standpoint of someone working at Microsoft and responsible for the Windows SDK, this is...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 07/18/2006

Windows Vista, .NET 3.0 and Windows SDK Compatibility Matrix

[28 September 2006 Update] The Windows Vista September CTP has been released to beta members. There...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 07/17/2006

June 2006 CTP Windows SDK and .NET Framework 3.0 Released

Hot on the heels of last month's public Beta 2 release, we've released a June 2006 CTP for the...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 06/29/2006

Windows Vista Beta 2 Now Available to the Public!!

Not much to say here except ... "YAY!!!" You can finally download the Vista Beta 2 bits by enrolling...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 06/08/2006

ReadyBoost Q&A

Back in April, I posted a blog entry on the ReadyBoost feature - the Windows Vista feature that...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 06/02/2006

Great Resource Site for Preparing Your Applications for Windows Vista

A member of another team here at Microsoft dropped by and chatted with us a bit about a great new...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 06/02/2006

New Windows Vista and WinFX Sites Launched

In addition to the launch of the first public Windows Vista Beta since last year's PDC, we have also...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 05/23/2006

Are Hash Codes Unique?

While you will hear people state that hash codes generate a unique value for a given input, the fact...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 05/10/2006

ReadyBoost - Using Your USB Key to Speed Up Windows Vista

One very cool feature of Windows Vista – especially for machines not natively equipped with the kind...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 04/14/2006

Why MSDN publishes more Managed Code than Native Code Information

From time to time, I get queries like “Why is Microsoft forcing managed code on us?” or “Why is...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 03/26/2006

Windows Vista, STI and a Story about Customer Service

One of the most exciting things I’ve seen since I started to work at Microsoft is how open the...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 03/22/2006

Free Microsoft Certification Exam (in Visual C++)

Sorry for the late notice, but I've just been informed that there's a free Visual C++ 2005...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 01/26/2006

Windows SDK, WinFX and Cider December CTP Released

We've released the December CTP (Community Technology Preview) of several interrelated technologies...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 12/19/2005

Windows SDK Team Releases First Part of the "Vista Developer Story"

Earlier this year, the Windows SDK team started working on the "Windows Vista Developer Story". This...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 12/09/2005

Why so many examples in Visual Basic?

I've received a few queries lately as to why MSDN - and Microsoft as a whole - has become more...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 11/21/2005

WinFX November CTP Questions & Answers

It's finally here! The WinFX November CTP (Community Technology Preview) is the latest version of...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 11/18/2005

Free Visual Studio 2005, SQL Server 2005 and ASP.NET 2.0 Training!

This past Friday, we announced that our Training/Learning division is offering free training on...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 11/06/2005

Retrieving special folder locations the right way (and some history)

Raymond Chen has a great one page piece in this month's TechNet magazine about why you should use...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 11/01/2005

Video from Product Team on new products

In the latest installment of "Microsoft After Dark", the product teams speak of the new innovations...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 10/27/2005

Get Visual Studio 2005 today!!

While the official launch is still November 7, you can get Visual Studio 2005 today with an MSDN...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 10/27/2005

Microsoft PDC 2005 – A Microsoft Employee’s Perspective

Due to the increasing popularity of the TechEd and PDC conferences, most Microsoft employees do not...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/28/2005

Notes from the PDC - Final Bits

I think one of the most interesting things I heard all week were the constant remarks along the...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/19/2005

Notes from the PDC - Day 1

Wow! What a first day! Incredible keynotes and a tremendous amount of excitement from developers and...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/14/2005

Getting Started with WPF (Avalon)

One of the best things about working at Microsoft is being paid to learn. This is especially true in...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/12/2005

Hello blogging world!

My name is Tom Archer and I’ve joined Microsoft as a Program Manager for the MSDN Online team. This...

Author: Tom Archer Date: 09/12/2005