Rod Trent at myITforum.com : Community

Atlanta Systems Management User Group Meeting for October 2011

rodtrent — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 19:16:30 GMT

The Atlanta Systems Management User Group and System Center Virtual User Group invites you to attend the next SMUG meeting scheduled for October 7, 2011 for a day of great presentations, discussions, and networking.

Hit the link (on myITforum.com 3.0) for full information: Atlanta Systems Management User Group Meeting | myITforum.com

Eminentware rolling out the “Secrets'of SCCM” web series

rodtrent — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 17:39:40 GMT

Secrets of System Center Configuration Manager Webcast Series

Sponsored by EminentWare

Featuring Matthew Hudson, MCTS

Microsoft Configuration Manager MVP

Finding Hidden Treasures in System Center Configuration Manager Log Files

Live Webcast | September 21, 2011 | 1 PM Central Time

With System Center Configuration Manager, there are many logs to sift through -- on servers and on clients -- in your quest for information to help you manage your systems better. Many administrators find the use of logs to be tedious and secondary in importance to other management data. However, don’t be overwhelmed by the sheer number of logs and the amount of log data with System Center Configuration Manager…. attend this free webcast hosted by EminentWare and presented by Microsoft Configuration Manager MVP, Matthew Hudson, to discover some “hidden treasures” in your System Center Configuration Manager log files that you didn’t know about or may have forgotten.

During this live webcast we’ll cover:

· Where the System Center Configuration Manager logs are located

· Which logs are the most important on both the server and the client

· What key information is contained in the log files and how to find it

· Sample scenarios of which log data to use and when

Other webcasts in this series:

Setting up a ConfigMgr Management Point when using Microsoft Network Load Balancing (NLB)

Tuesday, October 18, 1 PM Central

Extending the System Center Configuration Manager Console with Right-Click Tools and Scripts

Tuesday, November 15, 1 PM Central

System Center Configuration Manager: Certificates and Native Mode 101

Tuesday, December 6, 1 PM Central

System Center Configuration Manager Collection Tips and Tricks

Wed January 25, 1 PM Central

Top 10 System Center Configuration Manager Client Trouble shooting Tips & Tricks”

Recorded on July 27, 2011

View it on demand>> https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/221786386

About the Presenter:

Matthew Hudson, MCTS

Microsoft Configuration Manager MVP

Matthew Hudson has been programming and fixing computers for more than 20 years and has been working with Microsoft Systems Center Configuration Manager for 6 years. Matthew worked for The Texas A&M University System for more than 12 years. Recently, he joined Schlumberger as an SCCM Systems Engineer. Matthew received his B.S. from Texas A&M University and a M.S. from Prairie View A&M University. Matthew is a frequent contributor to Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager community forums, manages a Systems Center Configuration Manager Tips & Tools website at http://www.sccm-tools.com/ and he maintains an System Center Configuration Manager Tips & Tricks blog at http://sms-hints-tricks.blogspot.com/.

About the sponsor:

EminentWare: Add-on tools for System Center Configuration Manager and WSUS

EminentWare provides highly scalable and cost-effective tools that enhance and extend the power of Microsoft management solutions including Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager. By adding 3rd party patch management, enhanced collection views, powerful reporting options, advanced update management capabilities, and so much more, EminentWare's solutions add key functionality System Center Configuration Manager and WSUS that reduce management time and expense, streamline many common IT tasks, and help companies get more from their investments in Microsoft technologies. EminentWare is a Microsoft Silver Partner and a member of the Microsoft System Center Alliance Program.

myITforum.com 3.0 is coming…

rodtrent — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:04:15 GMT

Just wanted to drop a quick note about what we’ve been working on to get you a bit excited. myITforum.com 3.0 is taking shape and we will probably hand out a public URL soon, so you can watch the construction and give feedback.

We’ve already baked in some really neat and cool features, giving you complete control over your community experience at myITforum.com. Things like full profiles, content “toolboxes” that you can choose who to share with, notification events for new content and participation, “friends” and “groups” (i.e., create your own user group pages, share files, and have your own user group blog)…there’s just too much to go through right now.

Suffice to say, we’re working steadily toward a public beta URL soon, and I believe you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.

Our goal is to take it slow and get it right, with a potential RTW sometime prior to MMS 2012.

P.S. If you’ve been following links in twitter the past few days, some of you have seen the beginnings of myITforum.com 3.0 already.

New ConfigMgr 3rd Party Solutions Wiki page

rodtrent — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 14:54:48 GMT

There are a huge number of 3rd party solutions out there that do a great job providing additional value for System Center Configuration Manager. And, we know, that unless you’re listed somewhere on myITforum.com, you’re going to have a real tough time getting noticed.

So…we’ve created a new page just for 3rd party vendor solutions for ConfigMgr. Each time the page is updated you can be notified if you follow the RSS feed.

RSS Feed for the single page: http://www.myitforum.com/myITWiki/RSS.aspx?Page=ConfigMgr-3rd-Party-Solutions

RSS Feed for the entire Wiki: http://www.myitforum.com/myITWiki/RSS.aspx

The page itself (if you want visit at anytime): http://www.myitforum.com/myITWiki/ConfigMgr-3rd-Party-Solutions.ashx

Have something to add? Anyone can participate on the Wiki with just a Wiki account.

Don't have time to add things yourself? Drop us a note and we'll do it for you: admin@myITforum.com

Announcing: The official SCCM Guru Webcast series forum

rodtrent — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 17:53:55 GMT

Join in discussions before, after, and during the SCCM Guru Webcasts. Chat about the Webcast content. Make suggestions for future events. Connect with our presenters.

The link: SCCM Guru Webcast Series

And, here’s a new shorturl to use if you want to get to it quickly. Just type: http://myITforum.com/sccmguru

That’s get you there quick.

Redmondmag: Microsoft Looks for Management Dominance with System Center 2012

rodtrent — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 20:33:09 GMT

Microsoft is opening its management suite, already hugely popular in Microsoft shops, to handle third-party applications. The company hopes its huge customer base and the newfound flexibility of System Center will put the hurt on a raft of smaller competitors in the application-management market.

Read the article:

http://redmondmag.com/articles/2011/06/01/microsoft-looks-for-dominance-with-system-center-2012.aspx

EXTRA: Can you find a couple familiar folks quoted in the article? Don’t miss that there are two pages to the article.

myITforum survey on end-user PC rights

rodtrent — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 14:12:09 GMT

What percentage of users in your supported environment are members of the local administrator group on their computers?

Participate here:

http://www.myitforum.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=24108&z=120

Windows Management Experts looking for contractors to fill projects

rodtrent — Tue, 24 May 2011 19:06:45 GMT

Seeking Independent Consultants/Systems Engineers for Project-Based Work

Windows Management Experts, Inc. (WME) is a leading system integrator for the Microsoft System Center product suite. At WME, we are committed to and passionate about transforming IT operations, through the development of solutions and products that make the job of an administrator easier. Our results-based consulting services include: Operating system deployment, architecture design implementation and migration, operations & remote support, workshops and demonstrations, assessment health checks, and third party product integration.

We are looking to hire contractors for several US-based as well as international projects focusing on: Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager, Operations Manager, Service Desk and Forefront Endpoint Protection.

Qualifications:

5-7 years of consulting experience in managing and maintaining Windows environments (Windows 7, Windows Server 2003, 2008, etc.) using enterprise systems management tools (SMS 2007, SCCM 2007, MDT 2010, Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack. Well versed in speaking to customers about possible ways to best manage and maintain their System Center environments. Has a background in automation and scripting deployments. Experience in deploying Windows XP and Windows 7 across an enterprise. Has a background in operating systems management products (SMS 2003, HP Radia, BMC, Altiris, etc.). Experience building functional and technical test case scenarios to accurately test and provide feedback to development on tools and products developed. Creative, thinks outside the box, has an eagerness to learn and is truly committed to the success of a new emerging product and company. Detail oriented, is able to clearly communicate their ideas and work with uncertainty. Willing to go the extra mile to get the job done. Willing to travel.

This is a project-based opportunity with the potential for a long-term partnership and/or full-time employment. For more information or to apply, please send your resume to l.fine-morrison@windowsmanagementexperts.com. For more information on Windows Management Experts, please visit our website at: www.windowsmanagementexperts.com

myITforum.com at TechEd 2011 and beyond–the Twitter Army #msteched

rodtrent — Mon, 23 May 2011 17:45:29 GMT

TechEd 2011: What a wonderful event! Almost 10,000 of my fellow geeks gathered in Atlanta last week. The sessions were great, the expo was jumping, the parties were on target, and the Twitter Army was rocking!

We hosted the Twitter Army at TechEd 2011 this year, and we are already planning to make this community event bigger and better for TechEd 2012 in Orlando.

There were over 13,000 Twitter posts for TechEd 2011, from sessions, events, parties, etc., etc. If you missed TechEd this year, or even attended but had conflicting sessions, you can still grab value from our official press corp. the Twitter Army. You can find just about anything related to TechEd 2011 by navigating to the following links.

General TechEd:

http://www.hashtags.org/msteched

Community events:

http://www.hashtags.org/mstefun

We are starting now to plan for the Twitter Army at both MMS 2012 and TechEd 2012. We gathered some significant feedback from TechEd and will be incorporating it for next year. We are also putting together a sort of “steering committee” for the Twitter Army so that we can make the event the best possible.

Keep your eyes peeled for more information coming soon.

Twitter Army TechEd Edition Quick Guide #msteched

rodtrent — Sat, 14 May 2011 15:37:30 GMT

Official TechEd 2011 Twitter account: @TechEd_NA

Special Hashtags:

#msteched – primary event hashtag

#mstefun – community tracking

#teXXXXX – Session hashtag. Replace the X’s with the session code for each individual session.

Download the full guide:

TechEd 2011 Twitter Guide

Why using the right hashtag for TechEd 2011 matters so much #msteched

rodtrent — Sat, 14 May 2011 14:58:41 GMT

Those utilizing Twitter to talk about TechEd 2011 can use hashtags so that their conversations are picked up by everyone attending the event – and even those that are not attending, but are still looking to glean valuable information from the conference.

The official hashtag for TechEd 2011 is: #msteched

Some folks are using hashtags like #teched or #teched2011 or #TechEd_NA in their tweets. What happens when these other hashtags are used, is that not only does the communication stream get diluted, but the majority (and I do mean huge majority) of TechEd 2011 attendees will simply miss your message. From a vendor standpoint, this can be disastrous. By using the proper hashtag, your message gets seen and is added to the historical record for the event. We will be monitoring the official hashtag so that we can make TechEd better in the future.

Incidentally, there are more official/valid hashtags for TechEd 2011 that will help you get directly to the information you want. For example, if you’re interested in a specific session, you can monitor a special hashtag just for that session.

Download the TechEd 2011 Twitter guide to locate the information you want:

TechEd 2011 Twitter Guide

Also, please join us for the first-annual TechEd Tweetup on Monday. Here’s the full details:

Twitter Army II–TechEd Edition–the details

Twitter Army at TechEd 2011 - consolidated links for full info #msteched

rodtrent — Sat, 14 May 2011 13:25:34 GMT

There’s been a huge amount of information published already, in various locations, about the Twitter Army at TechEd this year. So, we thought we’d consolidate the best information into few informative links, so you can get up to speed quickly. See you at the Tweetup on Monday, May 16, in the Microsoft Server & Cloud Platform Booth at 12:30pm. This is open to ALL TechEd attendees.

Twitter Army II–TechEd Edition–the details

Tracking TechEd 2011 Tweets with Hashtag.org

Keeping track of Community gatherings at TechEd 2011

Can’t make the trip to TechEd 2011 in Atlanta? You can still “attend”

Can Vendors be part of the Twitter Army at TechEd 2011?

TechEd 2011 Twitter Primer–a newbie guide

Some TechEd Press…

rodtrent — Sat, 14 May 2011 13:20:55 GMT

For those that missed it, myITforum will be in full fashion at TechEd 2011 next week. You can read all about it here:

Twitter Army II–TechEd Edition–the details

Part of being available for the community efforts at TechEd, means additional myITforum press coverage. I was interviewed by Joab Jackson yesterday, for a piece for the IDG New service. Here’s one example:

http://www.itworld.com/cloud-computing/165171/microsoft-talk-cloud-tech-ed

TechEd 2011 Twitter Primer–a newbie guide #msteched

rodtrent — Thu, 12 May 2011 19:15:30 GMT

If you’re hip to Twitter already, here are the few things you need to know to tap into Twitter activity at the event, follow the “tweets” that matter most to you, and so discover your chirping community of “tweeps”. (And for those of you who haven’t yet eaten the Twitter birdseed, scroll further down for a short "how-to" primer intended to get you up and running fast.)

Twitter Accounts & Hashtags	Descriptions
http://twitter.com/TechEd_NA	For event-related news and announcements from the team responsible for managing the show.
http://twitter.com/TheKrewe	To watch for the best vendor SWAG information and also to
#msteched	The “official” hashtag of the event to be used by anyone to denote content related to the event or posted during the event with the intention that the rest of the Twitter community at TechEd should be able to find it and respond.
Session code hashtags such as #TEPRC13	Look for these on the title slides of all the sessions in the formal program. You can use these tags to send or find tweets about a particular session at TechEd 2011 before, during, and after a given session. (General format is #teXXXXX where "XXXX" is a specific session code)
#mstefun	Use this hashtag to keep track of Community gatherings at TechEd 2011. If you are attending a community gathering, Tweet the name of the location where you are either already at, or will be heading toward, and then add the #mstefun hashtag at the end of the Tweet. For those wanting to figure out what to do, just follow the #mstefun hashtag using your favorite Twitter tool and show up. That’s it!

And what’s more, since the folks who are twittering about the event are almost certain to be Atlanta, you can even—if so motivated— send an @ or DM and meet up (or “tweet up”) with them in person. That’s one of the great things about an event like TechEd: the boundary between online and offline worlds becomes fluid and dynamic, and your opportunities to connect with others are only limited by the time you have available and the energy you have to be social.

A Short Twitter Primer
If you’ve never used a Twitter client and don’t really get what all the chirping is about, we invite you to give it a chance and join in on the ongoing, 140-character-at-a-time conversation. What follows is a brief set of instructions on what you need to do to begin to take advantage of Twitter in the context of TechEd 2011.

Getting Started

If you are new to Twitter and need a clue on how to get started, here's how you do it, basically:

1. Set up an account on Twitter at http://twitter.com, and familiarize yourself with the basic help info they provide to explain how it works.
2. Look for users you want to follow using the search function on the site, or go to Twitter Search at http://search.twitter.com to look up those who, for example, have been using the event hashtag, #msteched, in their tweets— these are likely people at the event who will be worth following while you are here.

3. Once you've subscribed to some folks, you'll want to be able to send tweets yourself. To do this, you can either use the Web interface on Twitter itself, or you can use any number of tools that can speak to the Twitter API, including Smartphone or iPhone apps or your cell phone's txt messaging function.

4. To send via txt, first make sure your phone is set up in your Twitter profile, and then, to tweet, use the "40404" short code plus any needed commands along with your message (and the #msteched hashtag, if the tweet is relevant to the event).

5. Finally, in order to monitor activity on the event hashtags (#msteched, for example), you can do different things, but one way is to set up an RSS feed through a search query on Twitter Search, and load up the RSS feed URL in the RSS aggregator of your choice, whether on your desktop or in your feed-enabled cell phone. Here are some desktop apps to consider:

· TweetDeck, http://www.tweetdeck.com, which looks cool on the screen. Just load up the accounts you wish to monitor and minimize the screen just to show the latest tweets only. In addition, it also gives you the ability to monitor and manage Facebook and other social networking apps, so it’s an all-around star for those into social media.

· IE feed reader, within the Favorites menu. Less interesting as a client, but simple enough to use.

· FeedDemon: http://www.newsgator.com/Individuals/FeedDemon/Default.aspx.

Using an Event Hashtag

As noted above, the official event hashtag for TechEd 2011 is #msteched. Whenever you want to share a comment with the community about the event, just be sure to include the appropriate hashtag when you tweet. This will also make it much easier to find and follow others at the event who are tweeting on things that might be of interest to you.

Following Others
As awesome as your tweets may be, it won’t amount to much if you don’t attract followers. Take time with people you meet at the event to chat up your Twitter account and have them follow you—distribute cards with your Twitter account or some other online address (like a blog) that help connect people with your different information streams.

If you’re now ready and raring to go, learn all about how to join the Twitter Army at TechEd 2011 and grab the official Twitter guide.

Twitter Army at TechEd 2011

Twitter at TechEd 2011 Guide

Can Vendors be part of the Twitter Army at TechEd 2011? #msteched

rodtrent — Thu, 12 May 2011 14:10:28 GMT

I get asked this a bunch. Building our Twitter Army for TechEd has a bunch of community benefits. Our primary goal is build a strong conference community that forges friendships and event and brand loyalty. Over the years we seen how strong community participation by vendors create a whole other level of vendor success in sales and brand loyalty that could not be achieved otherwise. “Community” should always be part of any vendor’s marketing plan, and if this interests you, let us know and we can help walk you through it.

So, while the Twitter Army is NOT a marketing event by any stretch of the imagination, it has serious potential for those vendors participating as sponsor and exhibitors to “become community members” – which, in turn, builds friendships that turn into brand loyalty through the nurturing process already in place.

That said, please feel free to join us on Monday, May 16th, at 12:30pm in the Microsoft Server & Cloud Platform Booth.

Read all about it: Twitter Army II–TechEd Edition–the details