Have your friends been calling you every few days to check if you found a way around WGA or if you got something other than Devilsown ISO key? If you’re getting your product key out of FILE_ID.DIZ or devilsown.nfo then activating new systems has been a pain in the ass lately. Though not quite as painful as the one thats coming after the feds raid your office and you’re stuck clinching to the cell bars while Bubba works his magic from behind you . But I digress…

There aren’t many happy WGA stories out there. Some consultants are excited because they can make a $50 margin on selling OEM software on after-market PC’s (you’re a national treasure boys) but it seems like everyone I’ve talked to has legitimate Windows XP copies throwing warnings, crashing and really showing many signs of a coder that had to ship the code by the deadline but spent too much time on YouTube downloading behind the scenes of These Boots Are Made For Walking. Sorry folks, it shows.

First of all, there is the Microsoft way to get rid of WGA. It’s not pretty. There is an easier way, too. But if you really want to know how WGA works (down to the TCP dump) here is a site for you:

http://www.firewallleaktester.com/news.htm#60

Awe, but Vlad that page is all words! Don’t despair, these guys also publish a tool to remove WGA in three different ways. Original name too, RemoveWGA. Git’r’gone.

Ah the fun of designing software. No, not writing software but actually designing the behavior to work the way that user would expect it to work. No, not Microsoft’s misleading marketing campaign. I am talking about the concept of putting in traps in your software to catch the stupid things people would do and more importantly what they were trying to do.

It really is an art form. For example, I put a search form at the top of each page and threw away all my preconceptions about what I would do. After all, I am not a field tech so what do I know about trouble ticket management? I figured they would look for a company name, for email addresses, for ticket tracking numbers..

What did I actually get?

First and foremost, a long list of profanities. Yes, really. While at the ticket display screen or contact contact info people would scribble in things that I do not imagine were a part of the conversation. They put in phone numbers, passwords, notes to self and just amusing notes to pass the time.

So the lesson here? When designing management systems put in some stress relief code. I can only phantom that people were so utterly bored with the person they were trying to help that they must have been banging their head against the monitor to come up with the vile things that got posted back to the server. I am seriously considering having an iframe somewhere in the page that loads pictures of serene landscapes. Give it some feng-shui to help IT folks put up with the customers without the rage. I can see the future of my preferences system now.. “which color relaxes you the most? which one infuriates you? Virtually choking the monkey – relaxing, fun or cruel?” 

Most systems prompt you to pick your prefered date display format. Mine wonders about choking monkeys. Talk about personal software!

It’s not easy being green. The SBS R2 project has not been on a pretty road, until today.

For the first time in Microsoft’s history a product group has pulled the product back from manufacturing. They saw a flaw and decided to fix it. They pulled it back before it blew up in their face as a huge PR nightmare. No pointing fingers. No “we’ll fix it in SP1”, no "we'll patch it after new years," no "it's not that big of a big deal", no "we can't test every single piece of software," no "we already burned the DVD's, how big of a problem is this really?" talk of cover-up and denial. No excuses. Just hold tight and we’ll fix it. Amen.

Download a WMV (Microsoft Windows Movie) | (2.6Mb) 46 seconds

Stream Quicktime (Fast, Streaming, Requires Quicktime) | (1.3Mb) 46 seconds

Hopefully other Microsoft groups learn from this humiliy and show the same care for their customers that the SBS team did. Microsoft makes phenomenally stupid mistakes. They also make remarkably good decisions. And that my friends is why they are #1.

Note: from her cold, dead hands is dedicated to the SBS R2’s sole evangelist through the thick and thin. Enjoy the video.

Note 2: Thanks to Tim Barrett & Associates, my PR agency, for scoring the Kermit song. Saved me a trip to BlockBuster.

One of the most frustrating experiences of working with Microsoft as a partner, selling aside, is the process of being prepared for their next product wave. You’ve read the hardships I’ve experienced with it here from the very start of the Longhorn/Vista process and you’ve also probably noticed that things are looking up lately. The closer the product gets to release the stronger and more complete it feels (go figure) and despite the questionable direction there is something more in the air when it comes to Microsoft lately.

Maybe it was the change in management, maybe it was just learning to open up more, maybe it was the dire need to convince customers that Vista will not be a failure. Whatever the cause was, the effect has been really nice.

You see, about a decade ago things like Technet and Beta were not a common place. If you wanted to test drive software you were on irc.efnet.net #warez5 waiting in a dcc queue hoping to avoid a netsplit. Back then there was no MS Connect. There was pWa.

The effect? Vista beta is perhaps the best managed beta project with near-TAP-like handling. You are in the same process from start to completion. There are extensive and active newsgroups that surround it and are Microsoft supported. There are numerous LiveMeetings covering every aspect of Vista you can possibly imagine. Multiple mirrors, notifications of new builds, active boards, transcripts, etc. Make no mistake, a lot of money seems to be going into the testing and evaluation of this product before it even launches. I applaud Microsoft on this one, I really do. So they probably cut the cost of one extra PR firm generating buzz, skipped about 20,000 crappy tshirts for the launch party and will end up with a better product as a result of it.

Now if they could get a sense of humor and actually get the guy to shoot the Mac user

I have to admit I’m more than slightly jealous of all the social opportunities on the west coast as I see Scoble going from one conference to another. NY has quite a scene as well. Well, Josh is putting Orlando on that map too with BlogOrlando.

Hyku, in partnership with Rollins College will host this FREE event that is open to bloggers and non-bloggers alike from Florida and anywhere else (so far we have one international attendee). We hope to bring together a good cross-section of folks to discuss blogging, podcasting, public relations, social media, citizen’s journalism and other related topics. In addition to the Friday event we are planning some outings at the local theme parks over the weekend. This event is as much a social/family gathering as it is a ‘work’ gathering, so bring the family (kids included).

So if you’re a blogger come out and join us. You can’t beat the price (free!) and you can’t beat the heat. Friday, September, get the details here.

Welcome to the second coming of Susanne Dansey. You can read (and watch) more of Susanne here on how the community she participates/builds helps her business. This second “in-the-dark” part of her presentation from Microsoft WWPC talks at great length how to establish relationships with the community members, how to leverage that against major vendors, how to be comfortable about doing business with your peers and a lot more.

Download a WMV (Microsoft Windows Movie) (73Mb)

Stream Quicktime (Fast, Streaming, Requires Quicktime) (21Mb)

Note: Shot in near complete darkness. Just experimenting with video. I know a few of you are going to SMB Nation to network and participate in SBS groups so its only fair that you learn how to do it from the very best. Oh, and you might want to watch all the way to the end to see what she is really like. Queenie rules with an iron fist. 

Exchange 2007 Beta 2 has just been posted on the web.

Click here to download

Exchange 2007 upgrade is a massive change from 2003, almost to the same degree Exchange 2000 changed from 5.5 days. It is a central point of storage for all the future communications - phone, voice, mail, mobility and then some. It is almost imperative you start testing, learning and experimenting with Exchange 2007 now so you’re up to speed when the release does come out later this year.

Remember that Exchange 2007 will be in 64bit flavor only so you will likely need to upgrade your test gear (HP has a dual core 64bit laptop for less than $700).

Ah, the tireless excuse of the slow and lazy. If I had a penny every time someone said the above to me about the SBS Show I would be bigger than Time Warner. I'm gonna try that line with Steve Ballmer next time we talk "Hey, I was going to build a multi-billion dollar conglomerate but you beat me to it"

But this is not a rant. Quite the contrary. My PR Agency, Tim Barrett & Associates is going to be vlogging concurrently with me. He's serious about it too, he even bought a Mac. He showed me his first episode last night, far more impressive than what I have in terms of production quality but he is not sexy enough for a widescreen yet. Great audio too, I am not brave enough to stand that close to the camera. According to his blog he will be focusing more on screencasts and helping people with the bits on pieces of SBS and related technologies.

I will hopefully remain the Paris Hilton of the tech conference scene and focus on the IT Pro lifestyle. It's a great source of entertainment for me - I get to talk to some amazing people, find out what drives them and what makes them successful. Let's face it, you can always buy a book to figure out Exchange, well over a 100 options. But you will lilkely never sit down with the guy that owns the entire SMTP stack and see the excitement about what he is working on now. Sometimes its more fun to find out why things are the way they are instead of how they are put together and sprinkled with marketing. I've been fortunate to meet some remarkable people in this business and it has changed the very core of what I believe as the definition of success, hopefully I can bring the same to you. Then Tim will show you how

I'm very happy to see this. The response to the two episodes on Vladfire has been amazing so far and it is empowering people in a whole new way. No, we have not forgotten about the SBS Show, this is just a whole new way to tell a story. Both will continue. At the end of the day it feels great to know that even your hobby can make a positive difference in someone elses life. Thank you, thank you, thank you for hundreds of emails and comments on just the first 3 episodes. I think I got more feedback than downloads, I am very happy you like them so much.

Well now that SBS R2 is out there is really little to liven up Friday’s around Vladville. And since Susan went Unibomber I don’t get the daily dose of argument.. so this is what I get for entertainment. Check it out, guaranteed to crack you up.

In case you have an open Monday you can hear Fish live over at Inside SBS. They are back in the studio talking about R2 and WSUS.

Anyhow, enjoy the support call: http://www.thatvideosite.com/view/2868.html

Warning: Free video site so its embedded in advertising, mostly porn. Don’t view at work.

Warning 2: Ok, don’t view the porn at home either, it’s really not very good.

Vladfire Episode #3 with Susanne Dansey. Susanne works as a Business Development Manager for ReadyCrest Ltd, leads the Kent SBS group, moderates SBSBPI.co.uk, co-hosts the SBS Show and does a ton of work for the SMB community in general. As one of the most outspoken leaders she constantly promotes the concept of partnerships, understanding the clients IT needs, explains how to position products and services sensibly and hopefully motivates you to run your business in a whole new way.

Download a wmv (Microsoft Windows Movie) (89Mb)

Stream Quicktime (Fast, Streaming, Requires Quicktime) (30Mb)

Note: This is the first part of her speech, she went on for close to an hour. Over the next week I hope to bring you her presentation as well as two other partners in UK that excelled with SBSC. Susanne can't pronounce ship properly so if you find yourself rewinding to hear what she actually said.. it's ship. And no, she is not a ghost – this was shot in a dark conference room.