MSFP Beta Leaked

Posted: 9:47 pm
February 9, 2006
Mobility
1 Comment

Microsoft Mobility & Security Feature Pack (MSFP) beta has been leaked. Check it out, it seems to be an older beta of MSFP, try at your own risk. This one requires a flash so please think twice. Download it here.

OneCare Live to go Live in June for $50

Posted: 3:40 am
February 8, 2006
Security
2 Comments

Kevin Remde is talking about OneCare Live pricing: $49.99 per year, protecting up to 3 PC's. To thank everyone for testing the beta, Microsoft will offer the first year of OneCare at $19.99 to its beta friends. Anotherwords, go sign up for the beta today 🙂 This certainly deals a new hand to the Norton franchise that has for years pushed their collection of broken paranoia (I don't dare associate "security" with Norton brand) software for $99 / year. I know I am not alone at this but I for one do not feel I should be paying for antivirus software. The backup, firewall, etc – Do you take Amex? But to pay for flawed software design, thats what I thought the actual Microsoft Windows XP license was for! You can't double charge me for a broken OS and fixes, thats like Cisco trying to charge me for drivers. Oh! P.S. Fifth blog post today, and its only 3:40 AM. I must be getting that Susan Bradley disease. I've even run out of creative title ideas.

Free Mobile Push for Windows Mobile & Blackberry

Posted: 3:20 am
February 8, 2006
Mobility
2 Comments

I realize this post is coming up at 3:30AM and I was dead tired about 20 minutes ago but this is just too cool to sleep on. Funambol is an open source company that provides mobile sync software for Windows Mobile, Blackberry and a ton of other commodity wireless devices. This is earth shattering, at least in my little world. I may never have to pay Blackberry ever again. It cuts out the middle-man and it also cuts out the need to have Blackberry or Exchange service on the backend. Software (Apache & Tomcat java based) can fetch data from multiple backends including Exchange, POP3/IMAP accounts, even freeware groupware and CRM packages. This is big. This means you can have push email from your aol.com address to your Windows Mobile 5 if you want to. It means this mobile sync will bring email, contacts, tasks, etc to your device. There is a server component, backend connector and the client software for your device. I am absolutely dying to check this out, it is by all means, the most exciting piece of code to come out in 2006 so far. It is java based which means cross-platform goodness that will run on Windows or Linux. Great time to give that free Vmware Virtual Server beta a try. All are available as a free download.

Leaking The Cause of MSFP Delays

Posted: 3:00 am
February 8, 2006
Mobility
Comments Off on Leaking The Cause of MSFP Delays

The speculation over MSFP being delayed by the Visto lawsuit is fairly rampant, but I've found another gravevine that has a somewhat more believable excuse:

AKU2, which is the release you are discussing, has MAJOR memory leaks and is not what could be considered viable (and yes, I am using the release). Patches are being worked on, but I think anything you see in the next 2-4 weeks is unpatched and therefore likely to require frequent resetting (but hey, these are MS devices!)

Whatever the outcome, expect MSFP to delayed in USA significantly (as is anything mobile coming to USA since we're the third world of mobility) and even further if it is not solid. I do not think carriers have forgotten the need to pull HP 6315 off the shelf three times before a solid firmware was delivered.

Peter Galagher on SBS MobileAdmin

Posted: 2:50 am
February 8, 2006
Mobility
4 Comments

The following comes from the guys over at Inside SBS, talking about MobileAdmin on SBS. This topic was recently brought up on the SBS2K list and Peter Galagher forwarded over a little tweak that allows MobileAdmin to work on SBS:

  1. Download the Mobile Admin pack
  2. Backup the metabase in IIS (right click the servername in IIS -> all tasks -> backup/restore -> create backup)
  3. TEMPORARILY set the default website to “all unassigned” (if it is not already)
  4. Run MobileAdmin.exe that you downloaded in step 1.
  5. Reset IIS back to the way it was before step 3, if applicable
  6. Open the properties for the ExAdmin virtual directory under the default website -> directory security -> Edit for Secure Communications and uncheck “Require SSL”
  7. Restart the IIS Admin service

Basically the same steps as in the guide but uncheck "Require SSL" from the ExAdmin directory in IIS. And as Mark states in big red font: No, there is no MSFP available yet and the remote wipe/mail push requires it.

I Got The Hookup: Windows Mobile Specialist

Posted: 9:21 am
February 7, 2006
Mobility
7 Comments

The Windows Mobile Training site is a resource I have mentioned a number of times as perhaps the second best resource on Windows Mobile, second only to msmobiles.com. It has a ton of sales, technical, demo and lab information to help you understand Windows Mobile solutions, get training on both the sales and technical side (as all IT Professionals should understand the business problems before they can begin to solve technical ones) and more. Well, I was checking on the site to see whats new with the Cingular 8185 device that is coming on sale in USA and I noticed they had a "Windows Mobile Training Specialist" program. So I took a few minutes to pitty it. Hey ma, clear some room on the wall we got another one! Before you're allowed to take the specialist exam they make you go through the training on hardware and on the sales (it's actually at least three sales labs and exams that basically introduce you to the Windows Mobile 5) and one technical (Where you get to find out what the device does, whats special about it, etc). So I'm a Windows Mobile Training Specialist now. Let the training begin: There is no Windows Mobile 5 Microsoft Mobility & Security Feature Pack (MSFP) available on the market today. There are no public MSFP emulator images available today. Consider yourself trained!

Gmail now logs Gtalk traffic, WOW!

Posted: 6:31 am
February 7, 2006
Google, Web 2.0
5 Comments

Gdon't care, not really. I only know of one person that actually installed this program and believe me, I tried hard to find someone to play with me and see what Gtalk can do. At the time, not much, aside from a branded stripped down Jabber client it didn't have anything to offer. Google seems to keep on pushing forward with this, it has integrated Gtalk message history (conversations) into Gmail. Aside from being based on an open platform Gtalk really has nothing to offer, especially when you consider other clients that have it beat by a mile. Furthermore, nobody really uses the Gtalk software – everyone seems to be on Gtalkr. So why post this at all? Well, there are such high expectations for Google to provide a Google Cube, power the Google Internet, deliver Google Office, Google Linux… Yet they can't even write a decent IM client and get spanked at it by two Flash programmers. I hope this puts the rumored Google ambitions in some context, if it doesn't go check out Google Pack and it's merry bunch of freeware and you'll see what I mean.

Back from the rock: ISA 2004 SP2

Posted: 6:22 am
February 7, 2006
Security
1 Comment

With all the drama in the Microsoft partner world I seem to have been under a rock for the past week or so. Turns out Microsoft ISA 2004 Service Pack 2 was released last week! SBSers feel there isn't much in this one for them, I disagree: Support for BITS caching Think of this as the ghetto WSUS without reporting or policies. Basically ISA can now cache BITS traffic so if all your systems are using Windows / Microsoft Update you will not have to destroy your network connection by having each system download the patch. They will download it direct from ISA which will fetch it from Microsoft once. Very slick. HTTP Compression ISA can now fetch and serve compressed HTTP content from its cache. Think faster OWA. Well, think faster any-web-app-you-serve. I am not a 100% sure if this will automatically apply gzip to everything that goes out of the ISA cache. Traffic Prioritization You can set QoS on packets based on the URL they are going to. Let's say your main business is clearing stuff on eBay but your workforce just happens to spend a lot of time surfing around sports.yahoo.com. Well, add ebay.com as the first priority and sports.yahoo.com as the second and you've got your very own QoS. Check out the whitepaper for full details. Update: There is now a blogcast walking you through the installation of ISA 2004 SP2. Certainly check that out and RTFM before rolling it out. Susan also has a warning about doing this remotely although many are reporting it is not an issue.

NFR Software: Would you like KY with that?

Posted: 1:04 pm
February 6, 2006
Legal, Microsoft
17 Comments

Last paragraph is not for the faint of heart, you've been warned. Eric Ligman, the only person at Microsoft capable of explaining licensing, has posted about the NFR software and the few famous posts that we've drilled Microsoft over. He's in a firing mood, hopefully none of the PCM's get on his bad side today. To sum it up, he explains exactly what you're buying with the now infamous offer by Surplus Computers, which by the way still has SBS Premium available for $169. Eric breaks the offer down and explains what you're buying. Pretty entertaining read, even if you're not excited by Licensing. I do have a comment and a suggestion: Comment: It's not the Small Business Specialist going into the shop and selling SBS NFR to the customer. It's the customer hiring the Small Business Specialist to come and install SBS they purchased online. Illegal? You bet. But that Small Business Consultant has to eat. Will he starve for Bill Gates and walk away from the questionable (and illegal) software license, or will he turn the blind eye to how the software ended up in the customers hands and just finish configuring the network for the DIY business owner? Thats a bet for Microsoft to answer, considering the Surplus Computer still has this item on sale it appears clear that there may not be a punishment for this. Are you starting to see the problem with the NFR software now? Even if you are a bystander, everything you do and touch has a percieved value. Let's say you looked away as they installed $1,500 worth of software for $169. What do you think your chances are on upselling this client the time upgrade cycle comes around? Furthermore, what are your chances of collecting on the large job from that client when you already know they are a thief. Think they'll stop at taking money from Bill Gates? Ethics and integrity tend to disagree. Question: $150,000? What $150,000? The assumption that there is the $150,000 penalty for piracy is largely ignored by the business owner because there doesn't appear to be any punishment. Let me quote my college law professor:

"Law is only as valid as its enforcement." – Robert Emerson

If you don't enforce the piracy punishment, it becomes an acceptable practice. It is Microsoft's software, Microsoft's task to enforce. Partners should do their fair bit too, but partnership requires action on both sides. I've documented my actions and Microsoft has officially sued 30 companies. The people I reported? Still up and running. Vlad Advisory Services Bill, Steve.. this one is on me. How do we solve this problem? Well, Eric Ligman is famous for some very funny sites that help you show clients the value of Microsoft software, namely: lessthanfries.com and lessthancoffee.com. So whats our problem here Mr. Ligman? We don't have enough ways to show people that they might get punished for being pirates. Here are some of the names I would suggest for the piracy awareness campaign Microsoft should launch: wouldyoulikekywiththat.com – Show a pirate bent over in a prison cell. bitethepillownfrbitch.com – Same as the above. andyouthoughtSBSSP1wasbad.com – Same as the above but with a pimp smack. whosthebanditnow.com – I'm afraid of describing this one. andyouthoughtpassingaroundthevolumekeywasfun.com – Exceeds the domain size but its a fun line anyhow. Oh, double score! You get the idea. Give me a martyr, slap him on a postcard, and send me a stack of 50 to give away at the next group meeting. Seriously. Look at Microsoft Piracy center. It's such a happy nice page. Piracy isn't that bad is it? Now show me Bubba and Frank in a prison cell and a geek hiding his privates behind a NFR CD and I think most think twice before calling the activation center to get that 50th activation key for the Windows XP Pro they got at Market Pro for $60.

Microsoft and Novell Midmarket Bundles That Nobody Bought

Posted: 7:04 am
February 6, 2006
IT Business
3 Comments

Paula Rooney has an excellent article over at CRN about the products nobody will buy… I mean, about the challenges major software vendors have when offering bundles to the midmarket. The genius part of the whole article is at the very bottom:

Yet there will be challenges. "A lot of midmarket customers have a lot of the infrastructure already," said Greg Gatzke, principal at ZAG Technical Services, a Microsoft Gold Partner in San Jose, Calif. "SBS is a no brainer and easy to sell. I don’t know if [R2] will turn into as good as that."

What Greg Gatzke basically said is the thing Microsoft partners have known for years: mid-market already figured it out. Of slight amusement is also that Novell still has money to sell Linux. Despite the oxymoron, when was the last time you've heard these words: "We're going in a different direction.. to Novell."