Here’s a little video I’ve just done on installing Windows SharePoint Services SP3 on Small Business Server (SBS) 2008.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIEYRRHyUME
Pretty straight forward really but remember that you need the 64 bit version of the Service Pack which is at:
http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=27828
and it will automatically run the configuration wizard. Manually running the PSCONFIG command is only for updates on SBS 2011 and SharePoint Foundation 2010.
Office Web Apps and iOS 5, still no go for editing
A little while back I wrote an article about using an iPad with Office 365 in which I lamented at how the iPad works fine as a reading device with Office Web Apps but struggles when it comes to editing.
My hope with the updated release by Apple of iOS 5 that things would get better, unfortunately they haven’t.
Here is what happens when I attempt to edit a Word document using Office Web Apps on an iPad 2 running iOS 5, the document cannot be opened for editing.
We get a similar result when attempting the same thing with Excel Web Apps.
Damm! Is all I can say. I know that Office Web Apps work well in most other browsers on most other platforms, yet here, no go. It is a real pity as an iPad is such a sweet device and would work well for remote users.
So as it stands an iPad works really well as a SharePoint reading device and for working with SharePoint data. Where it falls down is when you actually want to edit Microsoft Office documents (whether in the browser or offline). Hopefully, both Apple and Microsoft can work a little closer together to make this functionality complete but whether that will happen is anyone’s guess.
CIAOPS SharePoint Brisbane bootcamp
Just announced another full day SharePoint bootcamp in Brisbane on Thursday the 10th of November 2011. For details and registration please visit:
http://www.ciaops.com/bootcampbne/
Don’t forget that this a full day hands on course that not only includes all meals and documentation but also a 12 month subscription to my SharePoint Guide (www.wssops.com) and an external hard disk full of SharePoint machine images you can use for your learning well after the course is over.
SharePoint 2010 Certification Exams
Once you have a bit of SharePoint experience under your belt you’d really like to consolidate that and let people know via certification. The best options are the following 2 certifications available from Microsoft:
70-667 – TS: Microsoft SharePoint 2010, Configuring
70-668 – PRO: SharePoint Server 2010, Administrator
However, if you come from the world of SMB and SharePoint Foundation things are going to be a little more tricky than simply sitting these exams. This is because both of these exams focus not just on SharePoint Foundation but also SharePoint Server. This means you are going to need to know about not only SharePoint Server configurations but also things like Network Load Balancing, Virtualization, and so on.
70-667 is perhaps a more basic exam with a number of questions presented in sequence. You can generally return to any of the questions at anytime and review your answers. 70-668 is little different in that it gives you scenarios that you need to read, then you are expected to answer a few questions based on the scenario. Once you have answered these questions you can’t return and review them. Thus, you only have a limited time to read, digest and answer what is presented in each case.
If you are coming from an SMB background and SharePoint on SBS you are going to need to learn about SharePoint server. The best suggestion (apart from my Guide and installing it on a VM) is to have a look at these publications:
Professional SharePoint 2010 Administration By Todd Klindt, Shane Young, Steve Caravajal – http://astore.amazon.com/c00ef-20/detail/0470533331
and
Microsoft® SharePoint® 2010 Administrator’s Companion By Bill English, Brian Alderman, Mark Ferraz – http://astore.amazon.com/c00ef-20/detail/B0043M52KY
Not that I have read it but there is also the following book specifically focused on the 70-667 exam:
MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-667): Configuring Microsoft SharePoint 2010 (Training Kits) – http://www.amazon.com/MCTS-Self-Paced-Training-Exam-70-667/dp/0735638853/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1317964888&sr=1-3
At the end of the day both the 70-667 and 70-668 are focused on SharePoint Server but if you know your SharePoint Foundation stuff and are prepared to learn a little about SharePoint Server then you should be able to pass the exam and add these certifications to your roster.
SharePoint Conference-Day 4
Final day of the conference and the information still keeps coming. The first session of the day started off with a look into Access Services and how to develop solutions that will run on Office 365. It is really impressive to see how easily you can move applications from Access to the cloud.
The great part about this for smaller businesses is that Access Services comes with the P license (which I don’t generally recommend) and the E3 license. It demonstrates how much additional functionality a small business can get if they move to Office 365 as trying to implement the same functionality on site is simply too expensive.
Next up was another fantastic presentation on Excel services and what can be achieved here. I was amazed at how little effort is required to get a really powerful dashboard that includes pivot tables, slices, interactive graphs and more. The presenter even showed some of functionality of Excel from Skydrive including how to embed Excel spreadsheets on just about any web page. Really, really impressive stuff that inspired me to return and implement something similar.
Although it was a significant cost to attend and although the majority of the content at the conference was focused on the enterprise I’m glad that I attended. There is just so much around this product as I have said before. There is simply so much opportunity, even in the SMB space., even more so going forward with the move to Office 365.
Perhaps the most exciting thing is what Microsoft have planned to bring to Office 365 in the future and all of that will be available to all subscribers, big and small. Now I need to start reviewing al the other sessions I wasn’t able to attend but are available on the conference we site. Certainly can’t complain about the ongoing value of this conference. I’m sure it’ll keep me busy for at least another 12 months.
SharePoint Conference–Day 2 and 3
Phew, it’s been a hectic 2 days full of SharePoint goodness. Most of the content is aimed at enterprise types but is becoming more relevant with Office 365 (which provides enterprise SharePoint in the cloud).
I also finally managed to spend some time with all the vendors who are also here and must say that I found plenty of opportunities. Again, most are focused on the enterprise with enterprise level pricing but there are also a few option here that would suite SMB. I’ll need to spend some time digesting all this information before I post my findings.
After Day 2 we also had the opportunity to attend Disneyland (which closed off for everyone except the SharePoint conference attendees). Most of the rides were open, there was free food and drink which everyone took advantage of. It was a good time.
While I am here I also took the opportunity to sit the Microsoft SharePoint 2010: Configuring (70-667) exam. I am also please to report that I passed the exam and now have a SharePoint 2010 competency under my belt.
The event has been jammed packed with information and I realize now how much more there is to SharePoint and what an opportunity it presents. From configuring, to administering, implementation and development, there is just so much to this product.
Tomorrow is the final half day of the conference and then it’ll be over for another year. They have announced the one next year will be in Las Vegas in November. Roll on 2012!
SharePoint conference–Day 1
If you want an idea of just how BIG this conference is check out the dining hall or the keynote address attendance.
There are over 7,500 attendees here for 4 days of SharePoint.
The day started early with breakfast followed by the keynote. No major reveals but some nice additions coming along the track.
From there it was into a number of sessions including information about SharePoint Online, Business Intelligence Dashboards and improved productivity. All extremely worthwhile.
An even bigger day tomorrow with a full day of session followed by a party in Disneyland. Obviously Mickey must be a big SharePoint user to throw open his park (free) to all attendees!
CIAOPS SharePoint bootcamp comes to Melbourne
I am proud to announce that the next full day CIAOPS SharePoint bootcamp will be held in Melbourne, VIC. Here are the details:
Date: Thursday 27th of October 2011
Time: 8.30am – 5.30pm
Location: St Kilda Road Parkview Hotel, 562 St Kilda Rd Melbourne VIC 3004
Registration and details: http://www.ciaops.com/bootcampmel
There will be a limit on the number of attendees and demand is expected to be high. Don’t forget that all attendees also get a 12 months subscription to my SharePoint Guide (www.wssops.com) as well an external USB3 hard disk full of information, files and virtual machine images used during the course.
I look forward to seeing you there.
CIAOPS 