Virtualization is nothing new. That may not be the most enthusiastic way to start my note to you this month, but it's true. The concept of virtualization—separating an operating system from the underlying hardware resources—has been around since 1967, with the introduction of the IBM CP/CMS operating system. Yet while the concept may be well established, a lot has changed in the last 40+ years.
In 2008, we are hitting a tipping point in computer virtualization. As the need to reduce costs, simplify management, and establish sustainable computing practices has converged with more powerful, multicore processors and new hypervisor technology, it's time for virtualization to take the main stage. That's what this issue of TechNet Magazine is all about. Inside you'll find articles detailing the exciting new Hyper-V platform in Windows Server 2008, tools for managing a virtual environment, techniques for deploying virtual apps, and more.
On a more personal note, I want to express a debt of gratitude on behalf of the entire TechNet Magazine staff to contributing editors Greg Stemp and Jean Ross of the infamous Microsoft Scripting Guys. I know it may come as a shock to you that the Microsoft Scripting Guys are not, in fact, small men in lab coats with unusually large heads running around the halls of Microsoft with a test tube in one hand and a script in the other. Rather, for the past three years, Greg and Jean have authored the Hey, Scripting Guy! column in TechNet Magazine, and they have done so to worldwide acclaim. Hey, Scripting Guy! has not only come to be the most popular column we publish, it has won awards along the way and receives more accolades and reader e-mail than we could ever count.
It is for all these reasons and many more (not the least of which is the fact that we're particularly fond of them) that we are saddened here at TechNet Magazine to say goodbye to Greg and Jean this month. Alas, as is bound to happen to the best of us, Greg and Jean are moving on to greener pastures. Fortunately, though, they will continue to wander the halls of Redmond, dispensing their talent to the benefit of Microsoft customers. So we wish them both the very best, and we can only hope that their words will grace our pages again someday.
In the meantime, Dean Tsaltas, a venerable Scripting Guys alum, has graciously agreed to pick up the Hey, Scripting Guy! mantle for now as we hunt for the next generation of Scripting Guys. Dean will join us next month to probe the depths of Windows Management Instrumentation. Be sure not to miss it! —Joshua Hoffman
Thanks to the following Microsoft technical experts: Karri Alexion-Tiernan, Carmen Asher, Scott Culp, Steve Ekren, Trina Gorman, Michael Michael, Mike Mitchell, Michael Murgolo, Rob Polly, Dan Reger, Jez Sadler, Bill Scheidel, Bryon Surace, and Jim Truher.