Editor's Note - October 2001

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Join the 'Community'

So now there's stuff all over TechNet - and MSDN and microsoft.com - about community.

(Ha! You thought I was going to talk about the Windows XP launch! All in good time….)

What is "community" anyway? The Microsoft Encarta dictionary suggests it has something to do with where you live, or a common background, or nations, or society, or maybe ecosystems. We techies have a way of putting new meanings on words; over the past decade, "community" has come to indicate a virtual gathering place in cyberspace, and the folks who gather there. We at Microsoft didn't coin this usage, but we know a good thing when we see it.

Or when it hits us over the head.

This is the first of two columns about community. This column is about some of the new community "centers" we're hosting. The follow-up piece will detail some strategies on problem-solving.

"Best of the Newsgroups"

The microsoft.public newsgroups are a giant slow-motion conference call of thousands of users, from novice to expert. Most of the folks in the newsgroups listed on TechNet are IT professionals.

Here's a quick way to sample these newsgroups. We now have a series of columns titled Best of the Newsgroups; (Windows 2000), or here (Windows XP), or here (Exchange), or here to see the whole list.

Every few days, TechNet staffers go through various newsgroups and pull out some great questions and answers; these pages are great places to look for tips. We'll try to update these "Best of" pages frequently.

Are they, however, truly the best of the newsgroups? Well, let's just say our title is closer than the album released in about 1964 featuring Pete Best, the Beatles' original drummer, and a bunch of musicians who weren't John, Paul, or George; the record company titled it Best of the Beatles.

See Your Name in Print

Here's a chance to become famous. Or maybe semi-famous. Or at least see your name in print, and get a neat coffee mug. (That's electronic print, on the web and on CD/DVD.)

Have a great tip? We have a new Tips for Techies page. Send us a tip that we use, and we'll probably send you a TechNet coffee mug.

(Why "probably?" Because our lawyers say this has to be a "contest," limited to the U.S. Read the contest rules. Be amazed; be very amazed.)

Our users always come up with the most interesting - and sometimes startling - ways to solve problems. Sometimes it's a really simple answer to something we've made complicated. This is a great way to share your tips, and to read some very practical advice from colleagues.

Or perhaps you could share a success story, how you overcame some problem. This is the page I wanted to call How I Solved My IT Nightmare, but the same folks who rule the coffee mugs suggested I be a bit more circumspect. We compromised on Real People - Real Problems. If you have technical "case studies," descriptions of a solution involving Microsoft software, please pass them along. They don't have to be terribly long. I think you'll be surprised how many other folks are wrestling with similar problems. If we publish it, a TechNet coffee mug will probably be coming your way.

Meanwhile, why not check out the Real People - Real Problems page for some solution ideas yourself?

Q&A With the Insiders

Want to talk to the folks who wrote the code? How about those who specialize in operating Windows-based data centers? I can't give out their phone numbers, but I can let you know when they'll be on line in a two-way "chat."

We just did a terrific 90-minute session with Jim Allchin, the Microsoft Group VP who oversees Windows development. (Find a link to the transcript here.) TechNet users had a wonderful opportunity to ask him questions.

Don't mistake these "chats" for the chat rooms of commercial consumer services. This is truly a question-and-answer session with special guests, the electronic version of a call-in radio program - except that the moderator tries to be as self-effacing and invisible as possible! TechNet posts a list of upcoming events, with dates and times; you can even ask us to send you an e-mail reminder. We update this page regularly, so keep checking back. We'll also let you know who's on line when in our free fortnightly newsletter, TechNet Flash.

The Windows XP Thing

Yup, it's launching (probably "launched" when you read this). It's big.

I also think it's a terrific product.

(No, I don't have to say that. People here would probably get mad at me if I knocked it, but they'd never know it if I simply didn't say anything at all. And I do have my pride. I'm saying this because I believe it, and I believe in the product.)

Let me recommend a couple of pages if you're wondering what Windows XP is really about. First, there are lots of weird stories out there about product authorization; here's what's going on under the hood. Second, we'll be using this page as a home for technical information about the product, including the documentation, the resource kit, and a host of articles.

Those Who Forget the Past…

One last thing - we do know that not everybody is using the latest and greatest versions of Windows, Exchange, SQL Server, and so on. TechNet continues to carry considerable information about older versions of our products. For now, they're intermixed in our navigation tree with articles about current products - except for Windows, where various versions each have their own section. (Consistency has never been TechNet's strong suit, I'm afraid.)

You can find patches and service packs for older versions (and current versions too) of key IT products here, or of everything we've got in a humongous list here. And documentation is on line here for current (and a few older) versions of our products.

…Can Carry It With Them

And all of this material - and more - is available with your TechNet subscription. Need a service pack right now? And finding your Internet connection slow? Or maybe there's no connection from the machine you're trying to patch. You can have your cake and eat it too (or at least carry it with you) if you're a TechNet subscriber.

Sorry I had to put off the discussion of how you might get around Tech Support until next column. I guess you could complain to the editor (oops, that's me). As always, I can't promise to respond to every letter, but I do read them.

Steven B. Levy
Product Unit Manager
Microsoft TechNet