The Exceptional DBA Awards judges have selected five finalists out of many outstanding nominations. Now it’s your turn to help us find the Exceptional DBA of 2009. Meet the finalists and vote for the winner between August 10 and August 17, 11:00 hours (GMT).
and get a
Free resources for DBAs
Are you aspiring to become an exceptional DBA yourself? The awards sponsor, Red Gate Software, offers you the second edition of Brad McGehee’s "How to Become an Exceptional DBA" and a free trial of the SQL Backup Bundle so you too can find out how to excel in your career. Download your free resources now.
Download Windows Virtual PC RC and Windows XP Mode RC
Windows Virtual PC provides the capability to run multiple Windows environments such as Windows XP Mode from your Windows 7 desktop. To download Windows Virtual PC and the Windows XP Mode environment, please follow the steps below. For information on how to set up Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode, check out Running Windows Virtual PC with Windows XP Mode in the Documentation section.
The CompTIA Channel Community (C3) is intended to be the world’s premier channel-neutral online community. “C3 will aggregate the best thinking on business solutions, trends, and discussion forums with rich, deep and exclusive content, webinars, whitepapers and business intelligence,” Thibodeaux said. “We’re making this an open platform and we invite other existing forums to become part of C3.” The CompTIA IT Pro Community will provide a place for those who want to enter or advance an IT career to solicit expert advice, network with peers and find critical tools and resources. One of these resources is the CompTIA Career Center, which will match certified job seekers with employers trying to fill IT jobs.
Las Vegas – 8-4/2009 at the State of the Industry – CEO and president Todd Thibodeaux announced a new CompTIA program. Strata will become a new 1st step for those interested in become involved in the computer industry.
CompTIA Strata Fundamentals Exams
CompTIA is proud to introduce the CompTIA Strata Fundamentals exam series. CompTIA Strata exams are vendor-neutral and cover basic IT terminology and technology. The series was developed to help professionals and students work efficiently in their current roles, or obtain the skills to pursue an IT career.
Candidates for CompTIA Strata exams include:
Students beginning an IT education program
Individuals preparing for a CompTIA A+ certification
Professionals or home users who wish to further their IT knowledge
For individuals, completing a CompTIA Strata Fundamentals exam means proof of basic technology skills, and is designed as a stepping stone to a CompTIA A+ certification. For businesses, CompTIA Strata Fundamentals exams can help cut down on IT costs by ensuring that employees have a baseline understanding of hardware components and operating system technologies.
CompTIA Strata exams are not certifications, but a confirmation of an individual’s understanding of technology basics.
The 1st of the courses will be offered in the UK then in the United States
Fundamentals of PC Functionality
(UK only) CompTIA Strata Fundamentals of PC Functionality measures a candidate’s knowledge of basic ICT vocabulary and PC components. The exam covers the basics of setting up a PC workstation, installing software and recognizing / preventing security threats.
This exam is only available in the United Kingdom. It fulfills ITQ Level 1 when completed with the CompTIA Strata Fundamentals of Technology exam and is recognized by the sector skills council, e-skills
Fundamentals of Technology
(UK only) CompTIA Strata Fundamentals of Technology measures a candidate’s ability to explain the characteristics of PC hardware and peripherals, as well as identify basic compatibility issues and operational problems. The exam also covers safety guidelines and preventative maintenance of computers.
This exam is only available in the United Kingdom. It fulfills ITQ Level 1 when completed with the CompTIA Strata Fundamentals of PC Functionality exam and is recognized by the sector skills council, e-skills.
Fundamentals of IT Technology
(US only – coming in October) The IT Technology exam covers technology basics, including the characteristics and functions of laptops, desktops and smart phones. Individuals must be able to understand the functions of internal and external storage devices, such as CDs, DVDs, USBs and hard drives. The exam also covers Green IT, and individuals will have to know how to use and dispose of equipment in an environmentally-friendly way.
Fundamentals of IT Technology Sales
(US only – coming in October) The IT Technology Sales exam is designed for individuals who sell or recommend IT products. The exam covers the technical knowledge needed to communicate with both technical staff and customers on IT issues and work toward an appropriate solution. Exam topics include IT terminology and technology, equipment upgrades and compatibility issues.
The System Center Configuration Manager Extensions for SCAP are designed for organizations to use with the desired configuration management (DCM) feature in Microsoft® System Center Configuration Manager 2007 to scan the computers in your environment and then document their level of compliance with the Federal Desktop Core Configuration (FDCC) mandate.
The extensions enable Configuration Manager 2007 to consume Security Content Automation Protocol (SCAP) data streams, assess systems for compliance, and generate report results in SCAP format by taking advantage of the compliance checking capabilities inherent in the DCM feature. Now your organization can use its existing Configuration Manager 2007 infrastructure to ensure that the computers you manage meet this federal compliance requirement and generate the requisite FDCC reports for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
If your organization is affected by the FDCC mandate, these extensions should be very valuable to you.
Notice: Downloads will end August 20 Thanks for all your help building Windows 7. We are on our way to the last big milestone: Release to Manufacturing. Starting on October 22, you’ll see it on PCs and store shelves. As we gear up for that, it’s time to wind down the Release Candidate testing program.
If you or a friend needs a download, you’ve got time. We’ll continue to offer the RC download until August 20, 2009. After that, you won’t be able to get the download, but if you have the bits, you can still install the RC and get a key if you need one. (To get a key, just go to the Downloads page and follow the instructions.)
Tell us what you think. If you’re using the Windows 7 Release Candidate, we hope you like what you see. Let us know — go to http://input.microsoft.com and tell us what you think. You’ll be able to give feedback on various aspects of the operating system.
ProcDump is a command-line utility whose primary purpose is monitoring an application for CPU spikes and generating crash dumps during a spike that an administrator or developer can use to determine the cause of the spike. ProcDump also includes hung window monitoring (using the same definition of a window hang that Windows and Task Manager use) and unhandled exception monitoring. It also can serve as a general process dump utility that you can embed in other scripts.
Using ProcDump
usage: procdump [-c CPU usage [-u] [-s seconds] [-n exceeds]] [-h] [-e] [-ma] [-r] [-o] [[<process name or PID> [dump file]] | [-x <image file> <dump file> [arguments]]
–c CPU threshold at which to create a dump of the process.
–e Write a dump when the process encounters an unhandled exception.
–h Write dump if process has a hung window.
–ma Write a dump file with all process memory. The defaultdump format includes thread and handle information.
-n Number of dumps to write before exiting.
-o Overwrite an existing dump file.
-r Reflect (clone) the process for the dump to minimize the time the process is suspended (Windows 7 and higher only).
-s Consecutive seconds CPU threshold must be hit before dump is written (default is 10).
-u Treat CPU usage relative to a single core.
-x Launch the specified image with optional arguments.
To just create a dump of a running process, omit the CPU threshold. If you omit the dump file name, it defaults to <processname>.dmp.
The Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit is a powerful inventory, assessment and reporting tool that can securely assess IT environments for various platform migrations and virtualization without the use of any software agents.
Speaking of great tool kits for planning your operating system deployments, you can now download the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 Beta 2 MDT 2010 will support deployment of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in addition to deployment of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP. For details on the MDT 2010 Beta 2, see the Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit Team Blog
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 Beta 2 Review Program
Get ready to deploy Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 with Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 – Join Beta 2 Overview Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) is the recommended process and toolset for automating desktop and server deployment. MDT provides you with the following benefits:
Unified tools and processes required for desktop and server deployment in a common deployment console and collection of guidance.
Reduced deployment time and standardized desktop and server images, along with improved security and ongoing configuration management.
Fully automated zero touch installation deployments by leveraging System Center Configuration Manager 2007 Service Pack 2 beta and Windows deployment tools. For those without a System Center Configuration Manager 2007 infrastructure, MDT leverages Windows deployment tools for lite touch installation deployments.
MDT 2010 will support deployment of Windows® 7 and Windows Server® 2008 R2 in addition to deployment of Windows Vista®, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP. New features such as flexible driver management, optimized user interface workflow, and Windows PowerShellTM can simplify deployment and make your job easier. Deploy faster and easier with MDT 2010. . New in MDT 2010 Beta 2 Improvements in MDT 2010 Beta 2 will allow you to:
Access deployment shares from anywhere on the network and replicate files and settings across organizational boundaries or sites.
Organize and manage drivers, operating systems, applications, packages, and task sequences with an improved UI.
Automate UI functionality using the Windows PowerShellTM command line interface.
Get the Download
To download the Beta version of this Solution Accelerator, click here.
Code7 is where your ingenious application meets the opportunity to get millions of eyes on your work, plus a trip to LA for PDC09 and up to $17,777 in cash! This is open to all Windows developers.
I am not a professional software developer. Can I enter?
Yes, absolutely. The Code7 Contest is open to everyone, although it is targeted at developers, whether they are professional, hobbyist, or students.
Show the world what you’re working with and take things up a notch when you code to the power of Windows 7.
Take three minutes to video yourself describing and demonstrating your application idea for Windows 7 and you could win big.
We’ll choose one uber talented finalist from each of the following seven geographic regions:
China
Europe and United Kingdom
India and Southeast Asia
Japan, Australia, Antarctica, and New Zealand
Middle East and Africa
North America
South and Central America
As you work, keep in mind our Code7 Contest Guiding Principles and Windows 7 Technologies:
Guiding Principles:
Your application should support one or more of the following Windows 7 scenarios:
Simplify My Life
Develop an application that makes the things customers do every day faster and easier, with fewer clicks, simpler navigation and easier ways to connect.
More Media, More Places
Design a great application to help customers create, edit, organize and share media.
Gaming
Make it fun and exciting for customers to get their game on.
Work from Anywhere
Help make customers more productive at home, at work, or on-the-go.
Safeguard Your Work
Help customers protect their data, whether it resides on their PC, USB devices or on a network infrastructure.
Applications for a Better Tomorrow
Use the power of your code to help communities prepare and plan for a better future.
Windows 7 Technologies:
Your entry should take advantage of one or more of the following technologies:
Libraries
Libraries make it easier for customers to find, work with, and organize files scattered across their PC or network.
Windows Touch
Use the Windows Touch APIs to build an application that introduces a new input method.
Shell Integration
Applications are now more discoverable, informative and interactive.
DirectX 11
Develop applications that utilize DX11 technology that delivers graphics so real, it’s unreal.
Sensor and Location Platform
Windows 7 introduces a platform for using sensor devices, such as light sensors or GPS sensors, to create environmental or location awareness in programs.
