Building a Windows Mobile Application with Bing

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this session you’ll learn how to leverage the power of Microsoft Bing in your Windows Mobile 6.5 applications.

Basic Messaging with Windows Mobile 6.5

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Regardless of what else they can do, mobile devices are still primarily communications devices. In this session you’ll learn how to send SMS messages and email using managed code and Windows Mobile 6.5.

Windows Mobile 6.5 Security Fundamentals

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

Presenter: Rich Cannon, Microsoft

Using SQL Server Compact Edition with Windows Mobile 6.5

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Data storage is a requirement in just about every application, and mobile apps are certainly no exception. In this session you will get familiar with the basic programming techniques necessary to use SQL Server Compact Edition with your Windows Mobile application.

Accessing Local Files with Windows Mobile 6.5

Wed, 16 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Windows Mobile applications often need access to local files in order to work offline, leverage music and photos, or simply store settings. In this brief session you’ll see how to use a Windows Mobile application to access from and store information to the local device.

WebsiteSpark: Getting To Know Expression Studio

Fri, 22 Jan 2010

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
In this short video we’ll give you a tour of Expression Studio, and you’ll see how it is the perfect tool for designing your next Rich Internet Application.

Mon, 23 Feb 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
If you’re a developer and you’re new to Windows Azure, start here! You’ll see what you need to download and install, and how to create a simple “Hello World” Windows Azure application.

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this short “How Do I” video, we will show you how you can apply patches to offline virtual machines.

How Do I: Secure a Hyper-V R2 Virtualized Environment?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this short “How Do I” video, we will show you how to configure security settings for your Hyper-V R2 environment.

Overview of Microsoft Desktop and Application Virtualization Solutions

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
In this overview seminar, we will discuss Microsoft Desktop Virtualization (MED-V and VDI) as well as Application Virtualization (App-V) solutions. We will define what each of these technologies is and how they can work together to provide a dynamic end-user computing environment.

How Do I: Implement Microsoft Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this short “How Do I” video, we will show you how Microsoft Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) can be implemented to provide a dynamic desktop environment.

How Do I: Implement Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V)?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this short “How Do I” video, we will show you how Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V) can be implemented to provide a dynamic desktop environment.

How Do I: Implement Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V)?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this short “How Do I” video, we will show you how Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V) can be implemented in order to provide dynamic, virtualized applications to end-users.

How Do I: Sequence Applications for App-V Delivery?

Fri, 6 Nov 2009

PHP on Windows: Making the Entire Application Run on Microsoft Platform

Thu, 24 Sep 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session will show how to use Microsoft products to perform a complete move of a LAMP based application to the Microsoft. • Apache to IIS • MySQL to SQL Server • PHP using IIS ans SQL Server

Introducing Microsoft Dynamics XRM As A Development Platform

Mon, 2 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Did you know that many of the deployments of Microsoft Dynamics CRM today are in to industries not usually associated with Sales, Service and Marketing? Microsoft XRM is a powerful concept and in this final session of the week we will hear from Senior Dynamics Evangelist John O’Donnell and a Microsoft Dynamics ISV who will take us through understanding Microsoft Dynamics XRM and how it can be used to develop solutions for many vertical markets. If you are interested in hearing how your developers could save up to 70 percent of their development time by building on a development platform join us and learn what many ISV’s already know, developing on the Microsoft Dynamics XRM platform can fast track your company to your next major product release. As part of this webinar we will also showcase a partner who has taken Microsoft Dynamics CRM into a none traditional CRM market and built a new product and also integrated with an existing ERP. Once you understand how Microsoft Dynamics CRM can be used for development you will quickly realize that every company has an opportunity for Microsoft Dynamics XRM. Join us and learn how to leverage the power of Microsoft Dynamics XRM.

If increasing your developers productivity and time to market by building solutions on a Microsoft Dynamics development platform is something you would like to discuss now, please consider reaching out to the Microsoft ISV team now by emailing dynusisv@microsoft.com with your contact details and industry focus. We will have a Microsoft ISV specialist contact you to start you on the road to a faster and more streamlined time to market and above all work with you to become a successful Microsoft ISV Partner.

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Overview

Mon, 2 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Over one million users worldwide now use Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 every day. Interested in learning about the capabilities of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 and why both customers and partners are being successful with the product? During this session, John O’Donnell and a Microsoft partner will take us through an overview of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0. As part of this session we will cover many of the current capabilities of Dynamics CRM and where the product is going next. As an ISV building solutions, this webinar will give you an understanding of the capabilities supplied out of the box with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 in preparation for tomorrows session focused on using Dynamics CRM as a development platform or XRM. As part of this webinar we will showcase an ISV who has already worked with Dynamics CRM and delivered a solution built on the platform.

Microsoft Dynamics AX as a Development Platform

Mon, 2 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

There is a large demand for verticalized ERP functionality. In this session we will provide a complete introduction to the Microsoft Dynamics AX development platform. Our Dynamics AX architects will explain how to leverage this rich platform to build world class vertical solutions. We will be joined by an existing Dynamics ISV who has successfully leveraged the platform to share their perspective on the value of Dynamics AX to a group building software in the real world. If your development teams are building the same wheel time after time, attend this webinar and discover how to build your next solution on the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 platform in less time and get to market faster.

Microsoft Dynamics AX Overview

Mon, 2 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Join Microsoft Dynamics Principal Technologist Jay Manley and an existing Dynamics partner in exploring the Microsoft Dynamics AX product and learn how it can be leveraged in many organizations to deliver a powerful ERP solution. The overall opportunity for ISVs to build on the Microsoft Dynamics AX solution has never been greater and this process begins with understanding the overall product. This session will be via a webinar format followed by a Q&A session with Jay Manley and a Microsoft Dynamics partner.

Series Introduction and Microsoft Dynamics Overview

Mon, 2 Nov 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Join Microsoft representatives for this series of events focused on the benefits of adopting Microsoft Dynamics platforms as part of your go to market strategy as an Independent Software Vendor (ISV).

Microsoft Dynamics™ is a largely untapped opportunity for the Independent Software Vendor (ISV) community. This series of one hour events will provide an overview of the Microsoft Dynamics™ Products and Platform and will provide a clear view of how your ISV business can profit from either building on or connecting to Microsoft Dynamics™ Products. In addition to hearing from Microsoft representatives you will also here from existing partners giving their thoughts and experiences working with Microsoft Dynamics products. This event is structured to deliver optimal value to business and technology leaders. In addition to the session we will also have time for questions and answers. Join Warren and Joseph in this initial webinar to learn about the Microsoft Dynamics Business and how it can empower your business to expand into new markets and opportunities. This session will include time for Q & A.

WebsiteSpark: Get Started

Mon, 7 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
In this short screencast we introduce you to what you need in order to get started. The assumption here is that you have signed up for the program and just some quick initial steps.

WebsiteSpark: Where to Download the Free Stuff

Mon, 7 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
In this short screencast we show you where and how to get your free software and product licenses that come with your WebsiteSpark membership.

WebsiteSpark: What You Need to Build Your Server (For Dev Server or Self Hosted Server)

Mon, 7 Dec 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
In this short screencast we show you all you will need to build a web server running Windows Server and IIS. We will do a rapid fire demo of how to build the server and enable the web service. The steps are the same regardless of whether you are building a test/staging server or whether you are going to self host your clients' web sites.

Fri, 16 Oct 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The interactive controls and tools that were introduced in Server 2008 have been re-geared to give administrators even more leverage when it comes to performing everyday tasks. This course will focus on some of these including improved Identity Management within Active Directory as well as the new Powershell improvements.

Channel Development: What Every VAR Wants from their ISV

This course introduces the concept of SourceTypes for the Bing API and looks at both the required and optional parameter set for all SoureTypes objects.

Wed, 7 Oct 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session is an update to other sessions in this series which were recorded while IE8 was still in beta. It covers new items and/or changes that have been made between the beta 2 release and the final Release to Marketing version.

DotNetNuke Fundamentals: Introduction to DotNetNuke

Wed, 21 Oct 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

DotNetNuke is the leading web content management system (CMS) and application development framework for Microsoft .NET with millions of downloads and hundreds of thousands of active production web sites. This session provides a high level overview of the DotNetNuke platform including a description of the system architecture and the benefits of the application. The DotNetNuke demonstration shows the ease of use and extensibility of the platform as a web CMS for both technical and non-technical users.

www.dotnetnuke.com

US ISV Quarterly S+S Update Call

Wed, 23 Sep 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

During the World Wide Partner Conference in New Orleans there were many sessions around emerging opportunities for ISVs in the cloud as well as updates to Microsoft’s Azure services. Following up on that the US Managed Partner Team would like to offer our managed ISVs an update on the market’s evolution, planning considerations and status of our pending launch of Microsoft Azure. We’ll be featuring some of the latest research on the market by independent firms as well as an update directly from our Azure product team. You’re invited to attend this upcoming Q2 S+S partner readiness update event, we hope you’re able to attend, if not please nominate someone from within your organization to participate.

Agenda:

* Welcome and Introduction: Jeff Lear, Microsoft Partner Group

* Cloud Services Market Readiness: Michael West, Saugatuck

* Azure Update: Eric Morse, Microsoft Azure BG

* Q&A and Summarize Resources for Partner Follow-up

Host a Simple Website on the Windows Azure Platform

Tue, 20 Oct 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Take the Windows Azure step-by-step tutorial and host a simple website on Windows Azure Platform.

IMPORTANT: To get ready to work on the tutorial, obtain your own Azure account. Visit http://www.microsoft.com/windowsazure/developers/ and click on "Get Your Account". This tutorial will hand hold you through hosting your simple website on the Windows Azure Platform.

SQL Server 2008: Predicting Performance: Replayable Trace Demo

Fri, 2 Oct 2009

Formulate requirements and identify resources to monitor in a database environment

Types of monitoring that can be carried out to ensure:

Maximum availability

Optimal performance

Error-free operations

Availability of tools for monitoring

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Monitoring Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Locate and Review SQL Server Logs

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Monitoring Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Create custom error messages

Use Try..Catch Blocks

Simulate data validation

Review SQL Server Log Entries

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Monitoring Demo 3

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Observe SQL Server services with the Windows Task Manager

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Monitoring Demo 4

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Use the new SQL Server 2008 Activity Monitor to observe specific resources and queries

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Monitoring Demo 5

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Define a Database Mail Profile and Account

Create an Alert based on SQL Server counter events

Review an automatically generated e-mail to a database administrator

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Backup and Recovery

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this module, you will learn the following:

Backup and recovery methods available in Oracle and SQL Server 2008

Types of failure

Types of recovery

Formulating backup and recovery strategies

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Backup and Recovery Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Locate the Recovery Model Option for a database

Make the changes through the SSMS GUI or with scripts

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Backup and Recovery Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Create a Maintenance Plan using SSMS

Schedule the plan for future execution

Use SQL Server Agent – Job Activity Monitor to monitor the execution status

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Backup and Recovery Demo 3

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Create a Tail Log backup

Restore a database to every committed transaction

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Performance Tuning

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Performance tuning methodologies

Instance level

Database level

Application level

Overview of tools and techniques for performance analysis and tuning

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Override an existing query with a Plan Guide.

Use the new SQL Server 2008 interface to implement Plan Guides

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Scalability and High Availability

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Key high availability features available in Oracle and SQL Server

Key scalability features available in Oracle and SQL Server

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Scalability and High Availability Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration we will whiteboard how SQL Server Failover Clustering works

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Scalability and High Availability Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Implement Log Shipping between two systems

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Scalability and High Availability Demo 3

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Define the Roles of Replication

Define the Publication and Articles

Implement Peer-to-Peer Replication

Use the new Configure Peer-to-Peer Topology Tool

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Scalability and High Availability Demo 4

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Prepare Database on Instances

Configure Database Mirroring

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Server Management

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this module, you will learn the following:

Server-level and instance-level resources such as memory and processes

Database-level resources such as logical and physical storage structures

User sessions and their activity

Concurrency structures

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Server Management Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn how to:

Choose performance counters

Choose memory counters

Choose deadlock counters

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Server Management Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn how to:

Create a simple deadlocking event

Execute to see default behavior

Monitor with profile

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Managing Schema Objects

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Naming guidelines for identifiers in schema object definitions

Storage and structure of schema objects

Implementing data integrity using constraints

Implementing business rules at the database level using triggers and sequences

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Managing Schema Objects Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Define a table with a Primary Key

Validate with Foreign Keys

Insert data and view an exception and a success

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Managing Schema Objects Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Define a trigger

Validate and auto commit or rollback transaction (insert)

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Managing Schema Objects Demo 3

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Create an Included Index with SSMS

Compare execution plans and results

Create the Included Index with T-SQL

Rebuild the Index

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Managing Schema Objects Demo 4

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:
In this demonstration you will see how to Define a partition function Define a partition scheme Assign an Index to a partition scheme Rebuild an Index for a single partition

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Database Security

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Manage access to database through user accounts

Control access to data through privileges and roles

Manage access to server using login accounts

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Database Security Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Use catalog views

Use stored procedures to analyze roles

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Transport

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Tools and functionality in Oracle and their equivalents in SQL Server for:

Data transport out of the database

Data transport into the database

Tools and functionality in SQL Server for data transport into, out of, and within a database and across multiple databases, multiple file formats, and other data sources and destinations

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Transport Demo 1

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Manage data export with PowerShell

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Transport Demo 2

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Extract the data with the Bulk Copy Program (bcp)

Use bcp and Bulk Insert to import data into new tables

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Transport Demo 3

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Extract conditional table from one source to multiple destinations

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Transport Demo 4

Thu, 6 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will learn to:

Move infrequent data transformations with a wizard

Aprimo: Using Silverlight in the Real World

Thu, 1 Oct 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this module, you will learn the following:

Tables are the main objects that store data

Indexes, views, stored programs and other objects are the support structures

Various table types compared based on data organization

Various index types compared

Native and non-native data type support

Block-level storage architecture

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Objects Demo 1

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Create a query to view allocation units

Determine why multiple results for a single index might be provided

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Objects Demo 2

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Create a table taking advantage of filegroups for different types data structures Review the results using SSMS

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Objects Demo 3

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Define geometric shapes

Define an organizational structure for a company

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Access

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Introduce database components involved in data access

Introduce concepts of Transact -SQL and Procedural SQL as tools to access and manipulate data

Discuss transactional management concepts

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Access Demo 1

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Provide tracing within SQL Server

Review the execution plan for simple queries

Compare execution plan to the trace profiler

Review execution plan

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Access Demo 2

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Generate a query

Declare and use variables and row constructors

Aggregate summary data

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Protection

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Protecting data from unauthorized users and authorized users who are trying to update the same data simultaneously

Using locking modes to achieve concurrency and consistency

Implementing database security features to protect the database, database objects and data

Using auditing features to monitor database activity

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Data Protection Demo 1

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Introduce Microsoft's and Oracle's Implementations of a Database and an Instance

Understand Client Interaction Key Database and Instance Limitations

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Database and Instance Demo 1

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Stop and start service using the SQL Server Configuration Manager

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Instance Architecture

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this video, you will learn the following:

Configure a Database Server

Memory Architecture Overview

Memory Areas and Their Functions

Process and Thread Architecture

Controlling Resources in SQL Server 2008

Client and RDBMS Interactions

Background Processes/Threads and Their Functions

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Instance Architecture Demo 1

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Manage instance configurations through SSMS

Manage instance configurations through T-SQL scripts

Manage instance configurations through PowerShell

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Instance Architecture Demo 2

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Review instance memory via T-SQL

SQL Server 2008 for Oracle DBA: Instance Architecture Demo 3

Wed, 5 Aug 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

In this demonstration you will see how to:

Tue, 28 Jul 2009

This video from the Total Access event focused on investment activity issues, will review the latest clean technology fundraising statistics from Ernst & Young, discuss the current fundraising environment from both the private investor, CEO, CFO and investment banking perspectives, and explore company building issues that arise from the current economic environment.

Topics Include:

• Latest Ernst & Young Clean Technology Fundraising Statistics

• Overview of the Current Fundraising and Investment Environment

• Outlook for Cleantech Innovation

• Company Building Issues in the Current Economic Environment

Moderator:

Mitch Zuklie, Partner, Orrick

Panelists include:

Victor Westerlind, General Partner, RockPort Capital

Jeff Depew, CEO & Co-Founder, Imara

Most recently he served as Engineering PM in the Search Properties and Enterprise Products groups at Google, and he was an early member of its Strategy and Business Operations team. In both roles he created highly leveraged research and product organizations in countries around the world that enabled the company to adjust to changing strategic and operational needs and foster greater innovation and efficiencies.

Prior to joining Google, he worked at Bain & Company, helping a Fortune 100 client optimize and grow its technical support organization. He also served as a consultant to Intuit, Electronic Arts and other technology companies, spent two years in the Republic of Singapore Air Force and was a founding member of a software development group focused on developing security protocols and analyzers. He currently holds patented work in the area of link layer security.

Perspectives on building a successful startup

Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Hear from industry expert Michael Pliner on his thoughts for how you build a successful startup company in Silicon Valley.

Dr. Pliner has 39 years experience in computer software and systems technology, general management, business development and organizational development. Dr. Pliner is an experienced entrepreneur and has started, financed, and build three successful high technology businesses. Currently Dr. Pliner is a consulting entrepreneur serving on the Boards or advisory Boards of several high technology companies. His primary interests are in networking, digital media and enterprise software technologies and applications. Since January 2001, Dr. Pliner has worked with the following companies as a Board member, Board observer, interim CEO, or management/technical advisor.

Launching your Business

Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Hear from Launchpad strategy executive Shelley Harrison as she shares some of her original and innovative thoughts on how best to position your company for launch to gain attention and customers.

Shelley Harrison is the founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Launch Pad. Harrison, who began her high technology career with Hewlett-Packard over 25 years ago, has been involved in numerous high-tech success stories. She has led marketing teams responsible for countless PR, advertising, product, and brand identity awards, and has been the driving marketing force behind many successful IPOs and acquisitions.

As CEO of Launch Pad, Harrison has advised many of today's leading high-tech firms, including Vermeer, Verity, Quack.com, Amplitude Software, TriVida, and Signio. Harrison excels at developing positioning, articulating key messages, developing effective communications strategies, and creating focused, impactful marketing programs.

Marketing your Business

Fri, 19 Jun 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Tanya Candia, founder of Candia Communications, shares her wealth of knowledge about marketing best-practices to set your company apart from the competition, and talks about the necessary pivots that can make or break your company.

Tanya Candia heads the Marketing Practice. She has worked in high tech companies for more than 25 years and began her career in software development and management with Ford Aerospace, Memorex and ASK Computers, where she first began doing marketing.

At Unison Software her positioning and messaging work led to the company's successful initial public offering, and later acquisition by IBM/Tivoli. She took F-Secure, the Finnish security software company, through the most successful initial public offering in Scandinavian history.

Her specialized knowledge of security, software, manufacturing and finance has helped her grow software companies from under $100K to over $100M in revenue.

Candia holds an MA in Communications from the Monterey Institute of International Studies, and an MS in Systems Management from the University of Southern California. She studies several martial arts, including Kung Fu, and has a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.

Windows Server 2008 R2: Server Core Application Development

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session defines and explains the purpose of the Windows 2008 R2 server core, and demonstrates some of the considerations involved in writing .NET code for a server core installation.

Cloud Computing / SaaS / S+S: Loving the Cloud

Thu, 11 Jun 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

As part of Orrick's TOTAL ACCESS program for the start-up community, view this video recording focused on discussing cloud computing and the outlook for 2009. Topics Include:

• 2009 Cloud Computing Outlook

• Leveraging the Cloud

• Keys to Cloud Computing Flexibility

• Cross-Cloud Applications and Interaction

Moderator: John Bautista, Partner, Orrick

Speakers include:

Oren Michels, CEO, Mashery

Treb Ryan, CEO, OpSource

Steve Lucas, SVP of Platform Marketing - AppExchange and Force.com, Salesforce.com

Mike Repass, Product Manager - Google App Engine, Google

Anand Iyer, Developer Evangelist, Microsoft

Financial Tips for Start Ups Seeking Venture Funding

Thu, 11 Jun 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Advantages of having a part-time CFO for your company; making sure you set a strong financial foundation for your startup.

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this final session of XAMLfest, you’ll gain a solid understanding of WPF application architecture and development. You’ll implement a service endpoint that provides a domain model that can be used by both Silverlight and WPF. In addition, you’ll get some hands-on experiencing developing controls and applications with Silverlight/WPF re-use in mind.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

**For a step by step guide to preparing your computer for XAMLFest Online, view the walkthrough video posted here. We’ll be working with the soon-to-be-released Silverlight 3 beta + tools, during XamlFest Online, so there are 2 alternatives that you need to consider for configuration – they are:

Alternative #1 (Beta Configuration): Follow the instructions on http://silverlight.net/getstarted/silverlight3/default.aspx to configure your machine. Please note that if you go this route, you will be able run Silverlight 2 applications, but you will not be able to build Silverlight 2 applications (unless you uninstall the beta stack and install the production stack.)

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=FBEE1648-7106-44A7-9649-6D9F6D58056E&displaylang=en

Please install Expression Blend 2 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Expression Blend 2 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5FF08106-B9F4-43CD-ABAD-4CC9D9C208D7&displaylang=en

Please install Silverlight 2 and its tools for Visual Studio.

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

• You can download the Expression Blend 2 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB9B5C48-BA2B-4C39-A1C3-135C60BBBE66&displaylang=en

The presenters will point out to you where you need to work around Silverlight 3/Blend 3 features.

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Using Blend to Create WPF Apps and Controls (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

You can build great Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) apps with Blend, too, and in this session you’ll see exactly that. You’ll build a rich desktop client to complement the sample application you’ve been working on, and in doing so you’ll learn how to migrate screens, resources, styles and assets from Silverlight to WPF. This session will explore the similarities and differences between Silverlight and WPF applications.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=FBEE1648-7106-44A7-9649-6D9F6D58056E&displaylang=en

Please install Expression Blend 2 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Expression Blend 2 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5FF08106-B9F4-43CD-ABAD-4CC9D9C208D7&displaylang=en

Please install Silverlight 2 and its tools for Visual Studio.

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

• You can download the Expression Blend 2 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB9B5C48-BA2B-4C39-A1C3-135C60BBBE66&displaylang=en

The presenters will point out to you where you need to work around Silverlight 3/Blend 3 features.

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Implementing the M-V-VM Pattern (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The Model/View/ViewModel (M-V-VM) pattern is a modern variation of the classic Model/View/Controller (MVC) approach to UI design. In this session, you’ll use Visual Studio to implement M-V-VM for the sample application. You’ll bind the user experience to the view model, and explore templates and animations in both XAML and managed code.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=FBEE1648-7106-44A7-9649-6D9F6D58056E&displaylang=en

Please install Expression Blend 2 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Expression Blend 2 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5FF08106-B9F4-43CD-ABAD-4CC9D9C208D7&displaylang=en

Please install Silverlight 2 and its tools for Visual Studio.

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

• You can download the Expression Blend 2 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB9B5C48-BA2B-4C39-A1C3-135C60BBBE66&displaylang=en

The presenters will point out to you where you need to work around Silverlight 3/Blend 3 features.

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Styles, Resources, Templates and Animations (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

XAML makes it easier for designers to take on more responsibility when it comes to implementing user interface design. In the past, most everything beyond static screenshots and mockups required a developer to write behind-the-scenes code. In this session, you’ll see how Expression empowers designers to add styling, create templates, and define animations. You’ll see how the Visual State Manager is used to provide animation between element states. You’ll also see Blend 3’s new support for importing Adobe® Photoshop® content.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=FBEE1648-7106-44A7-9649-6D9F6D58056E&displaylang=en. Please install Expression Blend 2 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Expression Blend 2 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5FF08106-B9F4-43CD-ABAD-4CC9D9C208D7&displaylang=en. Please install Silverlight 2 and its tools for Visual Studio.

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

• You can download the Expression Blend 2 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB9B5C48-BA2B-4C39-A1C3-135C60BBBE66&displaylang=en. The presenters will point out to you where you need to work around Silverlight 3/Blend 3 features.

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Building a Domain Model in Visual Studio (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this session, you’ll build a domain model consistent with sample data. You’ll also add notification interfaces that enable consumers to subscribe to changes in the domain model. Finally, you’ll bind the user experience to the domain model.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Prototyping with Blend (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this session focusing on practical guidance on prototyping, you’ll use Blend to add screens to the sample application. To create a working application you’ll add sample data sources to screens and build master-details views over sample data.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Layouts and Controls in Visual Studio (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session will begin with an exploration of application layout in XAML, using Visual Studio. And although there is a lot of functionality built-in to the existing framework, API and controls, there are times when you need to add some custom functionality in order to get your application to behave just the right way. To that end, you’ll use Visual Studio to build a simple value converter that can be used by your sample application. Along the way, you’ll understand the role of value converters and you’ll see how you can use code-behind to create and manipulate XAML objects.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Layouts and Controls in Blend (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this live session, you’ll continue to build the sample application that you started creating the previous day. Here, you’ll create your application’s layout and begin adding controls. You’ll explore basic element binding using Blend. At the end of the session you’ll have a working Silverlight application that exhibits some basic functionality.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: XAML for Developers (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this first session geared towards developers, use Visual Studio 2008 to create and explore a basic Silverlight application. You’ll gain a better understanding of Silverlight anatomy and architecture, and you’ll see how Resource markup extensions work. You will also gain a better understanding of the deployment model used by Silverlight, and the role of Silverlight’s cross-platform, plug-in-based CLR.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: XAML for Designers (Live Session)

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Throughout XAMLfest, you’ll participate by building a Silverlight application from the ground up. In this session, you’ll jump Microsoft Expression Blend to begin creating this demonstration app. You’ll learn the basics of project creation, see how to navigate within Blend, and how XAML defines an application’s user interface.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

Windows Server 2008 R2: Web Server Improvements

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will look at the new IIS 7.5 and some of the capabilities that come with it such as improved FTP as well as the new management tools like Configuration Editor and Enhanced Auditing.

Windows Server 2008 R2: Windows Server 2008 R2 Kernel Changes

Thu, 21 May 2009

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=FBEE1648-7106-44A7-9649-6D9F6D58056E&displaylang=en

Please install Expression Blend 2 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Expression Blend 2 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5FF08106-B9F4-43CD-ABAD-4CC9D9C208D7&displaylang=en

Please install Silverlight 2 and its tools for Visual Studio.

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

• You can download the Expression Blend 2 Service Pack 1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=EB9B5C48-BA2B-4C39-A1C3-135C60BBBE66&displaylang=en

The presenters will point out to you where you need to work around Silverlight 3/Blend 3 features.

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Prototyping

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

With today’s emphasis on usability and appealing user interfaces, it’s more important than ever to prototype your applications. In this session, you’ll see how new tools in Blend 3 enable you to quickly create working prototypes that can provide a foundation for building the actual application. You’ll learn about SketchFlow, “Wiggly styles”, sample data, and you’ll see how you can create a prototype that allows you to easily gather user feedback. Finally, you’ll see how you can save hours and hours by using Blend 3’s spec generation tool.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: Patterns and Practices

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

With the release of its Expression tools for designers, Microsoft has prompted a re-evaluation of user interface design and workflow distribution. Now that Expression is approaching its third major release, a number of patterns and practices have emerged. In this session, you’ll see an approach to workflow that plays to the strengths of both designers and developers. Also, you’ll understand the importance of the “integrator” role in making sure this workflow runs smoothly.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets

**There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

XAMLfest: XAML Continuum

Wed, 22 Apr 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

XAML is the lingua franca of both Silverlight and Windows Presentation Foundation, Microsoft’s presentation technologies for the future. In this introductory session, learn how XAML empowers designers and developers to build rich Web and desktop applications. You’ll see how Blend can be used by designers to create assets and applications, and how Visual Studio 2008 to quickly implement an application’s functionality. What’s more, you’ll understand how Blend and Visual Studio work together to enable seamless workflow between designers and developers.

Prerequisites:

Step 1: Computer Configuration

**For a step by step guide to preparing your computer for XAMLFest Online, view the walkthrough video posted here.

We’ll be working with the soon-to-be-released Silverlight 3 beta + tools, during XamlFest Online, so there are 2 alternatives that you need to consider for configuration – they are:

Alternative #2 (Production Configuration): Please install Visual Studio 2008 + Service Pack 1 if you have it available.

• You can download a trial copy of Visual Studio 2008 from http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/products/cc268305.aspx

• You can download the Silverlight Tools for Visual Studio 2008 SP1 from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=c22d6a7b-546f-4407-8ef6-d60c8ee221ed&displaylang=en

Step 2: Download Assets **There are specific assets you will need to download in order to follow along during XAMLFest Online. The assets are posted here

Windows Server 2008 R2: Introduction to New Features

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session introduces you to all of the new features contained within the upcoming release of the Server platform.

Panel #1: Private Financing

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

What do cleantech executives need to know about the market for venture capital and private equity to make the best decisions about financing and growth strategies? The panelists will provide real-world insight into questions such as:

• What type of cleantech companies and technologies are in or out of favor with investors?

• What criteria do investors use when making investment decisions?

• What type of creative financing options and structures should companies be exploring?

Moderator: Mitch Zuklie, Partner, Orrick

Panelists include:

Ira Ehrenpreis, General Partner, Technology Partners

Jeff Adams, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs & Co.

Trae Vassallo, General Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

Ravi Viswanathan, General Partner, New Enterprise Associates

Panel #2: Project and Tax Equity Financing of Renewable Energy Projects

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Is project financing and tax equity available for renewable energy projects in the current environment? How can companies that want to develop renewable and cleantech projects—or who depend on project developers to buy their products and services—structure their businesses to benefit from favorable project financing and tax equity? Topics include:

• How does the project finance model really work, and what exactly can and cannot be financed?

• How early do you need to start planning to make sure your project is financeable, and how does your business need to change to access this market?

• What deal structures bring the most value to companies and investors monetizing tax benefits and obtaining Treasury grants following the Stimulus Bill?

Moderator: Mark Weitzel, Partner, Orrick

Panelists include:

Jose A. Torres-Monllor, Senior Vice President, Energy Investors Funds

Radford Small, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs & Co.

Les Sherman, Partner, Orrick (Expert on renewable energy project development)

Panel #3: Accessing Government Funds and Other Government Assistance

Thu, 21 May 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

How can cleantech companies take advantage of the government resources available for green initiatives? Experts on federal funding and government resources will discuss:

• Department of Energy and Stimulus Package: What funds are available and how do companies access those funds?

• Municipal Finance: What tax-free financing alternatives are available?

Moderator: Don Keller, Partner, Orrick

Panelists include:

Laura S. Lovelace, Senior Vice President, Fabiani & Company (Expert on federal funding)

Kyle Drefke, Partner, Orrick (Expert on Department of Energy and stimulus package)

John Wang, Partner, Orrick (Expert on municipal finance in the energy sector)

Windows Server 2008 R2: A Technical Overview for Developers

After completing this lab you will be able to: Install a PHP application written for Linux on to Windows, configure PHP to work with MySQL, identify where in the PHP code the database interactions are

Windows Presentation Foundation: Partner Corner Video: A Look Inside Goldleaf Financial Solutions

Wed, 1 Apr 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

William Randlett, Senior Vice President of Development at Goldleaf Financial Solutions, describes how the company uses Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and Silverlight for banking industry solutions. Randlett tells Larry Gregory, Director of Partner Evangelism with Microsoft, how rich user experiences connect to Web Services to differentiate the products in the marketplace. The result is ease of use, decreased training, and lighter user support. For more information, see Windows Client and Silverlight. http://www.goldleaf.com/

“Venture Debt: Term Sheet Review” in partnership with Orrick Total Access

Thu, 19 Mar 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Listen to Orrick lawyer Jerry Ku discuss the fundamentals of equity financing term sheets, including valuation, capitalization, liquidation preference, conversion rights, board composition, voting rights and gold handcuffs. Recommended for entrepreneurs thinking about or heading into term sheet negotiation who wish to be armed with basic conceptual knowledge of deal anatomy and VC lingo.

Software Plus Services: Software plus Services in Practice

Thu, 8 Jan 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

There are many success stories when it comes to Software plus Services. In this live Web seminar,you'll hear from a fellow ISV who has successfully implemented S+S in a real application.

Charting Your Growth Course: A Partner Program Roadmap for ISVs

Wed, 5 Nov 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Did you know that the Microsoft Partner Program has tools and resources tailored to the specific stages of your business? In this webinar, you’ll learn how to evaluate your business stage and match the resources best suited to support your business growth goals. We’ll help you develop a roadmap for progressing through the Partner Program and take advantage of the most relevant resources.

About the Presenter: Lori Stutsman is the president and founder of Extra Mile Marketing, http://www.extramilemarketing.com. Lori is an award-winning industry expert on the subject of marketing, and has worked with hundreds of Microsoft partners in varying capacities, including training, consulting and full marketing plan execution. Lori has significant expertise in business to business marketing, along with consumer products, technology and retail. Extra Mile has worked with Microsoft on programs such as the ISV Accelerator program; QuickRamp; ISV Launch Pad; Are You Ready to Compete?; the Partner Marketing Guide; Sell More with Microsoft web seminar series; IW Competency Sweepstakes; Distinction in Marketing Awards and many other Microsoft Partner Program projects. Lori holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Virtual Goods: What Do Consumers Crave?

Tue, 17 Feb 2009

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

Tue, 27 Jan 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The focus of the webinar for the Microsoft Partner or ISV that is looking to move to Software plus Services or already are S+S :

• A proven structure for measuring Key Success Factors (KSFs) for Business, Technical, and Operations readiness for building, running, and marketing a solution in a S+S business model

• Ways to add value to partner or ISV customers to become more value to them

• Valuable insight into customer needs and experience

• Help from companies with years of experience in this field

• Best practices for improving customer relationships

Microsoft Contact: Trina Horner, thorner@microsoft.com

.Net: Accessing REST-based Services with ASP.NET AJAX

Thu, 8 Jan 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

More and more services are being exposed via REST-based interfaces. In this screencast you’ll see how to access a REST- based service from client-side code.

Windows Presentation Foundation: Coding Windows Presenation Foundation with C#

Thu, 8 Jan 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

A WPF user interface is primarily written in eXtensible Application Markup Language (XAML). However, there are times when it is necessary to leverage imperative code to do things that are simply not possible with the declarative XAML language. This screencast will show how to create and manipulate WPF objects using C#.

Thu, 8 Jan 2009

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The ScriptManager control is the heart of ASP.NET AJAX. In this screencast, see what it does, how it works and how to use the related ScriptManagerProxy.

FastCGI, IIS7, & PHP: Install and Optimize

Wed, 3 Dec 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

You will be able to complete the following in this virtual lab environment:

Install and configure PHP using FastCGI: • System will have PHP already downloaded and ready to install • Enable FastCGI in IIS7 • Install and configure PHP • Configure IIS7 to handle PHP requests • Configure recycling behaviour

Run and test basic application page: • Optimizing PHP • Tuning your application, speeding up • Taking an application from PHP to FastCGI PHP

SQL Server 2005/2008: MySQL to SQL Server - Gaining a Competitive Advantage

Wed, 10 Dec 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

You take SaaS seriously: you're gearing up to launch an On-Demand software product, or you're already in market and working hard to grow. Wouldn't it be great to sit down with successful SaaS market leaders and hear some of the practical tips and pragmatic tricks they have learned on their way to achieving market success? Take advantage of this webinar—it’s your chance.

Microsoft teamed up with several market leaders to bring you this free 90-minute informational webinar to illustrate some options you have for achieving maturity and getting your business over the hurdles of your next growth phase. Our panel of experts shows you how to invigorate your business and drive further success in today's marketplace.

The purpose of this webinar is to provide you with a specific training opportunity to benefit your business today; these will not be sales presentations. In fact, we believe this webinar will be so valuable, you'll be begging for a copy of the slides by the end.

• If you have questions or want more information, contact Microsoft at: ssisvoff@microsoft.com

• To find out where you stand on being SaaS ready take the Online ISV Self Assessment found online at: http://www.splussready.com/

• To access PDF version of the webinar and more on being Saas ready visit: http://www.comingofage-saas.com

Microsoft BizSpark: It’s value to you and how to enroll startups (west region)

Wed, 10 Dec 2008

Wed, 26 Nov 2008

Course Type: Video
Course ID:

This 15-minute demo will guide you through the steps of configuring and working with row and page data compression.

.Net: IronRuby for the Visual Basic Developer

Mon, 15 Dec 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
This session provides an introduction to the syntax of IronRuby for the Visual Basic .NET developer.

CGI, PHP, IIS7: Overview of CGI/PHP for Business

What’s Next for Growing Your Business in a Tough Economy: Top 10 Benefits of the Microsoft ISV Program

Wed, 5 Nov 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In these tough economic times, finding new business is harder than ever. The Microsoft® Partner Program is here to help, with a host of great benefits to help your business through the squeeze. This one-hour webinar highlights the top ten benefits and offerings available to support Microsoft Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) success. From tools for generating leads, licensing support, networking, and campaigns, we’ll take you through the resources available to move your business forward. Sign up today!

Fri, 3 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
This live session compares architectural and feature differences/similarities between Hyper-V and VMWare ESX Server.

Microsoft Silverlight: Deep Zoom

Thu, 23 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Silverlight Deep Zoom is the exciting new technology that allows users to pan around and zoom in a large, high resolution image or a large collection of images in Silverlight. This session will get you up to speed with Deep Zoom Composer so you too can add Deep Zoom to your Silverlight arsenal.

Microsoft Virtualization: Fundamentals Series Part 7: Selling Microsoft Virtualization: Market Landscape

Fri, 3 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
This live session will give sales people an understanding of how to sell Hyper-V against VMWare ESX Server.

Microsoft Expression: Fundamentals Series Part 5: Media

Wed, 10 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression Media gives you a central repository for all of your media assets. Images, video, illustrations, sound files, fonts, HTML, documents—they’re no match for the organizational power of Expression Media. This session will show users how to organize, browse, search, and annotate your digital files with Expression Media.

Microsoft Expression Media Essentials Part 1: Asset Organization

Thu, 23 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Images, video, illustrations, sound files, fonts, HTML, and documents—they’re everywhere. Imagine how much more you’d get done if you could just find what you’re looking for. This session with show you how to use Microsoft Expression Media to keep things organized.

Microsoft Expression Media Essentials Part 2: Image Editing

Thu, 23 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression Media’s built-in Image Editor provides a wide array of tools, from cropping and red-eye removal to creating duotones and adjusting color balance and several auto enhancements for quick and easy touch ups of your images. This session will get you started editing your images with Expression Medias powerful and easy tools.

Microsoft Expression Media Essentials Part 3: Presentations

Thu, 23 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Publish and distribute media with cross-platform slide shows, video, and Web galleries, or quickly export media into multiple formats for delivery to your client. This session will how to distribute your content with Microsoft Expression Media.

Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 for Office Part 1

Wed, 29 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session introduces Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) using Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5. It covers the basics of using VSTO along with security and deployment issues. Demonstrations show the use of VSTO with several different Office applications.

Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 for Office Part 2

Wed, 29 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This VSTO session covers the use of writing managed code for standard controls such as buttons, text boxes, radio buttons, and others. Demonstrations show how these controls can be added to Office applications to give users easy access to new functionality.

Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 for Office Part 3

Wed, 29 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The third session in this series explains the use of specialized controls including actions panes, forms, regions, smart tags, and the ribbon. Demonstrations are provided for each of these.

SQL Server Application Upgrade (SQL Server 2005 – 2008) Virtual Lab

Microsoft Expression: Web Essentials Part 2: CSS-Based Layout

Thu, 2 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

With one of the most advanced CSS editors available today, Microsoft Expression Web is the perfect tool to help you explore the world of Cascading Style Sheets for precise control of layout and formatting.

Microsoft Expression: Web Essentials Part 3: Rich Data Presentation

Thu, 2 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression web’s Drag and Drop editing gives you powerful tool s for integrating and formatting XML data into your sites. This session will get you started.

Microsoft Expression: Web Essentials Part 4: Server Technology

Thu, 2 Oct 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session will teach you how to use Expression Web to add ASP.NET controls to an ASPX page and use Expression Web’s editing tools to set properties and appearance.

Microsoft Expression: Fundamentals Series Part 3: Web

Wed, 10 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression Web delivers powerful design tools and task panes to design for ASP.NET, PHP and XML. With an industry leading CSS editor it’s never been easier to get a standards based website up and running fast. This session will familiarize users with the features of this powerful new tool.

Windows Vista: Fundamentals Series Part 1: Why Upgrade?

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This seminar will answer the question of "why should I upgrade from Windows XP?" This will include a look at security, performance, deployment, manageability, and migration guidance. We will also briefly debunk some of the myths that are out there regarding Vista.

Windows Vista: Fundamentals Series Part 2: What's New Since Release

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this seminar we will introduce many of the enhancements to Windows Vista that have come along since its release. Topics include Service Pack 1 (SP1), device and application compatibility, MDOP, Deployment Toolkit, and more.

Windows Vista: Fundamentals Series Part 3: Features Overview

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

SQL Server Upgrade (2005 – 2008): Series Part 2: Migration Tools

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 2 of 4 will look at tools provided by Microsoft that will help you analyze your current installation for potential migration issues. We will also discuss common challenges when migration from SQL 2005 to SQL 2008.

SQL Server Upgrade (2005 – 2008): Series Part 3: Migration Databases

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 3 of 4 will show a detailed look of a database migration. We will go through all the migration steps using Microsoft migration tools covered in part 2.

SQL Server Upgrade (2005 – 2008): Series Part 4: Taking advantage of new features for your SQL Server

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 4 of 4 will cover how to incorporate new SQL Server 2008 features after you have completed a migration. We will look at both relational and business intelligence features.

Working with SQL Server 2008: and Disconnected Clients

Tue, 9 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover the fundamentals of how to design and work with Occasionally Connected Systems. The following topics will be covered:

• Occasionally Connected System Designs • SQL Server Compact Edition 3.5 • Programming - SqlResultSet and DataSet • LINQ and future EDM Support • Server-Directed Synchronization • Sync Services • Using Sync Services with SQL Server 2008

SQL Server 2008: Developing for SQL Server 2008 Using Visual Studio

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will provide an overview of how to work with Visual Studio and SQL Server 2008. It will cover the fundamentals of how to work with Visual Studio 2008 Database Edition and how to create SQLCLR projects and work with debugging.

SQL Server 2008 and ADO.NET: Entity Framework Integration

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover the fundamentals of how to work with the ADO.NET Entity framework. The following topics will be covered:

• Entity Data Modeling

• Mapping SQL Server to Objects

• ADO.NET and EntityClient

• The Entity SQL Language

• Object Context

• LINQ to Entities

SQL Server 2008: Communicating with SQL Server 2008 using HTTP

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover the fundamentals of how to work with SQL Server HTTP programming. It will also highlight new features introduced with SQL Server 2008.

Tue, 30 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Blend has a variety of robust content containers to help you create the perfect UI. Learn how these Layout Controls interact with content and with each other in your application.

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Host a Silverlight 2 application in a Web Part
Communicate data between SharePoint and Silverlight applications
Consume SharePoint Web services
Display media information that is maintained in SharePoint picture
Build custom field types with rich user interaction using Silverlight
Build Silverlight front-ends for lists maintained in SharePoint based

SharePoint: A Developer Introduction - Workflow C#

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Build a simple workflow that sends an email when a user adds a document to a document library
Build a workflow that creates a task when a user adds a meeting request to a calendar
Modify a workflow to send the administrator a reminder email if a period of time has passed without a resolution to the meeting request

Windows Server 2008: Dynamically Increasing Web Site Capacity

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Dynamically add capacity to a web site
Configure IIS 7 shared configuration
Configure a web server to use that shared configuration from a script
Use the new features of IIS and Windows Server 2008

IIS 7.0: Allowing External Users to Manage IIS7 Web Applications

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Configure the management service
Work with feature delegation
Connect to IIS Manager from outside the firewall using TS RemoteApp

Windows Server 2008: Creating a Highly Available Infrastructure

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Create clusters using Windows Server 2008 Failover Clustering
Use Cluster validation reports
Process of creating the cluster
Automate a cluster

IIS 7.0: Extending with Custom Handlers

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab, you will be better able to:

Create a Managed Handler
Create a Custom Administration Interface
Add tracing to Custom Handlers

Windows Server: Creating Windows PowerShell V2 Script Cmdlets

Thu, 9 Oct 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID:

After completing this lab you will be better able to:

Create a new Script Cmdlet
Add typed, validated parameters to a cmdlet
Use input from the pipeline
Support –confirm and –whatif switches
Implement verbose and debug support

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
In this partner discussion, Tim Kashani, founder and President of IT Mentors, and George Ghali, Director of Custom Development with Slalom Consulting, will talk about their work with upgrading SQL Server 2005 solutions to SQL Server 2008. The real-world example that will be discussed is the Microsoft ISV partner web site that was migrated with zero downtime. Challenges and solutions will be discussed in this one-hour session.

Microsoft Expression: Fundamentals Series Part 1: Design

Wed, 10 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression Design is a powerful vector creation tool that allows user to design cutting edge graphics. By taking advantage of Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) designers can now create and share graphics with the confidence that their designs will look exactly as they envisioned them, quickly and without compromise. This session will give users the information they need to quickly get up to speed with Expression Designs feature rich environment.

Microsoft Expression: Fundamentals Series Part 2: Blend

Wed, 10 Sep 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Expression Blend is the go-to application to bridge the gap between design and development. Users can create graphic elements in XAML, or import them from Expression Design and create robust, next generation UI’s for the Web and WPF. This session will give users the information they need to dive into layouts, interaction, controls, animation and other elements of Expression Blend.

Silverlight: Fundamentals Part 1: Introduction to Silverlight

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Silverlight 2 is a next-generation plug-in technology for building Rich Internet Applications. This session provides a high-level overview of how Silverlight works, the tools used to build Silverlight applications, and the benefits of using Silverlight technology. Several Silverlight applications will be demonstrated to provide a perspective on the type of applications that can be built using Silverlight.

Silverlight: Fundamentals Part 2: Architecture

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this session you will learn about how Silverlight 2 works from an architectural and technical perspective. You will examine the new Silverlight project templates in Visual Studio 2008 to see exactly how the various components fit together and how Silverlight applications are deployed to end users.

Silverlight: Fundamentals Part 3: Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML)

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML) is the fundamental language of Silverlight applications. In this session, you will gain a clear understanding of how XAML works and see the benefits of using a declarative approach to user-interface design.

Silverlight: Fundamentals Part 4: User Interface

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Silverlight 2 includes support for rich, vector-based graphics and a full library of re-usable user interface controls. In this session, you’ll learn about how the Silverlight renders user interface graphics and how you can leverage the rich set of built-in controls. You’ll also learn how to use styles and templates to customize the look-and-feel of your Silverlight applications.

Silverlight: Fundamentals Part 5: Custom Controls

Wed, 27 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Silverlight’s user interface model is highly extensible. In this session, you will learn how to create your own reusable controls to bring a highly customized look to your Silverlight applications.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Data Warehousing – Dimensional Modeling

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will act as an introduction to dimensional modeling techniques. We will look at common practices for creating scalable data warehouses and discuss how to solve common challenges such as slowly changing dimensions.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Data Warehousing - Data Cleansing and Transformations

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will focus on common ETL challenges. We will look at how having an understanding of ETL and how to implement best practices is important when building a successful data warehouse

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Data Warehousing – Data Loading

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will cover the basics for how to best load data into your data warehouse in an efficient manner.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Data Warehousing – Reports

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will cover the basics of how to design both operational and non-operational reports using your data warehouse environment. We will introduce how SQL Server reporting services can help you design, manage and deploy reports.

Business Intelligence: Overview of Microsoft’s BI Platform and How to Solve Problems

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will look at common challenges that a lot of organizations face with reporting, data aggregation, performance management, and collaboration. We will discuss how the Microsoft BI platform can help you solve these problems.

SQL Server 2008: Tips & Tricks Webinar Series Part 1: Relational Engine Tips & Tricks

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 1 of 4 of this series will focus on the relational engine. We will discuss a variety of topics that will help you better manage and tune you in to SQL applications. Tips and tricks about query tuning and optimization, indexing, etc. will be covered.

SQL Server 2008: Tips & Tricks Webinar Series Part 2: Integration Services Tips & Tricks

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 2 of 4 of this series will focus on Integration Services. We will discuss some of the key improvements to SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) and then focus on how to best implement a performance strategy.

SQL Server 2008: Tips & Tricks Webinar Series Part 3: Reporting Services Tips & Tricks

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 3 of 4 of this series will focus on Reporting Services. We will discuss some of the key improvements to SSRS and then we will focus on tips and tricks to best design reports that are intuitive to use and that perform well.

SQL Server 2008: Tips & Tricks Webinar Series Part 4: Analysis Services Tips & Tricks

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Part 4 of 4 of this series will focus on Analysis Services. We will discuss some of the key improvements to SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) and then we will focus on how to best build and manage performance cubes.

SQL Server 2008: Administrative Fundamentals Series Part 1: SQL Server Administration

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover the basics for how to best administrate SQL Server. Topics such as database and table creation, procedures, functions, and common database properties will be covered.

SQL Server 2008: Administrative Fundamentals Series Part 2: SQL Server Availability

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover how to manage SQL Server high-availability features such as mirroring, replication. New features introduced with SQL Server 2008, such as the Resource Governor, will be discussed as well.

SQL Server 2008: Administrative Fundamentals Series Part 3: SQL Server Scalability

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover how to manage SQL Server scalability. Topics such as data compression, data warehouse engine enhancements, and locking strategies will be covered

SQL Server 2008: Administrative Fundamentals Series Part 4: SQL Server Security

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover how to configure and manage SQL Server security. Topics such as execution context, user and schema separation, encryption, auditing, and backup encryption will be covered.

SQL Server 2008: Administrative Fundamentals Series Part 5: SQL Server Policy Framework

Fri, 22 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar will cover how to configure and use the Policy Framework that was introduced with SQL Server 2008. The Policy Framework will help administrators better work with often mundane admin tasks.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Introduction to the Team Suite

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Developer-focused overview of Team Foundation Server and the Visual Studio Team System Team Suite. Coverage of setup, architecture and processes surrounding Team Foundation Server. Examples of basic source code management and Team Suite-specific tools.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Team Foundation Server

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Learn how to implement Team Foundation Server as a source code repository and project management tool. Topics include version control, check-in/check-out, branching/merging, work items, and more.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Architecture Edition

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Introduction to the system, application and software design/modeling tools found in the Team System Architecture Edition.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Database Edition

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Overview of database development work using the tools and guidance in Team System Database Edition.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Development Edition

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Overview of the developer tools found in the Team System Development Edition; includes code coverage tools, performance tuning, and unit testing.

Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008: Test Edition

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Introduction to the tools found in the Team System Test Edition focusing on, the various types of tests (Web tests, load tests, etc) and how they are implemented.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Dimensional Model (UDM)

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course provides an overview of the Unified Dimensional Model. We will discuss how the UDM is beneficial to us when creating aggregations and reports to be deployed into various environments.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS)

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course provides an overview of SQL Server Analysis Services 2008. We will look at core new features and also do comparisons between SSAS 2005 and SSAS 2008.

Business Intelligence & SQL Server: Data Mining

Thu, 21 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course provides an overview of data mining. We will look at common scenarios when using data mining is useful. We will also cover the basics for how to use SSAS 2008 data mining tools.

Microsoft Virtualization: Fundamentals Series Part 1: Overview of the Microsoft Virtualization Vision

Fri, 1 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session will cover the basis of Microsoft's virtualization vision. This session will serve as introduction to each virtualization product: Server Virtualization, Application Virtualization, and Presentation Virtualization and the purpose of each. It will also introduce the benefits of management using System Center.

Microsoft Virtualization: Fundamentals Series Part 2: Introduction to Server Virtualization (Usage Scenarios)

Fri, 1 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session covers the different products for server virtualization (Microsoft® Hyper-V™ Server, Virtual Server 2005, Virtual PC) and the usage scenarios for each. Usage scenarios include Server Consolidation, Disaster Recovery, Branch Office, High Availability, Development and Testing, and more.

Windows Server 2008: Fundamentals Part 1: What's New In Windows Server 2008

Fri, 1 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This session will cover at a fairly high level the top new improvements in Windows Server® 2008 and the benefits they bring for businesses. Topics include improvements in security, web, architecture, management and virtualization, among others. Other sessions will deep-dive into the various technological improvements that are introduced here.

SQL Server 2008: Introduction to SQL Server Integration Services 2008 (SSIS)

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will cover how to use SQL Server Integration Services 2008 (SSIS) to manage an Extract, Transform, and Load (ETL) process. We will start by looking at the fundamental components that make up SSIS and then move onto designing packages using Business Intelligence Development Studio. We will look at solutions to common ETL challenges such as slowly changing dimensions. Topics covered are:

• Reviewing ETL Fundamentals

• Introducing SSIS Components

• Designing ETL Packages

• Slowly Changing Dimension Transformation

SQL Server 2008: Introduction to SQL Server Reporting Services 2008 (SSRS)

Tue, 5 Aug 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This course will act as an introduction to SQL Server Reporting Services 2008 (SSRS). We will start by covering the SSRS architecture and then move onto designing and deploying reports using Business Intelligence Development Studio, Report Builder, and Report Designer. We will also look at new SSRS 2008 features. Topics covered are:

• Reporting Fundamentals

• Introducing SSRS

• Basic SSRS Report Design

• Introducing Report Interactivity

• Extending Reports with Custom Logic

Virtualization: Scripting in Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2007

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2007 is a server application that you can use to manage a large number of virtual machines. This seminar provides examples of Microsoft Windows PowerShell scripts for Virtual Machine Manager and will illustrate how you can build tools to manage the servers, virtual machines, and resources in your virtual environment.

Virtualization: Build Applications for Virtual Server and Desktop

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
This seminar is for developers who are creating client applications that automate the deployment and operation of virtual machines for use with Virtual Server 2005. Learn what capabilities exist and how you might develop applications to leverage them.

Virtualization: Build Applications for Hyper-V

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Standards-based Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) interfaces and APIs in Hyper-V enable independent software vendors and developers to quickly build custom tools, utilities, and enhancements for the virtualization platform. This seminar will show you how.

Virtualization: Microsoft Virtualization for ISVs: The Business Need

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
In part one of our Microsoft Virtualization seminar series for ISVs we will discuss the business need for virtualization products. This will focus on a discussion of what the business driver might be for an ISV to develop custom applications on top of the virtualization technologies. In addition, virtualization technologies are a perfect mechanism for delivering trial versions of products as well as distributing products as an “appliance”.

Silverlight: The ISV Developer Community Presents: Composite Rich Internet Applications

Tue, 13 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Join Microsoft’s Murray Gordon and Gunther Lenz for an informative webinar on the Composite Rich Internet Applications. In this one-hour web seminar, Murray and Gunther will explain what a Composite Rich Internet Application is, why it matters, and when it makes sense to use. We will show you a working example of how you can combine the advantages of a rich internet application (RIA) using Silverlight while adhering to the composite application paradigm using the Prism framework.

Register today so you'll be set to:
• Understand the composite and rich internet applications paradigm
• Learn how Prism and Silverlight together support complex apps with rapidly changing requirements
• Understand the benefits and risks
• See a working example demonstrating key capabilities
• Know how to implement rich interactive applications using Silverlight and Prism
• Identify next steps to move forward with Prism and Silverlight
• Download the source code to further explore and extend the demo
Who should attend:
• Enterprise and commercial software architects and developers evaluating Silverlight as the foundation for their next projects.
• Software development managers and team leads responsible for managing the development of rich internet applications.

Don't miss this chance to learn about the future of composite rich internet application development, from two preeminent experts in the field. Register today to reserve your space, and feel free to forward this invitation to others on your team who could also benefit.

Microsoft Dynamics: Building with CRM

Tue, 13 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

First, a few fast facts about the Microsoft Dynamics™:
• As a product team we have over 26 years experience developing business applications.
• Microsoft Dynamics™ has over 300,000 customer installations worldwide.
• We serve customers through a partner ecosystem of close to 9,600 partners worldwide.
• In Q1 FY08 Microsoft Dynamics™ became a $1billion dollar business for Microsoft on 25% revenue growth.

In this web seminar you will learn:
o Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM Target Market
o Overview of Platform
o Methods of building with Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM system
o Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM Roadmap
o Innovating with Microsoft Dynamics™ CRM

Microsoft Dynamics: Building with ERP

Tue, 13 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this web seminar you will learn:
o Microsoft Dynamics™ ERP Target Market
o Overview of Platforms
o Methods of building with the Microsoft Dynamics™ ERP systems
o Microsoft Dynamics™ ERP Roadmap
o Delivering Value Through Innovation

Best Practices in Building a Pipeline of Channel Partner Prospects

Mon, 2 Jun 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Build a Successful Channel

As a special benefit to Microsoft US Gold Certified, Certified, and Registered ISV partners, Microsoft is sponsoring a series of four best practices webinars facilitated by The York Group, to help ISVs jump start and invigorate your channel development efforts. You will learn everything you need to either build a channel from the ground up or improve the performance of your current partners.

Best Practices in Building a Pipeline of Channel Partner Prospects

During this session you will learn best practices for:
• Defining the partner profile
• Identifying prospects
• Develop a partner value proposition
• Conducting initial contact and qualification
• Getting a commitment

Presenter: Harald Horgen

Presenter BIO: Harald Horgen is an acknowledged expert in the field of helping technology companies expand into new markets, and with over 25 years of experience he has learned what it takes to succeed in the global market. As the President of The York Group, an international business development organization with offices and partners in more than 24 countries, Harald speaks from experience. He has been personally involved in setting up channels in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa. He has worked with clients of all sizes, from small start-ups to industry giants such as Microsoft, Dell and Intuit.

Microsoft Dynamics: Overview

Tue, 13 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In this web seminar you will learn:
o Microsoft Dynamics™ Overview and Ecosystem
o Growth Strategy - Build horizontal functionality and extend vertically thru ISVs
o Why we need Dynamics ISVs
o Why ISVs partner with Microsoft Dynamics™
o MSPP + Business support to Microsoft Dynamics™ ISVs

Software Plus Services: an Overview for ISV’s

Tue, 13 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The Microsoft Software-Plus-Services model blends locally installed, full-package software with Internet-delivered or hosted applications. The idea? Augment organizations’ on-premise software investments with components, add-on technologies, and complete applications—hosted by you, or Microsoft. Join us to learn more about:
1. What is Microsoft’s Software + Services (S+S) platform strategy?
2. What impact this has on technology and business models?
3. Why S+ S is an additive model to SaaS, SOA and Web2.0?
4. What new opportunities does the platform shift mean for software developers and architects?
5. Examples of companies using this new paradigm to grow their business.

Inside Secrets for Using Blogs Effectively in Your Marketing Mix

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Inside Secrets for Using Blogs Effectively in Your Marketing Mix.

Blogging goes far beyond just typing up a post and pressing "publish." There's an etiquette to what you post, a few unwritten rules to how you post it, and plenty of ways to improve on the impact your blog makes on the community overall. This isn't a place to post press releases. It's a chance for conversations. A blog isn't your only place on the web. It's where you start before reaching out and engaging others to build relationships and potential customers.

Learn seven first moves for blogging that will separate you from the junk pile. Explore how to be a good blogging "citizen," and learn which landmines to avoid. Understand how to get your blog noticed by more people, and how to turn those interactions into potential pipelines for expanding your reach.

We'll discuss the specifics of blogging, from starter moves to some expert tips that will improve the impact your blogging has on building a community experience. You'll learn how to "listen" to other blogs, and understand how you might respond to what you get out there. We'll cover a simple blogging policy for your workspace, understanding that if companies as large and as public as Microsoft can do it, you can too.

You Will Learn:

• Blogging basics, including storytelling, promoting comments, and some technology factors to consider.

• Expert tips on how to grow your readership, extend your network, and collaborate your way into more fulfilling online experiences.

• A simple corporate blogging policy.

• The art of bank-shot conversational marketing.

• Five land-mines and how to avoid them.

Presenters: Chris Brogan - creation (blogging, podcasting, videoblogging) as well as social media community building (through sites like Facebook, Ning, Twitter, and others), his strength is in connecting passionate people together for business, collaboration, and networking.

Chris’s current role is providing information and services to business customers around their Technology and Social Media needs. His focus is on technologies like virtualization, unified communications, social media strategies, content management, data warehouse technologies, and more. He shows businesses how to reduce operating expenses, improve workflow, simplify
Chris Brogan uses social media and technology to build digital relationships for businesses, organizations, and individuals. He has merged his experience in technology (enterprise IT and wireless telephony) with his passion for social media, such that he’s showing organizations how to use these tools inside the firewall, as well as to build authentic conversations between coworkers, customers, and even competitors.

Chris blogs, writes articles, and makes media of all kinds at [chrisbrogan.com]. Skilled in new media creation (blogging, podcasting, videoblogging) as well as social media community building (through sites like Facebook, Ning, Twitter, and others), his strength is in connecting passionate people together for business, collaboration, and networking.

Additional Presenter - Joelle Thompson - Partner Marketing Manager

Solving for Commerce Complexity

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
With a solid understanding of payments basics and knowledge of payment security requirements, it is now time to capture this new business opportunity. Learn how, leveraging Microsoft .Net technology, a developer can both solve for payment complexity and security with ease. Quickly, simply, and securely meet your customer’s needs.

Commerce Security Fundamentals

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Learn about critical new Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS) compliance that impact every merchant and how software solutions that meet Payment Applications Best Practice (PABP) standards can help achieve compliance mandates. This webinar will advise ensure you understand:

- How small businesses are impacted by security standards

- How developers can support compliance requirements and capture new revenue opportunities

- How to create clear differentiation from competitors

Understanding Electronic Commerce

Fri, 9 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Your customers are demanding new ways to accept payments. Do you understand the difference between credit card transactions (including debit and EBT) and ACH transactions? What about check conversion flows and gift vs. loyalty programs? Join us for an overview of the payments industry including a discussion of payment methods, major players, and what you need to know to develop the proper solution for your customer.

Best Practices for Supporting & Managing Your Partners

Fri, 28 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Build a Successful Channel

Best Practices for Supporting & Managing Your Partners

During this session you will learn best practices for:
• Managing channel conflict
• Creating MDF programs
• Developing sales programs and incentives
• Partner portals
• Reporting and performance reviews
• Developing a 12-month Channel Development Action Plan

Presenter: Harald Horgen

Best Practices in Building a Successful Channel Development Business Plan

Fri, 28 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Build a Successful Channel

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Continuing our series on Windows Vista: One Year Later, this session will focus on the myths that have been propagated in the marketplace regarding Windows Vista. As an ISV, Windows Vista is critical to your successful development and sale of applications and this seminar should put your mind at ease regarding said myths.

Silverlight: Technical Drill-down

Fri, 18 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
Silverlight 2.0, released in Beta 1 format this past March, represents a major update to the Silverlight technology. In this Web seminar (first in a series of four), you will learn about how Silverlight 2.0 works from an architectural and technical perspective. You will examine the new Silverlight project templates in Visual Studio 2008 to see exactly how the various components fit together and how Silverlight applications are deployed to end users.

Best Practices in Building a Pipeline of Channel Partner Prospects

Fri, 28 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Build a Successful Channel

Best Practices in Building a Pipeline of Channel Partner Prospects

Presenter: Harald Horgen

Windows Vista: Where Are We Now

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

A year has gone by on Windows Vista and much has changed. Join us on this ISV centered web seminar series as we discuss where Vista stands now in the marketplace and what sort of things have changed. This first in the series will cover at a broad level what you as an ISV should know about Vista.

Leveraging the Power of the Microsoft Platform

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar wraps up the series with a look at how the entire Microsoft platform can be used to solve business problems. A variety of business issues will be addressed, including sales and marketing, customer service, product/consumer research, worker productivity, and teams and collaboration.

SQL Server 2008 and MySQL Technical Comparison

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
When making a database management system decision, many organizations focus on key attributes, such as support and partner ecosystem, performance and scalability, security and total cost of ownership (TCO). This one hour technical Webcast will discuss how SQL Server 2008 compares to MySQL in these areas, focusing on the following topics:
• Feature comparison
• Licensing
• Security
• Performance and Scalability
• Support

SQL Server 2008: Occasionally Connected Systems

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Microsoft Sync Framework is a comprehensive synchronization platform that enables collaboration and offline access for applications, services and devices. It features technologies and tools that enable roaming, sharing, and taking data offline. Using Microsoft Sync Framework, developers can build sync ecosystems that integrate any application, with any data from any store using any protocol over any network. This one hour session will cover the following topics:

· Occasionally Connected System Designs

· SQL Server Compact Edition 3.5

o Programming - SqlResultSet and DataSet

o LINQ and future EDM Support

· Server-Directed Synchronization

· Sync Services

· Using Sync Services with SQL Server 2008

Managing Data: Choosing a Database Vendor

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Managing your data wisely is an important part of any application. This Web seminar will introduce the basics of relational databases and the hardware and software that support them. The seminar will introduce the major players in the database market and what differentiates their products, and provide a discussion of the various storage options.

Health Modeling and MP generation for LOB applications with the TSMMD

Thu, 13 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

You may be using System Center Operations Manager 2007 to monitor your environment, but what about your LOB applications? Did you know you there are now tools available to help your Architects, Developers and IT Pros build Highly Manageable Applications that can be monitored by Operations Manager? In this Chalk & Talk, find out about the new Team System Management Model Designer and ask all your questions about the tools and how customers are building highly manageable applications for Windows quickly and easily.

SQL Server 2008: .NET Code In SQL Server

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The ability to deploy managed code to SQL server is a very powerful feature. It allows you to utilize the .NET framework library for procedures, triggers, functions, UDF’s, and aggregates within the SQL engine. This one hour seminar will highlight the following topics:

· SQLCLR Reliability, Scalability, and Security

· Assemblies

· Functions, Procedures, and Triggers

· User-Defined Types and Aggregates

· T-SQL to SQLCLR Mapping

o Data Types and Nullability

o Parameter Types and Direction

· SQLCLR Best Practices

o When T-SQL is Preferred

o When SQLCLR is Preferred

Best Practices in Growing Your Business through Channels

Wed, 9 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Build a Successful Channel

Best Practices in Growing Your Business through Channels

During this session you will learn best practices for:

• Why most resellers don’t actively sell the products they represent
• How to become a strategic product for your reseller partners
• Channel basics: key strategic and policy decisions you need to make
• The essential steps in recruiting productive partners
• Elements of a win-win partner agreement

Presenter: Harald Horgen

The Core OS: A Brief Comparison of Windows, Unix and Linux

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This Web seminar covers the basic options for operating systems for hardware devices from mobile to mainframe. Although particular attention will be paid to Microsoft's Windows platform, the seminar will also cover other options including Unix and Linux.

SQL Server 2008: Service Broker And Messaging

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

SQL Server Service Broker provides the SQL Server Database Engine native support for messaging and queuing applications. This makes it easier for developers to create sophisticated applications that use the Database Engine components to communicate between disparate databases. Developers can use Service Broker to easily build distributed and reliable applications. The following topics will be covered in this one hour session:

· Service Broker and Application Design Patterns

· Service Broker Application Construction

o Queues, Services, Message Types, and Contracts

o Networking, Routing, and Network Identity

o Priority

· Service Broker Programming

o Conversations and Conversation Groups

o Internal and External Activation

· Best Practices

SQL Server 2008: Beyond Relational

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

As the data your applications work with changes from "words and numbers" to "sights and sounds," we are evolving our data platform to go beyond relational data, beyond online analytical processing (OLAP), to truly support all of the digital data types of the future. We strive to deliver the best platform for integrated storage and advanced applications, such as spatial data. We also make it dramatically easier for you to build data-driven applications, without needing to invest significant resources to bridge the gap between data and programming language data structures. Join this webcast to learn about the new enhancements in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 that can help you manage all types of data. Topics covered are:

· Spatial Data

· Filestream Data Storage

· XML Data and Query

· Hierarchies and HierarchyID

· Sparse Data Designs

o Sparse Columns

o Filtered Indexes

o Filtered Statistics

Architecting Your Solution to Solve Your Customer’s Business Problem

Wed, 2 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

This is the first in a series of five seminars that will inform business and technical decision makers about Microsoft platform offerings for small, medium and large business enterprises. This seminar covers a wide range of products, from mobile devices to servers, and explains the need for product integration and the options for achieving it.

SQL Server 2008: TSQL Improvements And Data Types

Tue, 22 Apr 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

SQL Server 2008 introduces a number of T-SQL enhancements and new data types. This one hour sessions will cover new exciting features such as:

· New Date and Time Data Types

· Table-Valued Parameters

· T-SQL Assign and Increment Operators

· Row Constructors

· Grouping Sets

Cloud Computing: Web 2.0 Overview

Thu, 13 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Web 2.0 represents a new set of approaches to Web application design. In this Web seminar you will learn what "Web 2.0" really means and how you can use Microsoft's Web platform to build exciting new types of applications.

Top Strategies for B2B Paid Search

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Top Strategies for B2B Paid Search

Paid search offers specific advantages to marketers that are difficult to find in other channels:

1. The ability to meet customers on their terms (ie: when they’re searching for what you’re selling)
2. The data to attribute specific results (eg: orders, leads, etc) to the specific costs of that meeting

This seminar will provide you with basic and intermediate tactics for using these advantages to manage an efficient paid search program that targets your B2B customers. You’ll learn strategies to understand your specific paid search economics. We’ll take a hands-on approach by way of real life examples and case studies.

To help get the most out of your PPC program, you’ll learn:

• Developing a comprehensive keyword list that targets your B2B customers
• Managing match types for economic efficiency
• Writing effective ad copy that targets qualified B2B clicks
• Testing landing pages for optimal conversion
• Understanding and managing YOUR PPC economics:
o Brand vs. non-brand
o Order latency
o Using PPC for effective lead generation
o Using post-sale feedback loops
o Interaction between online and off-line channels
• Tips to get the most out of your in-house analysis

Presenter: Ryan Gibson - Director of Marketing for the Rimm-Kaufman Group

Ryan Gibson is the Director of Marketing for The Rimm-Kaufman Group. At RKG, Ryan has optimized multi-million dollar PPC programs for both B-to-B and B-to-C retailers. Prior to joining RKG, Ryan worked at Capital One, where he was responsible for managing and improving work flow processes.

Ryan has presented at industry conferences and he guest lectures on paid search at the University of Virginia McIntire School of Commerce and the James Madison University School of Business. He writes at www.rkgblog.com.
Ryan Gibson is the Director of Marketing for The Rimm-Kaufman Group. At RKG, Ryan has optimized multi-million dollar PPC programs for both B-to-B and B-to-C retailers. Prior to joining RKG, Ryan worked at Capital One, where he was responsible for managing and improving work flow processes.

SQL Server 2008: Implementing Change Data Capture (CDC)

Wed, 5 Mar 2008

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

At a very basic level, there are two parts to marketing and selling:

Getting the target customer to buy something
Getting the target customer to buy something else

Classic marketing and sales tend to focus on selling what is in the current catalog. Unfortunately, customers are more concerned with having their needs met and becoming satisfied customers. This mismatch—sellers selling what they have and customers wanting what they want—can be easily overcome by right-selling, which comes in two flavors:

Upselling is where you entice the customer to buy a higher-value item than initially discussed. Example: The customer asks for a four-cylinder car, and the salesperson moves the customer up to a V8 for the additional power.

Cross-selling is where you sell complementary items to the customer based on the initial purchase. Example: The customer buys a car insurance policy online, and marketing’s structure of the Web site gets the customer to buy a homeowner’s policy at the same time.

Done incorrectly, either activity is viewed as manipulative, coercive or the “hard sell”; customers resent it. Obviously, it is imperative that both marketing and sales avoid this.

Done correctly, however, magical things happen. By correctly identifying what the customer really wants to buy—more power or better coverage in the above examples —and then providing it, you optimize revenues and provide better customer satisfaction. Neat deal, huh?

You will learn:

How to build a marketing campaign that helps the customer identify the optimum value he or she desires
How salespeople can help their customers buy just what they want—and leave satisfied
Techniques for speaking in the customer’s language
Ways to integrate marketing and sales to optimize revenues ... and customer satisfaction
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

Presenters:

Jeff Krawitz, Principal at Customer Manufacturing Group

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15809

In this last of our 3-part series on the new Works with Windows Server® 2008 program, we will take you step-by-step through the process of achieving the ”Works with” designation for your applications. This will include coverage on getting started all the way through submission and certification. This seminar will help in making the overall process as smooth as possible.

Presenter: Michael Davis - With IT Mentors

Presenter Bio: Michael Davis is one of the technical trainers for Microsoft and an Instructor with IT Mentors, a high-end, custom training and curriculum and development company. He participates in the company’s mission which is to help organizations understand and apply Microsoft technology for business advantage.

Mike has over a decade of experience in development of custom software and solutions. As a developer, Mike has experience in ASP, SQL Server, and .NET technologies, and has avidly been following the progression of the technology family from the 1990s – his clients include fortune 500 companies in the financial and entertainment verticals. As a trainer for IT Mentors, Mike has trained Microsoft’s LAR, VAR, and Disti Network on product launches on products such as SQL Server, Dev Tools, Server Family, Forefront, and System Center.

Windows Server: Works with Windows Server 2008 Logo Tools

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15848

Part 2 in this seminar series on the new Works with Windows Server® 2008 program will cover the tools that have been made available to help validate and test your applications. We will give examples of how to use the Works with Tool for Windows Server® 2008 and the Windows System State Analyzer Tool. Using these tools, you can figure out which pieces of your application (installation, primary functionality, drivers, etc.) do not meet baseline compatibility in order to help ultimately validate your application and demonstrate to customers that your application is ready for Windows Server 2008.

Presenter: Michael Davis - With IT Mentors

Windows Server: Works with Windows Server 2008 Logo Program Overview

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15847

This seminar will provide a comprehensive introduction to the new Works with Windows Server® 2008 logo program. This program helps developers and customers ensure that applications meet the baseline technical bar for compatibility with Windows Server 2008. The Works with Windows Server® 2008 program is an extremely affordable and valuable designation intended for commodity workload applications. It includes independent validation of test results—as well as extensive marketing benefits for participants. Best of all, the Works with Windows Server® 2008 designation proves to customers that your application is compatible with the new platform.

Presenter: Michael Davis - With IT Mentors

Microsoft Expression: for Designers (4/4): Silverlight

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In part 4 of our series we will focus on Silverlight, and see how this emerging Microsoft content delivery technology opens a whole new world to designers. Through lecture and hands-on demonstrations, this 1 hr. session will take you through the creation of a Silverlight application, and show designers how to use the Expression suite to interface with developers in an effective workflow.

Presenter: Joshua Eklund

Microsoft Expression: for Designers (3/4): Expression Blend

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In part 3 of our series we will dive into Expression Design. We will begin by comparing and contrasting several of the tools and functions in Expression Design and Expression Blend. Many people perceive an overlap in functionality between several aspects of these two very different tools. Through lecture and hands-on demonstrations, this 1 hr. session will demystify where Design ends and Blend begins, and help users understand when to use one versus the other.

Presenter: Joshua Eklund

Microsoft Technologies Available for Licensing Today

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 16016
Cutting-Edge Technologies Available for Licensing. Microsoft Intellectual Property (IP) Licensing and IP Ventures are part of a newer group in Microsoft that offers access to Microsoft technologies including component source code, protocols, standards, and file formats.

Microsoft Expression: for Designers (2/4): Expression Design

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

In part 2 of our series we focus on Expression Design. This vector-based content creation tool is a powerful addition to the designer’s arsenal. Through lecture and hands-on demonstrations, this 1 hr. session will show how to create graphics in Expression Design and export them as bitmaps or XAML based vectors for use in desktop and web-based applications.

Presenter: Joshua Eklund

Microsoft Expression: for Designers (1/4): Expression Suite

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
The Microsoft Expression Studio offers a complete, fully integrated set of technologies that allow users to design and develop rich, immersive desktop and web based applications. Through lecture and hands-on demonstrations, this 1 hr. session will give the user a firm understanding how these tools work together to empower designers.

Presenter: Joshua Eklund

ISA Server 2006: Positioning ForeFront Edge Security against the competition, Powered by TS2

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15960
This webcast will provide a competitive strategy for ForeFront Edge Security (ISA Server 2006)

Web 2.0 Marketing: What's Real and What's Hype in the Social Media

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
Social media is much more than using a few of the newest technology tools and some Internet wizardry to improve your marketing. It’s a formidable tear in the very fabric of your market presence, a movement afoot in your customer base. It’s causing B2B companies worldwide to rethink their go-to-market strategies.

Or maybe it’s just a lot of hype! Do you really need to get up to speed on blogging, podcasting, video streaming, social networks, wikis, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) and the rest?

Web strategist Jeremiah Owyang will give an overview of the many different tools in today’s social media tool chest. You’ll see examples of how some B2B marketers have used Web 2.0 tools to face some very real marketing challenges. You’ll leave with an understanding of the strategy, tactics, tools, techniques and measurements you need to establish as you venture into the world of social media.

You will learn:

The latest sites, hottest tools and emerging concepts
An overview of the changes and what you should know
Practical case studies
How to get started with a limited budget
Doing it right, doing it wrong and being irrelevant
Which tools you should focus on first to enhance your existing programs
How to measure your effectiveness
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

Presenter: Jeremiah Owyang is a social media analyst for Forrester Research. In his previous role as corporate media strategy director at PodTech.net, he consulted for Fortune 1000 companies. Before PodTech, Owyang was responsible for the strategy and development of corporate Web programs at Hitachi Data Systems, Exodus Communications, Cable and Wireless and World Savings (now Wachovia). Owyang has lead social media programs connecting customers using blogs, forums, wikis, RSS and podcasts. He writes a daily blog, contributes articles to MarketingProfs and speaks at conferences about Web and media strategy.

Microsoft Expression: Microsoft Web Solutions Series (4/4): Designer/Developer Collaboration

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

The creation of a Web-based application is a collaborative effort, requiring the skills of both Web designers and Web developers. Traditionally, designers and developers have used a completely different set of tools – and too often this discrepancy results in miscommunication and delays.

In this Web seminar you will become familiar with Microsoft’s Expression tools, and how they offer a modern approach to Web site development. You will also see how eXtensible Application Markup Language (XAML) is used to tie everything together.

Presenter: Bill Lodin is Vice-President of IT Mentors, a high-end, custom training and curriculum and development company. Bill has a diverse and well-rounded background in Microsoft programming as well as competitive technologies. His experience set includes C#, ASP.NET, VB.NET, Java, J2EE, WebSphere, and WebLogic. This background allows him to give an objective, real-world perspective about the practical application of programming technologies in the business environment. Bill’s real-world experience comes from his work on applications development projects in the financial services industry. In addition to being an instructor, Bill is the author of several training courses on .NET and Java programming and portal technologies. Bill holds his MCSD.NET certification as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from UCLA.

Microsoft Dynamics: Introduction to Microsoft Dynamics

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15844
This session will provide a brief background to Microsoft’s investments in building an ERP platform with Microsoft Dynamics.

Windows Live and Silverlight: Microsoft Web Solutions Series (3/4): Windows Live and Silverlight

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Web sites continue to evolve, and technologies must evolve to keep pace. In this Web seminar you will learn about two technologies that are on the near horizon – Windows Live and Silverlight 2.0.

In addition to its current offerings, Windows Live will soon provide tools that allow developers to leverage Internet-based services such as search, calendaring and online storage. Silverlight 2.0 is the next release of Microsoft’s exciting Web technology. Building on Silverlight 1.0, the upcoming 2.0 release adds a client-side .NET runtime and a host of technical enhancements.

ASP.NET & AJAX: Microsoft Web Solutions Series (2/4): Architecting Web Applications

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

As Web applications get larger and more feature-laden they tend to get more complex. Fortunately, Microsoft provides several technologies specifically designed to simplify the creation of interactive Web sites.

In this Web seminar you will learn about two ASP.NET technologies – the new ASP.NET MVC Framework and ASP.NET AJAX. The ASP.NET MVC (model-view-controller) Framework provides a flexible structure for architecting Web applications in which concerns such as presentation code and business logic are kept separate. ASP.NET AJAX provides controls which use client-side JavaScript to enable richer, more interactive and user-friendly Web sites.

Visual Studio 2008: Microsoft Web Solutions Series (1/4): Web Development on the Microsoft Platform

Mon, 17 Mar 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

With each passing year, users expect more and more from the Web-based applications they use. Microsoft is constantly working on new technologies and supporting tools to enable Web developers to satisfy this demand. In this Web seminar you will learn about the “big picture” of Web development on the Microsoft platform. Topics include the new ASP.NET MVC Framework, ASP.NET AJAX, Silverlight 2.0, Windows Live and of course developing with Visual Studio 2008. The session is geared towards technical and business decision makers and also serves as an introduction to a four-part Web seminar series focusing on the technical and business value of Microsoft’s Web technologies.

Web 1.0 Marketing: How to Make Your Landing Pages Hit, Not Miss

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

You spend good money buying clicks. Since every click leads to a landing experience—someone clicks on your ad or email link, they land somewhere—you're really spending that money on generating paid landing experiences. Given that realization, how do you maximize landing experiences, with the quantitative goal of increasing conversions and the qualitative goal of building your brand?

If you're already using landing pages, this seminar will present a compelling case for thinking of them as landing experiences, and discuss why and how you should think outside of that box. With a combination of theoretical frameworks and on-the-ground tactics, we'll show you new ways to energize your post-click marketing to achieve absolutely envious conversion rates.

You will learn:

Seven drivers of post-click marketing strategy, including Long Tail dynamics and online branding.
Taxonomy of different landing experiences, from one-shot landing pages to conversion paths and microsites.
Three good things about landing pages that should generally apply to all landing experiences.
Three bad things about landing pages that you should avoid.
Three "heretical" ideas about landing pages.
How signaling and segmentation counters the myth of Zipf's law in online marketing.
Why freeform A/B testing can outperform MVT in landing experience optimization (with apologies to Google's Website Optimizer -- please don't kill our quality score).
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

Several key shifts bode well for proprietary shows: the move to consultative selling, higher-level executive targeting, vertical segmenting and changing channel strategies. And corporate objectives that lend themselves very well to private events are really fueling the growth: deeper product knowledge for potential and existing customers, and increased business opportunities from potential and existing customers.

To achieve these objectives, simply leverage Microsoft Partner Program resources and implement high-impact, systematic proven processes for success. This seminar will take you through the specific steps to success by sharing simple, proven practices and winning case studies from Microsoft Partners just like you.

You will learn proven tips and tricks for:

Creating exciting agendas that encourage attendance and foster interacting and learning about problem-solving solutions
Selecting the best venue, date, time and incentives for your event
Implementing proven outreach strategies that yield highly qualified registrations and low attendee drop-off rates
Stimulating peer-to-peer interaction and fostering a discussion environment for customer problem-solving solutions
Partnering with complementary Microsoft Partners to increase event attendance and enhance the attendees’ learning experience
Capturing the best audience and deepening the discussion
Successful follow-up, relationship building and converting attendees into loyal customers

We will also discuss our lessons learned working with Microsoft and Microsoft Certified Partners and Microsoft Partner Program resources and other shortcuts you can use to create quick, marketing messages and some tools you can start using immediately to generate highly qualified registrations and reduce attendance drop-off rates. These tools are easy to use and implement in a very short amount of time.

You will learn:

How to motivate your staff; inspire your prospects, customers and channel partners; and position your user-group meetings or client conferences successfully
How other partners use events to drive sales and enhance customer service
How to leverage Microsoft Partner Program tools to enhance your success
How to use shortcuts to create quick marketing messages and about tools you can use immediately to generate highly qualified registrations and reduce attendance drop-off rates
The importance of creating stimulating peer-to-peer interaction and fostering a discussion environment for customer problem-solving solutions
Effective strategies for follow-up, relationship building and converting attendees into loyal customers
Proven, simple strategies and lessons learned for success
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

SQL: What’s new in SQL Server 2008 for Database Administrators

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

SQL: Working with the new DATE data type in SQL Server 2008

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Office Systems: Microsoft Excel 2007 Pivot Tables and Analysis Services

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID: 1032347494
After completing this lab, you will be better able to: Create new OLAP PivotTable Learn Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Learn Server-defined formatting Learn Actions Learn Member properties Learn Perspectives Learn Workbook Connections Learn OLAP Formula Auto-Complete Convert Pivot Table to Formulas

Business Intelligence: Building Analytic Applications with ProClarity

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID: 1032347494
After completing this lab, you will be better able to: Facilitate Business Performance Monitoring with the ProClarity Dashboard Use the ProClarity Analytics Server to Analyze Results Produced in the Dashboard Facilitate Unstructured Analysis of Data with ProClarity Professional Use ProClarity to Share Analysis and Extend Collaboration

SQL: Building Integrated BI Solutions Leveraging SQL Server 2005 and 2007 Office System Servers

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Virtual Lab
Course ID: 1032347497
After completing this lab, you will be better able to: Successfully created a SharePoint site Add a SharePoint site as a trusted site in Excel Services Create a Report in Excel Populate reports with data from a cube Store your connection and your workbook in SharePoint Libraries Publish a chart and a workbook Create a dashboard and populate it with your chart and KPI’s based on the data in your report

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:
Times have changed. Over the past several years the search engines have made significant changes to the rankings and quality algorithms. They’ve launched dozens of new services, tools and Web sites. And they have evolved their business models. Their stock prices pay homage to that fact.

Have you been keeping up? Do the search engines still love your Web site as much as they did several years ago? Or have they found a new love?

Your site can win back favor, once you understand what the search engines are looking for. Granted, much has changed in search engine optimization (SEO), but many of the tried-and-true SEO tactics still work. In fact, they work quite effectively. Some new tactics have emerged. So have new hazards, due in large part to new, sophisticated types of search engine spam. The search engines, of course, have adapted their algorithms to compensate.

You will learn:

What the search engines are looking for from a Web site and what makes them tick
The varying ways of getting visibility among the search engines
How to ensure 100% of your site is indexed
How to design your pages to dominate rankings
How to optimize your page copy
How to track your results and ROI
Where Web 2.0 fits in
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 15073
This Web seminar will dive into the quality improvements included in Windows Vista ® Service Pack 1. These include security, reliability, and performance. Quality improvements have the broadest impact on all customers.

How Much Should You Spend on Marketing?

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 14692
In this seminar, we’ll deal with some of the most common questions asked by entrepreneurs and small business marketers: How much should we spend on marketing? Is it a percentage of sales? How do we get benchmarks for our industry? How do we know if we’re over-spending, under-spending, or right on the money?

Michael Goodman, a veteran marketing consultant and one of the top experts from the MarketingProfs discussion forum, will share his experience from a range of industries, categories and businesses that have grappled with these questions.

He’ll also share a simple way to track and measure the effectiveness of some common marketing mix elements, and discuss the pros and cons of using a formal marketing ROI approach for each marketing mix element. As always, he’ll share specific examples and case studies from real companies that have had to determine how to set and spend their marketing budgets for maximum effectiveness.

You will learn:

How much a small business should spend on marketing
How to determine which marketing mix elements to emphasize
Whether each marketing mix element must payout
When to estimate the marketing ROI, and when it’s more trouble than it’s worth
A simple way to measure the effectiveness of key marketing activities
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

Why clients resist giving referrals and what you can do about it
The four pillars of a quality referral and why each must be addressed with your client
Why it is in your client’s best interest to give you referrals
How to build a relationship with your client that generates quality referrals
How to get quality referrals from clients who don’t think they have any referrals for you
Why you should never just pick up the phone and call a referred prospect
How to keep getting quality referrals from each of your clients
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

How to communicate your plans and results in a language the CFO will understand
A simple yardstick to determine and communicate the value of marketing
The value of lead management and qualification
How to develop an objectives-based marketing budget
How to turn your marketing into an asset instead of an expense
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

How to plan an integrated, multi-touch campaign
How to map your marketing process to your customers’ buying process
The strengths, weaknesses and best applications of business media
How to determine where to invest your next dollar
How to develop an effective contact strategy
Measurement strategies for multi-touch campaigns
How to take advantage of Microsoft Ready-to-Go Campaigns, a simple, relevant and effective benefit of your partner program membership

"Our site needs changing so much. This is great information to help me get off the square of One!. I hope to be able to make a priority list soon and get started."

If your website isn’t generating enough leads and sales for your company, you can’t afford to miss this session.

By attending, you’ll learn how to get your website found when people are searching for companies, products or services like yours. And you’ll learn the keys to turning more of your website visitors into the leads and sales you need to grow your company, revenue and profits.

Your presenter (back by popular demand) will be M. H. “Mac” McIntosh. Mac is considered one of North America’s leading software and IT services marketing consultants and an expert on using marketing to generate leads and sales. Mac has been working with Microsoft and its Partners for years, so he understands our business and really knows what works and what doesn’t.

Office System: Office Business Applications and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13828
Microsoft® Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007 provides a complete server-side solution for building Office Business Applications. In this Web seminar you will learn about the business functionality provided by MOSS, InfoPath Forms Services and Excel Services.

Powerful Techniques for Trade Show Marketing

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13936
Trade shows and events can be a hugely productive part of business-to-business marketing toolkit, but only if you apply them to their best advantage. In fact, if you do not pay attention to both the strategies and the tactical details, you can easily waste a large portion of your marketing budget.

This seminar will show you how to think about trade shows and events and provide specific tips on event planning, execution and follow-up. It will begin with your budget and cover event selection, booth details and techniques for ensuring that you meet with the right people once you’re there. As a special bonus, you'll learn several clever ways to take advantage of a trade show without spending money on exhibiting or sponsorships.

Using examples from HP, IBM, Northrop Grumman, Fairchild Semiconductor, King Industries and others, this seminar will help you understand ways to get the most value from trade show marketing.

You Will Learn:

How to set the right objectives, with specific, realistic metrics
How to select the event or trade show that will give you the best results
Booth strategies: design, signage, staffing
The secret weapon: pre-show promotion and post-show follow-up
The 5 best trade show marketing measurement tools, and when to use them
The top mistakes trade show marketers make, and how you can avoid them
3 case studies on what works and what doesn't

Office System: Workflow and the 2007 Microsoft Office System

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13827
Windows Workflow Foundation is a new platform for building workflow-enabled applications on Windows. In this Web seminar you will learn how it has been integrated directly into the 2007 Microsoft Office system, and how you can use this integration as an extensibility point in your own Microsoft® Office 2007-based solutions.

Office System: The Power of Microsoft Office Open XML

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13826
The 2007 Microsoft® Office system defines a new set of XML-based file formats for Word, PowerPoint and Excel. In this Web seminar you will learn how to leverage these formats – you will see how easy it is to programmatically access, assemble, generate and process documents using .NET code.

How to use live and web events to drive your business

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13689

This session is chock-full of ideas, tips and proven techniques that will help you maximize your leads and generate more new business with live or web events including seminars, workshops, breakfast briefings, lunch-and-learns and executive roundtable events.

By attending, you’ll learn which kinds of events work best depending on your prospective customers’ roles in the decision process and the stage of their buying cycle. You’ll also learn how to plan and market your event to boost attendance and maximize the sales opportunities that result.

Office System: Creating Office Business Applications with VSTO

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13825
Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) allows you to create dynamic, Office-client applications using .NET and Visual Studio. In this Web seminar you will learn how to use VSTO to create ribbons, custom task panes and Outlook form regions.

Office System: Understanding Office Business Applications (OBAs)

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13539
The ultimate objective of the Unified Communications 4-part Web seminar series is to help you, as a Microsoft ISV partner, to find new ways to grow your business and make it more profitable.

Office System: Office Communications Server and Communicator for ISVs

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13538
The ultimate objective of the Unified Communications 4-part Web seminar series is to help you, as a Microsoft ISV partner, to find new ways to grow your business and make it more profitable.

How to use direct mail and email to cost-effectively produce more sales-ready leads

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13687

If done right, direct mail and email can be very effective tools for prospecting, building relationships and generating sales-ready leads for Microsoft Partners.

Attend this session to learn how to do it right without spending a fortune on costly trial-and-error approaches. By attending, you’ll learn which direct-mail and email marketing strategies and tactics work best today for finding those bigger deals, shortening your sales cycles and driving your company’s growth and profits.

Office System: Introduction to Unified Communications Architecture

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13537
The ultimate objective of the Unified Communications 4-part Web seminar series is to help you, as a Microsoft ISV partner, to find new ways to grow your business and make it more profitable.

How to use marketing to drive leads and sales

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 13686

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 4942
In direct marketing, it is often said that a dynamic offer can succeed even if your copy and creative are weak. But you cannot stop at the offer alone. The offer is tightly tied to the Call-to-Action, which tells your prospect or customer exactly what you want them to do, and how to get what you are offering.

In this online seminar, you will learn how to develop an offer strategy based on different marketing objectives and how to match that strategy to multiple target audience segments. We will examine the differences between lead generation vs. direct sales offers so you can apply the right offer to your selling environment. We will discuss how offers work the same and differently in B2B vs. B2C so you can translate your personal experience as a consumer to your company’s B2B environment. And we will determine the best offers for your B2B targets. Through sample communications, we will demystify successful offers that worked and share several in-market examples of offers that did not succeed.

You will learn:

The most successful B2B offers
The role of your call to action
Short- and long-term effects of offers
When to use hard vs. soft offers, and why
How to determine the "value" of an offer to your audience
Ten key factors to consider when creating an offer
When to include "freemiums," premiums and sweepstakes
How to match your response vehicles to your campaign objectives
How to determine what to test and how to read offer test results

The different types of B2B data sources—what they are, where to get them and how they vary
How to identify good sources for internal data—from across your entire organization
Internal vs. external databases—how to make the right decision for your organization
File structures and system platforms—why and when to use different database structures
Data maintenance practices and schedules—what is involved in keeping data current
Database marketing applications—what’s really working for business marketers

12 Direct Marketing Campaigns Up Close

Fri, 22 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 4704
Are you wondering how to craft the highest impact communications for business and consumer audiences? If so, don't miss this clinic. A direct marketing expert will comment on a dozen marketing campaigns submitted by Microsoft ISVs. Campaigns include letters, postcards and dimensional mail, and email (solo email and electronic newsletters). Ruth will show you the samples, discuss the campaign strategy and background, and then analyze the effectiveness in terms of copy and design. You will have a complete picture of what worked, what didn't and why.
You will learn:

The fundamental principles of direct marketing creative strategy
The essential "rules" of consumer response from decades of testing
Secrets for winning headlines, body copy and letter formats
New rules for migrating the direct marketing message from letters to email
What works and what doesn't from a dozen current campaigns, and insight into where they are successful, and where they still need work.

How to create sales collateral customers will want to read, keep and share
How to develop credible case studies in three easy steps
How to craft compelling headlines for brochures, articles and press releases
How to source story ideas from non-marketers in your organization
Simple article formulas even non-writers can master

About the presenter: Jonathan Kranz is a senior contributor at MarketingProfs and author of Writing Copy for Dummies. He writes advertising, direct marketing and public relations materials for clients in a wide variety of industries. Among his long list of B2B clients are: American Express, Cisco, Dell Computer, Groove Networks, Intuit, Pitney Bowes, NCR and Surebridge. Jonathan has taught writing courses at Harvard University Extension School, Emerson College and Northeastern University. He is also a senior contributor at MarketingProfs (www.marketingprofs.com)

This seminar is designed for partners with an intermediate level of marketing knowledge and experience. This means you regularly conduct proactive marketing campaigns rather than relying solely on referrals and word-of-mouth for new business. Please attend this seminar to gain more expertise in creating content that builds business.

Windows Vista: User Experience

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 4870
Windows Vista promises a compelling, breakthrough user experience. In this Web seminar we will explore the user interface changes and enhancements, including the new Aero UI and the addition of the Windows Sidebar.

ABC’s for ISVs who want to Innovate with Microsoft

Thu, 21 Feb 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 4737
This one hour ‘Interactive Webcast’ will provide Independent Software Vendors with information on how to effectively partner with Microsoft in order to more efficiently utilize the resources available to partner ISVs to create innovative solutions built on exciting, emerging technologies. Participants will learn how to traverse the Microsoft Partner Program and discover a large array of resources that they can utilize to move their development projects forward. Finally, ISVs will learn first-hand about the new InnovateOn portal: a groundbreaking environment that will assist ISVs with their application development on several technologies! The webcast will combine both traditional presentation and interactive Q&A to ensure that you get the information you are looking for.

Lead Generation, Qualification and Tracking

Mon, 5 May 2008

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID:

Sales people are more productive when they are standing in front of qualified prospects. So how do you provide them with the kind of leads that will increase their productivity by 200% or more? Using real-world examples from companies like yours, this seminar reviews the process of lead generation campaign planning and execution, and then focuses on how to qualify and nurture inquiries and convert them to the kinds of leads that sales people love. Finally, you will learn how to track the leads to closure and connect the revenue back to the specific campaign.

You will learn:

To calculate the number of leads required to meet your sales goals
To fill your pipeline with the right volume of qualified buyers
To make sure the leads you provide are the kind sales will close
To convert 200% more inquiries to leads by instituting a nurturing program
To identify your best options for tracking sales back to specific campaigns.

Course Type: Web Seminar
Course ID: 2954
For Web developers, ASP.NET is a familiar name. The next version, ASP.NET 2.0, will be released with Visual Studio 2005 and contain a variety of new features that can be grouped into 3 categories: new controls (over 50!), new features in the page framework.....