Finally !!! Check out Project Honolulu

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Over the years, IT administration has gone really complex. The number of tools just keep increasing. You end up having a whole bunch of different stuff to do different management.

Check out project Honolulu. Don’t ask me how this name came about. 🙂

It is now time to simplify our life. BTW, it can manage your WIndows Server regardless of where they are hosted. In your server room, data center, or even in Azure.

Check the announcement here. https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/windowsserver/2017/09/14/sneak-peek-4-introducing-project-honolulu-our-new-windows-server-management-experience/

Project Honolulu

Hyper-Converged Cluster Manager solution in Project Honolulu

/Dennis

Speak to Office.. :)

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Ever wished you could just talk into Outlook, and it writes out your email?

Dictation. Simply talk, and have Office type out on your behalf. it is cool and interesting. Leverage speech to text technology, and if you like to integrate such capabilities in your application, talk to me. dchung@microsoft.com, if you’re an Education customer.

Alternative, you can discuss with DevChat (aka.ms/devchat)

If you’re an Educator, this is a good chance to get Students to practice phonics and see if they are able to read with confidence.

Check out Dictate: – http://dictate.ms/

Security Guide for Windows Server 2016

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If you guys are working with Windows Server 2016, you must also be interested in the Security Guide.

Microsoft released Windows Server 2016 Security Guide. Access it here:

 http://download.microsoft.com/download/5/8/5/585DF9E9-D3D6-410A-8B51-81C7FC9A727C/Windows_Server_2016_Security_Guide_EN_US.pdf

If you’re into the following roles; the guide is essential for you;

  • Security professional. Individuals in this role focus on how to provide security across computing platforms within an organization. Security professionals require a reliable reference guide that addresses the security needs of all segments of their organizations and also offers proven methods to implement security countermeasures. They identify security features and settings, and then provide recommendations on how their customers can most effectively use them in high risk environments.
  • IT operations and deployment staff. Individuals in all of these roles troubleshoot security issues as well as application installation, configuration, usability, and manageability issues. They monitor these types of issues to define measurable security improvements with minimal impact on critical business applications. Individuals in IT operations focus on integrating security and controlling change in the deployment process, and deployment personnel focus on administering security updates quickly.
  • Systems architect and planner. Individuals in this role drive the architecture efforts for computer systems in their organizations.
  • Consultant. Individuals in this role are aware of security scenarios that span all the business levels of an organization. IT consultants from both Microsoft Services and partners take advantage of knowledge transfer tools for enterprise customers and partners.

In addition to the resources listed in this guide, here are a number of additional resources to help you secure Windows Server environment:

Discovered a new tool for Classroom

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I like to introduce Bing Pulse to you.

If you’re a teacher or lecturer and are concerned with the following, try Bing Pulse. Its free;

  • Run a class, but have no real time feedback of your teaching performance
  • While teaching, unsure of the content relevance to the student’s knowledge of pace
  • Get instant feedback on progress from students
  • Capture and review performance at a later time
  • Running an online e-learning session like webinar, need to find performance of the speaker
  • Quiz and answers collection if your webinar tools don’t allow you to

Try Bing Pulse. Its an interesting tool every classroom educator should use.

Create a free account now.

Skydrive is now rebranded as OneDrive

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http://blog.onedrive.com/onedrive-for-everything-your-life/

Yesterday Microsoft announced the rebranding of Skydrive into OneDrive. Personally, from a feeling and attachment perspective, I’ve already grown so familiar with Skydrive. On a personal level, i get 21GB of storage, if you’re new, you get a default 7GB. In any case, for teachers and students, you get Skydrive Pro.

By the way, Office 365 A2 plan is free for all validated Education institution.

In Office 365 A2, one gets 25GB of storage, known as Sky Drive Pro.

Going forward, Consumer Skydrive is now called One Drive. and Skydrive Pro in Office 365, becomes OneDrive for Business. Check out the link announcement. Seriously to me, it is just a rebrand, but as always, when a rebrand comes, new perspectives about the services will come. Can’t wait to see the innovations impacting and improving the way we work, learn and play.

I’ll really need to discipline myself and start writing. Losing my writing edge. 😉

Windows Server 2012–Virtualization (Hyper-V) Book Launched

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Shared by one of my colleagues based in US. Smile

One of the Microsoft MVP wrote this book just it got launched recently.

Written by Aidan Finn, a long time Microsoft MVP has just released his latest book for Hyper-V, Windows Server 2012 Hyper-V Installation and Configuration Guide. Here’s the link:

http://www.amazon.com/Windows-Server-Hyper-V-Installation-Configuration/dp/1118486498

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/Dennis

Singapore NUS buys into Microsoft’s big data vision

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http://www.zdnet.com/sg/singapore-uni-buys-into-microsofts-big-data-vision-7000012805/

I have been working with Jeffery Tay from NUS on various projects. Just like to share the news release about NUS embracing SQL and Big Data capabilities.

Singapore NUS buys into Microsoft’s big data vision

SINGAPORE–The National University of Singapore (NUS) today announced the successful implementation of SQL Server 2012 to give employees in its Centre for Instructional Technology (CIT) the ability to run hypotheses and validate IT proposals on a self-service basis.
This, in turn, empowered the team to better deliver content and services to the student population via its learning management system–the Integrated Virtual Learning Environment (IVLE), according to Jeffery Tay, associate director of CIT at NUS.
In a briefing session Tuesday, Tay revealed the CIT had started thinking about big data implementation in 2010 and when it finally deployed its IT system in 2011, the IVLE usage dashboard was “static, basic and liable to data corruption”. It also needed the IT team to be heavily involved in re-configuring the dashboard as and when there were new information added to it, he said, adding the system took some two years to set up and be fully functional.
By contrast, the implementation of Microsoft’s SQL Server 2012 took between three to six months, he revealed. Besides cutting down on time, the Power View dashboard for IVLE usage was significantly improved in that it was easily understood, configurable and managed almost entirely by end-users, he said.
This then allows the team to run their hypotheses and back these up with concrete proposals to improve the IVLE platform, Tay added. For instance, the previous analytics dashboard did not show mobile usage among NUS’ student population. With the new dashboard, CIT found out that content consumption and usage were increasingly done via mobile devices running on Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems, he said.
Backed up by hard data, the CIT was able to justify the need to create native mobile apps for the two platform, as well as a video delivery program for course content to Android mobile devices , the executive said.
Additionally, as part of its 2015 IT roadmap, CIT aims to use Microsoft’s big data analytics tool to better monitor student usage of IVLE such as whether they are using it in school or at home, and to better personalize the ways students learn, Tay said.

/Dennis

Updated Gartner Chart for SQL 2012–BI and Data Warehouse

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Updated in Feb 2013

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Updated in Jan 2013

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For those of you looking into using SQL 2013 for Academic Analytics, just a simple liner. Smile If you intend to do Acad Analytics, which is a big part of the work I’m doing at my customer location in Singapore. We are able to use SQL, completed a POC and Pilot. It allowed our customer to lower attrition rate by bringing up important information and allowing us to find patterns.

I can’t reveal too much, as the project isn’t complete, but if you like to know, write to me.

Most importantly, buying SQL 2012, you get both functions in a single product. You do not have to purchase add on modules, or anything, you buy SQL, you get BI and Data Warehouse functionality.

If you’re an academic customer of Microsoft, these are available at really low costs. If you are based in Singapore, contact me.

/Dennis