Tim Vander Kooi's Blog

If you attended the TechNet webcast that I hosted today, you heard us discuss the Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT). The link to the download page for ACT is: http://www.microsoft.com/DownLoads/details.aspx?familyid=24DA89E9-B581-47B0-B45E-492DD6DA2971&displaylang=en. I hope you find the tool helpful as you look to migrate to Windows 7.

If you haven’t been to HouseParty.com before now is the time to head on over. They are accepting applications from people interested in hosting their own Windows 7 Launch Party. The countries that the House Parties are available in are limited, so check it out to see if you are eligible and if you are get signed up soon.

You can find out more information here:

Global Windows® 7 Launch Party

Good luck and happy partying,

Tim

I am very honored and proud to have been chosen by Microsoft to host a new IT Manager/IT Pro series of live Webcast Chats that will air bi-weekly starting in August. This is proving to be quite and undertaking as it is not easy to try to cover all the different products that Microsoft has in only 24 chats per year. Picking and choosing where to go, what to cover and what I feel will be most important to IT Manager’s minds on a month by month basis is extremely challenging. I’ll update further as the process starts to take shape.

I have to say that it has been an absolute pleasure working with the team that Microsoft has put together to support this series. They are unbelievably dedicated, knowledgeable and really supportive of getting this whole operation up and going. I am really looking forward to the coming year.

After posting my previous entry I realized that I had left possibly the coolest thing I have done EVER (with the obvious exception of marrying my wonderful and gorgeous wife ) off my list. What could this awesome experience be you might ask? The Microsoft MVP Summit 2008 in Seattle/Redmond. What an incredible opportunity to meet with the product teams who create the software I work with on a daily basis and give them input into the products. Wow!!! For those of you who think that Microsoft is some huge corporation that doesn’t listen to, or care about, their customers you couldn’t be more wrong. I have worked with many software companies over the years, and Microsoft is as responsive (if not more so) than any other company out there. The Operations Manager teams that I work with was an amazing group of people who are completely dedicated to making their product the best at what we need it to do.

I have to admit that it was also an eye-opening week as I got the chance to see how other customers and partners implement and Microsoft’s products to solve their day to day problems. There were other MVPs there whose opinion was exactly the opposite of mine based on their personal situations, and it really helped me understand why Microsoft cannot be all things to all people. We are just too different.

I also have to say what an amazing group of people my fellow MVPs are. The dedication that these people have to the user community as a whole is just overwhelming. I was truly honored to spend the week with them.