Blog for IT pro and developer certification and the MCP program

Blog for IT pro and developer certification and the MCP program

70-620 and 70-236 as Windows Server 2003 electives? Yes, it is true! it is true! Any day now these will be added to the MCSA and MCSE sites for elective credit. As soon as it is "official" (the pages have been updated) I'll let you know. Here's what will change...

Find out for yourself at blogs.msdn.com.

Windows Server 2008: The Learning Portal

Windows Server 2008: The Learning Portal

Windows Server 2008 (formerly code name "Longhorn") helps IT professionals maximize control over their infrastructure with increased security, reliability, and flexibility. Let Microsoft Learning help you develop expertise in this next generation of Windows Server technologies with a broad spectrum of learning resources and streamlined certification paths. Included on this portal is a link to a free download for a Windows Server 2008 and Windows PowerShell E-Book.

Have a look at www.microsoft.com/learning/

Microsoft Exams Scheduled for Discontinuation

Microsoft Exams Scheduled for Discontinuation

The Microsoft policy for exam retirement is modeled on the mainstream support timeline for technology releases. As such, Microsoft Learning will retire 22 exam titles on March 31, 2008. These titles are focused on technologies no longer supported by Microsoft mainstream support and include part of the MCSA and MCSE tracks for Windows Server 2000 and the MCSA and MCSE upgrade paths from Windows Server 2000 to Windows Server 2003. If you have questions, please contact your Regional Service Center.

Find out everything else at Microsoft Learning.

Balancing SATA and SCSI

Balancing SATA and SCSI

Do you want to use SCSI or SATA hard disk drives on your system? Increasingly, the answer is that you want both. The SCSI and SATA interfaces, and the drives built to use them, are different enough that their characteristics can complement each other, providing acceptable performance at a significantly lower total cost. Of course, that assumes you've chosen the correct mix of SCSI and SATA drives. If you get it wrong, you pay too much for storage or you can't meet your users' needs cost effectively.

Read the whole article at searchstorage.techtarget.com.

Cisco to stop Prometric testing

Cisco and Pearson VUE partner to expand access to Cisco certification and safeguard integrity of global exams

Beginning August 1, 2007, Pearson VUE will be the primary test vendor for Cisco® certification exams worldwide. Cisco CCNA® and CCIE® are two examples of Cisco professional certification exams that will be delivered through Pearson VUE. Additionally, Pearson VUE will deliver other Cisco individual technical certifications and specialization exams previously delivered by multiple test delivery partners. Pearson VUE has been delivering Cisco exams since 2000, but shifting to a primary vendor strategy worldwide will enable Cisco to advance test security through the deployment of advanced biometric technologies, facilitate the rapid localization of exams around the world, and allow for increased certification scalability and coverage.

Full Article:...

CompTIA Launches New IT Skills Standards Web site

CompTIA Launches New IT Skills Standards Web site

On June 25, CompTIA launched the updated TechCareer Compass (TCC) site, an online resource that provides IT professionals with the tools they need for skills development and career advancement. TCC offers IT pros a place to find information about the workforce and certification programs. It gives users a one-stop source for research, recommendations and consulting regarding their IT career choices. The site features all-new skills standards, updated certifications and a job-role search tool. Users can take the Skills Gap Assessment, which lets individuals compare their current skill set to what is required by a specific job. IT pros that are not sure what area they would like to pursue can take the Interest Quiz, and determine which career best fits them. TCC also provides a directory of certification providers and the facilities that train for these certifications.

Visit the Tech Center at...

Women in Technology: At Lunch with the Sisterhood

Women in Technology: At Lunch with the Sisterhood

A new area of interest for me is that of women in computing. Indeed, among the stock questions I now often ask "leaders" in the industry is: "What can be done to get more women interested in technology?" With that in mind, I went to the Women in Technology luncheon at Microsoft's TechEd conference in Orlando last month. I arrived a little late and the lunch part of the event had already kicked in, so 500 women were already well into their salads or onto the entrée by the time I found a seat at a table toward the back of the room. I shyly sat down, trying my best to be incognito—to be my typically stealthy self. But there was to be none of that. I was but one of six men in the room other than some of the servers—I counted five men, but others said the number ranged between four and six. In any event, I was greatly outnumbered.

Read Darryl K. Taft's entire experience "at lunch with the sisterhood"...

'I Quit!' 15 Reasons You Probably Left Your Last IT Job

'I Quit!' 15 Reasons You Probably Left Your Last IT Job

Did your workload double with no raise in pay? Was your boss from hell? Either way, you quit, and it's likely you had a good reason.

Check out the slideshow at eWeek.com.

Windows Vista Features and Services Harvest User Data for Microsoft

Windows Vista Features and Services Harvest User Data for Microsoft

Are you using Windows Vista? Then you might as well know that the licensed operating system installed on your machine is harvesting a healthy volume of information for Microsoft. In this context, a program such as the Windows Genuine Advantage is the last of your concerns. In fact, in excess of 20 Windows Vista features and services are hard at work collecting and transmitting your personal data to the Redmond company. Microsoft makes no secret about the fact that Windows Vista is gathering information. End users have little to say, and no real choice in the matter. The company does provide both a Windows Vista Privacy Statement and references within the End User License Agreement for the operating system. Combined, the resources paint the big picture over the extent of Microsoft's end user data harvest via Vista.

Read the entire article at...

Nintendo to open up Wii console

Nintendo to open up Wii console

Home and independent game makers are getting a chance to put together titles for Nintendo's Wii console.

The hi-tech firm has released a game making tool called WiiWare that gives budding game makers the data they need to use the console and its innovative controller.

For Full Story: Click Here