November 16, 2008
OK, so this isn’t real money, but free CALs. Which is better than Monopoly money. And waaaaaaay better than a now worthless gift card from a failed retailer.
To coincide with the October release of the Action Pack, Microsoft also pushed a new version of the SBSC Add-On Pack. That’s a special edition of extra Action Pack goodness only for folks who are Small Business Specialists. Most of these typically include extra discs of sales resources or demo showcases, stickers, and other stuff that I sometimes (in the case of stickers) immediately give to Apple of My Eye or Cute as a Button.
The October 2008 release is particularly significant because it adds an astonishing 15 extra CALs for both Small Business Server 2008 and Essential Business Server 2008, exclusive for SBSCs. Since Action Pack itself includes 10 CALs each for SBS and EBS, SBSCs get a free 150% power boost that pumps them up to a total of 25 CALs each for SBS and EBS Standard. Here’s what the SBS CAL license looks like…
Notice how the pre-printed licensing form says “Essential Business Server 2008,” but the affixed label proclaims “Small Business Server 2008?” A weird printing mixup, which inadvertently used the wrong pre-printed form. Make no mistake though, that one is the extra SBS CALs for SBSCs.
Here’s what the EBS CAL license looks like…
You’ll notice that the Essential Business Server CAL license includes product keys.
Let’s do a little math here on how much this is worth. MSRP for SBS and EBS Standard CAL 5 packs are $385 and $405, respectively. So for SBS, we’re talking about an extra $1,155 buckaroos. And for EBS, those CALs are worth a cool-as-ice $1,215.
Which comes to a grand-spanking badass total of $2,370. Which, truthfully, should cost you nothing or very close to nothing extra.
Sure, becoming an SBSC requires a little bit of hoop jumping, including the passage of a exam. And yes, this is over and above the normal requirements to become a Registered Member of the Microsoft Partner Program and the Action Pack. But since MS recently offered a free voucher giveaway, good for a free take of either the SBS or EBS exam, if you were savvy enough to take advantage of that voucher there’d be no cost to you other than study and test taking time.
Even in a less-than-apocalyptic economy, that’s a deal worth your time and attention.
|| posted by chris under business, community, essential business server, freebie || comments (0) ||
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September 28, 2008
Lo and behold, one of my longtime customers is featured in this month’s issue of Guideposts Magazine.
In the story, Saving Moundville, Kristie Taylor talks about what led her, a marine biologist, into a role of not just managing the renovation of Miss Melissa’s Cafe in Moundville, Alabama…but also being involved in local community redevelopment efforts.
As a related promotion, Guideposts and the West Alabama Chamber of Commerce have put together a weekend travel package giveaway for two to come visit West Alabama in mid-November. Best of all, the trip includes tickets to the University of Alabama football game scheduled for November 15th.
Here’s what included in the package:
Click here to enter the Alabama Getaway contest. Check the full details and rules for the contest here.
And even if you don’t win, you can grab the recipes from Miss Melissa’s, courtesy of Chef Neil Ravenna, from the restaurant’s website, and cook up a little bit of the South on your own.
|| posted by chris under community, freebie, game, nostalgia, travel || comments (1) ||
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July 6, 2008
Unrepentant FaceBook junkie that I am, I’ve got a photo album rolling for WPC 2008.
WPC 2008 FaceBook album
Come check it out and see if you, or someone you know, has been immortalized yet. Obviously, the patented Funcave Smart-Aleck-Captionator has been activated.
|| posted by chris under community, media, shoutout, travel || comments (0) ||
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June 24, 2008
E-Cycling Day was recently included as part of an Alabama Public Television feature on green initiatives in our state.
The entire show is available online from the APTV.org website. If you just want to catch the section on E-Cycling Day, start at the 26:27 mark.
And for the record…uncontrollable laughter.
That was the reaction from Running Antelope, Apple of My Eye, and Cute as a Button to the awesome Winter Hat of Justice I’m sporting.
|| posted by chris under community, freebie, hardware, media, rx || comments (0) ||
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May 16, 2008
Everyone in New Orleans last weekend who was in the final session about the community prolly heard me talk about the very real side that most people don’t want to hear about.
All most people ever hear about is how great, grand, and wonderful the community is.
And you know what? That can be true. It really can.
But in most cases, the wonderfulness occurs on a one-to-one basis. Direct interactions between 2 folks who have discovered, through some connection they have in common, that they can help each other out.
That is how business is done, folks. That’s exactly how you and your customers interact successfully. That’s how ANY successful business interacts with its customers.
Unfortunately, that is NOT how the community works. Or at least, not how it thinks it should be working.
Which, in my opinion, is where it stumbles, badly.
A whole lot of folks are spending a WHOLE lot of time, money, energy, and hair follicles figuring out how to get EVERYONE in lockstep.
WE MUST BAND TOGETHER ON EVERYTHING. ABSOLUTELY. IT IS EXPECTED OF YOU AS A GOOD LITTLE COMMUNITY MEMBER.
That’s a crock.
The secret to leadership? it’s so freaking simple people.
You decide what, generally, you want to happen. A goal.
You put together a kickass and diverse team with the skills to make that happen.
You give them the tools/funding/support they need to make things happen.
Then you get the H-E-DOUBLE-HOCKEY-STICK out of their way. You stand back and see how they are doing. If someone’s kicking ass, YOU TELL THEM THAT, AND OTHERS TOO!
If someone is struggling, you find out why. Get them the help they need, remove an obstacle, whatever.
And you do your primary job. Which is both super simple, and difficult beyond belief
Tell the story. Get the word out. Get NEW BLOOD excited and fired up about what you are doing! Doggedly. Persistently. Continually.
No matter who ridicules you or tries to tear you down. Because it will happen. Especially in our community, if you are in the US.
Despite whatever jealousy or spite or elitism you will encounter. Even to the point of people trying to steal or take over what your team is trying to accomplish. Because it will happen. I can tell you that from personal experience, ESPECIALLY in our community.
I can tell you…
Looking around our little biosphere that so many folks think is so all-mighty and all-important (which is also a crock) for some real leadership?
I’m not seeing any worth having.
None at all.
Despite that, during that session I pledged to resurrect Alabama SMB, which died a slow, horrible death thanks completely to my missteps at the helm.
I plan to keep that promise, but not steering the ship myself.
So this is also a call to IT Professionals in the state of Alabama. If you want to try to create something that will help you, and that you can be proud of, then you need to ping me within the next 2 weeks.
If no one shows up, ready to either lead or help, there will be no second chance.
And Alabama SMB will be fully dead and buried.
|| posted by chris under clueless, community, rant, rx || comments (16) ||
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