James Gray

Social Media Integrated into WL Messenger

I downloaded Windows Live Essentials beta to checkout the new features and it's very cool to see all of my social media updates from Facebook and other sites right inside of Messenger.  I also like the ability to make status updates and comments from Messenger.  Photos from Facebook are also very visible including the ability to view an entire photo album in slide show mode.  I usually have Messenger online all the time and I have to say I view Facebook content updates more often with this new feature.  Also check out the photo editing tool updates that make it easier to edit and post photos online.  Overall there are some great updates to Essentials including Sync for synchronizing data across multiple devices.

Get Facebook Updates in Outlook

The Microsoft Outlook Social Connector Provider for Facebook is now available for download to enable Facebook updates within the Outlook client. Note you will need to first install the Microsoft Outlook Social Connector.

Exploring Search for Business Intelligence

Discovering certified information in the enterprise for insight and decision making is a challenging task for any large company.  Business leaders and employees all have a need for timely, accurate and relevant information to drive competitive advantage.  My experience is that even though a rich set of reports and analytics may exist within a company, many information workers may not know where to access this information or what information is available.  This can often result in the growth of redundant IT-owned applications and shadow applications in the business.

Recently I have begun researching how to to improve information delivery to a worldwide sales and marketing organization across Microsoft with the goal of driving use of certified information from Microsoft's Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW).  The large user base includes business leaders in a corporate role who need a global view of business metrics and employees who may need a subsidiary or business segment view.  One area of research includes the use of Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Enterprise Search and a Microsoft report catalog to provide relevant search results based on user attributes and report meta data. The vision is to enable any employee to quickly access highly relevant certified information (e.g. pipeline, partner profile) from Microsoft's main internal SharePoint site.

I look forward to collaborating with others who have successfully used search for business intelligence and I will plan to share the progress and outcomes of my research.

<InfoTechLeader.com> 

Share Photos During a Windows Live Messenger Chat

The ability to quickly show friends a photo during a Windows Live Messenger chat session is a handy feature.  Refer to the Microsoft article to see the four easy steps to chatting about a digital photo during your next session.

<InfoTechLeader.com>

Synchronize Life with Live Mesh

These days we all use multiple information devices (e.g. home PC, work PC, laptop, Mac, mobile phone) although we often struggle to share files across these devices.  Emailing files to yourself is a common way to get a file from one device to another or carrying a small USB drive.  Microsoft Live Mesh changes all of this by automatically synchronizing files across the devices you have connected to your "mesh".  

I use Live Mesh everyday to edit documents using my home PC and work laptop and behind the scenes Live Mesh synchronizes the files to be certain that I am always using the latest file.  I also use Live Mesh to share documents and pictures with friends and family using a Live Mesh folder that is controlled by security.  Files are automatically synchronized in the Live Mesh folder across the devices for all users.  This enables authorized users to collaborate on documents and seamlessly share files such as pictures.  The Live Mesh folder tracks all history so users have a clear view to who has changed what files and when. 

I have also started to use Live Mesh from my mobile phone to upload pictures to folders and access Office documents.  I no longer have to worry about if I have documents stored on my phone as I can always access files from a web browser.  Live Mesh includes 5GB of free storage to synchronize and share files.  Another cool feature is the ability to use a computer remotely so you can access files and programs as if you were sitting in front of that remote computer.

Live Mesh is a great solution for synchronizing your information no matter where you or what device you are using.

<infotechleader.com>

Facebook App for Windows Mobile

Stay connected and up-to-date with the latest posts and news from Facebook using your Windows Mobile phone.    Download the new Facebook application to:

• Upload pictures and videos from your phone to Facebook
• Send messages to people in your Friends list
• Manage your profile
• Post updates to your status
• View your Wall
• Call people in your Friends list

This Windows Mobile application offers a far superior user experience than using a web browser to access Facebook. Visit the Microsoft Windows Mobile site for a comprehensive view of devices and software downloads.

<infotechleader.com>

TypePad for Blogs and Websites

Over the last few years I have become a huge fan of TypePad for blogging. I use TypePad to host multiple sites including my personal blog as well as a site for my family.  Our family site is an online journal and photo album that enables us to stay connected with friends and family. Gone are the days of writing those year end holiday letters to inform everybody of those special events over the last year.  

TypePad offers many cool features but most of all it's easy to use and it delivers a professional looking style for your web presence.  I also enjoy the ability to use the best of the web to integrate my TypePad sites with services including Windows Live, Google Analytics, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter and Flickr to name a few.  TypePad is more than a blogging service as it also enables you to create a rich web site using drag and drop tools and many customization options.

Although TypePad is not free such as Blogger and Wordpress, I think you will find the value far exceeds the nominal cost.  Give it a try at typepad.com.