A few weeks ago, Steve Gaitten, Master of all Things Community (and the guy that signs my paycheck   ), blogged about the first in a series of giveaways for Bamboo Nation. In that post, he asked participants to write up a simple use case describing how you are using a Bamboo product and post it in our forums. If you don't remember, prizes include a $500 Certificate to the Bamboo store, an iPod Shuffle, Bamboo Nation T-shirts and more.

While I have received some great entries there aren't as many as I had hoped. My guess is that the idea of writing a use case has some of you more than a little intimidated. Well, as Steve said to a friend of mine last week, "Get over it!"    I'm not asking you to write War and Peace. What I need is just a nice short description of how you are using a Bamboo product. You don't have to craft a laborious technical document that goes into great detail of every step that you follow. As long as you can describe the process enough to let me know what is happening, I will be happy. If you can use images in your use case as well, then you will make me even happier.

I have received a few entires that I wanted to highlight as good examples of what we are looking for. My hope is that if you see what other people are submitting, you may find inspiration and submit your own use case. The first example is an Agreements Repository Use Case, describing a scenario where SharePoint doesn’t include time-based alerts, but by setting up the Bamboo Alerts Plus Web Part helps take care of everything. The second example is The Spamminator Use Case, which describes how the Bamboo Alerts Plus Web Part can be used to provide automated announcement mail that can be scheduled in advance for holidays, time sheets, and other admin type reminders. Both examples are short, to the point, and do a good job describing the issue, and how a Bamboo product helps solve everything.

See, that doesn't look so hard, now does it? Great. Now drop everything and go write that use case. There is still plenty of time to enter and win.

Back in March, Bamboo Solutions made a nice splash at the 2008 SharePoint Conference in Seattle with our SharePoint Revolution campaign.  I think people understand that there truly is a revolution in progress.  The social constructs of Web 2.0 are quietly infilitrating the enterprise, changing the way that people work together, providing major gains to the productivity of the average information worker.  The SharePoint platform is one of the primary catalysts of this phenomenon.

The effect is so transformative, it reminds me of my early days at fledgling AOL.  I started with that company back in January of 1995 when America Online was just 500 kids in blue jeans and t-shirts trying to do cool things with computers.  I knew the world was about to change back then, and I feel it just as keenly now.  One of the ways I knew things were changing back then was the star power and electric charisma of the personalities driving the revolution.  Long before Steve Case was a multi-billionaire, you knew he was someone special by the way he talked about technology.  Maybe that sparkle in his eyes was a vision of the future.  Who can say?

One of the characteristics of the Web 1.0 world that I see echoed in the SharePoint revolution is an elite group of technologists becoming evangelists for the movement.  People who understand the technology, and interpret the implications for the workplace and the global economy are becoming rock stars, true celebrities.  Starting today, we're going to meet some of these individuals and see what we can learn from them.  Some of these folks are the next Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Larry Ellison.  Some will go on to fame and wealth, others will earn only virtuous footnotes in obscure pages of Wikipedia.  Either way, you're going to meet some interesting people, and hear a perspective on collaborative computing that you probably haven't heard before.

Our Rock Stars of SharePoint series begins with a series of interviews, featuring three guys I admire and would love to know better:  Bob Mixon of Mixon Consulting; Dux Raymond Sy, author of SharePoint for Project Management, and Bamboo's own Jonas Nilsson, architect of MashPoint, a new data integration platform for SharePoint.  What do each of these individuals have in common?

• A sophisticated understanding of SharePoint
• A global influence on enterprise computing
• Each will probably grimace and complain about being called a rock star.  (Get over yourselves and deal already!)

Without further ado, I invite you to click through and read each of these profiles.  The casual Q&A with Bamboo's lead blogger John Anderson is easy reading, and you really get a sense of the individual in each feature.  We hope you enjoy this ongoing series, and help us celebrate the Rock Stars of SharePoint.

P.S.  Think you're a SharePoint Rock Star?  Would you like to nominate someone for our next spotlight?  Contact john.anderson@bamboosolutions.com with your tips and inquiries

Are you considering a migration from Windows SharePoint Services to Microsoft Office SharePoint Services?  Perhaps you are taking a first look at adopting SharePoint as platform for collaboration, document management and data integration.  Estimating your license costs for SharePoint can be a complex process.

Of course the best approach is to simply work with a Microsoft Licensing Specialist.  But if you're not ready for that formal of a conversation, or you just want to do some quick ballparking, we've got an exciting new free tool you can use that will help you get a handle on costs -- the SharePoint Price Calculator.

Just plug in the total number of employees who will be accessing the system, the number of front end web servers (WFEs) you will utilize, and the number of SQL servers in your deployment, and the tool does the rest.  Select or unselect optional services such as InfoPath Forms to customize this estimate based on your specific functional requirements.  You can even perform "scenario" analysis to compare potential configurations.

Why did Bamboo Solutions, a provider of technologies enhancing SharePoint, create this tool?  A few reasons actually:

• Bamboo Solutions works with over 4,000 customers who leverage SharePoint.  Outside of Microsoft, Bamboo Solutions has one of the largest footprints in the SharePoint ecosystem.  Over the years, many of our customers have asked us for help with understanding Microsoft's licensing model for SharePoint.  We are providing this service as a convenience to our friends and valued clients.
• Many Bamboo products & technologies, perhaps most notably MashPoint -- a data integration platform for Windows SharePoint Services, are designed to extend the feature set and capabilities of WSS.  By illustrating the difference in costs between MOSS & WSS, we are demonstrating one of the value propositions of Bamboo products.  Whether your adoption of WSS is an exploratory introduction to SharePoint, or a stepping stone to MOSS Enterprise, Bamboo can help you make the most of your investment.
• Architectural topography is never static.  This tool can help you understand the cost of extending SharePoint to more employees, or of adding servers to optimize the performance of your SharePoint deployment.  By providing this informational utility, we are delivering on the mission of Bamboo Nation -- to share knowledge that benefits the entire SharePoint community.  If you happen to do some shopping in the Bamboo Online Store after you've played with the tool, you've helped to subsidize our noble mission.
• We had fun doing it!  Frankly, this was a complex and interesting research project.  We hope that we've been able to save you some work by sharing out findings.  Please let us know your thoughts about this tool by posting a comment in the SharePoint Price Calculator forum.  If you found the tool useful, please let us know.  If there is more functionality that would be helpful, tell us what you would like to see.  If there are similar tools you wish Bamboo would develop, we are all ears ;)

As part of the new tool, we've cited all of our sources and pulled together a collection of articles that you may find helpful in investigating our licensing costs.  Be sure not to miss these resources, they are listed at the bottom of the page, below the new calculator.

We released the following patches:

Mini Calendar Web Part (HW22 R2.3):

Enhancements:
Supports solution deployment install procedure

Bug Fixes:

• Incorrect month displayed sometimes when using non-current month
• "The Authority/Host could not be parsed" error
• Regional setting for date format not followed
• Improper dispose of SharePoint objects

List Search Simple Web Part (HW11A R1.4.13):

Bug Fix:
Remove debugger statements in client javascript - Users need to clear IE cache.

 Delta Systems Associates (DSA) is located in Elk Grove, California and has been helping businesses improve their technology function for over a decade.  They provide the entire range of technology management services that a medium-sized business might need.   Rather than try to solve technology problems with more technology, they focus on the business drivers where technology is best suited to deliver value.  Welcome aboard DSA.  We are looking forward to working with you.

Vienna posts answers to some of the frequently asked questions fielded by our sales team that may help you with your current or future Bamboo purchases.

Question: "I am going to be out of the office tomorrow, Friday and Monday and I won't be able to finish testing and analyzing my results. Is it possible to get an extension on these Web Part trials?" - Charice* from Boston (the land of tea parties)

 

Answer: Sometimes there's just not enough time.  Not enough time to watch Michael Phelps school everybody else in swimming, not enough time to understand Paris Hilton's comprehensive energy plan, and not enough time to listen to Carla Bruni-Sarkozy's latest album with songs dedicated to her husband the President. What there will always be time for, however, is the testing of Bamboo web parts. 

For my readers (let's just pretend I have consistent ones), you already know how you can extend your trials, but this question is asked so often that I thought I might address it. All you have to do is uninstall your current trial, download a fresh one, install it, and voilá! Another 15 days.  Do this repetitively and it's all the time you could ever want and need to test out our products. No more worries about the trial cutting out before you can show your supervisor, or installing it some while after you've downloaded only to find you have 2 days left.  We've got you covered.

Speaking of testing, sometimes it's time to move beyond testing and go into production.  As some of you have found out the hard way though, our licenses like the server they've been installed on. So much so that they've locked on to them and won't let go like a child and their security blanket.  If you would like to move your license, all you have to do is contact helpdesk@bamboosolutions.com with your license key and web part name to receive the necessary unlock code to pry the license away from the server. At least it won't start crying.

So, did you know?  Now You Know.

‘Til next time: happy testing and moving.

Have other questions? Go check out the Pre-Sales Forum for more frequently asked questions or contact us at sales@bamboosolutions.com. 

*names have been changed to protect the innocent

SWECO Position is a Microsoft Certified Partner located in Stockholm, Sweden.  Their focus is on geographical information systems and information and project management in large infrastructure projects.  SWECO helps their customers facilitate information sharing and collaboration through use of SharePoint.  We are very excited to have them join our Partner Program and look forward to working with them.

In case you were unable to attend, Bamboo Solutions, along with Innovative-e, co-sponsored the 1-day Learning Tree SharePoint seminar last month here in Reston.  Dux Sy, Bamboo Nation's resident Sharepoint Project Management expert was the speaker at the event.   

Our grand prize winner was Kim Harris, from LMI.  She's got $1000 Web Part shopping spree in her future.   Happy shopping, Kim!  I hope to update everyone on how Kim and LMI decides to spend the loot and improve their SharePoint portal, so stay tuned.

The 1-day event was a huge success and will be rolled out worldwide at Learning Tree's various location, so watch for it where you live! 

Today, we are announcing our first in an ongoing series of monthly giveaways.  We've got some great prizes lined up and it couldn't be easier for you to cash in.  For August, here's the deal --  just write a simple use case describing how you are using Bamboo technology in your organization and post it on a forum here at Bamboo Nation.  At the end of the month, we'll select our three favorite stories and award the following prizes:

Grand Prize - A $500 Gift Certificate redeemable in the Bamboo Online Store. 

Five hundred big ones goes a long way in the Bamboo Online Store.  Most Bamboo Web Parts are less than $500... but you can also put this toward the purchase of a bigger ticket item, like Team Calendar, System Log Manager or the new Bamboo Project Management Suite. 

Second Prize - A 2GB iPod Shuffle.  This top-of-the-line iPod shuffle has been custom engraved with the Bamboo Nation URL, community.bamboosolutions.com, so you'll never forget how to find your favorite SharePoint community site.  Perfect for the gym or the bike trail.  We have a couple of these on hand, so this won't be your last chance to win one.

Third Prize - A Limited Edition "I Am Bamboo Nation" T-Shirt.  You'll be the envy of SharePoint nerds everywhere, stylin' in this high quality Bamboo Nation apparel. 

Everybody Wins! - Just for entering, we'll send you an I Am Bamboo Nation sticker to adorn your laptop, vehicle or workspace.  Show your pride!  Let the world know that you are a proud citizen of Bamboo Nation.

Here's How to Play - Just write a simple use case describing how you are currently using a Bamboo Web Part or Solution Accelerator in your SharePoint deployment.  Post your use case to the most appropriate Bamboo Nation forum (e.g. if you're writing about the Calendar Plus Web Part, please post your use case to the Calendar Web Part Forum) and shoot a note to Community Manager Chris Dooley at chris.dooley@bamboosolutions.com just to make sure we've seen your post.  Be sure to include your snail mail address in your e-mail so we can send you an I Am Bamboo Nation sticker.  If you have any questions about where or how to post, feel free to e-mail Chris with those as well.

How to Win - If you want to give yourself the best shot at winning, here are a few hints and suggestions about what we'll be looking for:

• A picture is worth a thousand words.  Please include screen shots, architectural diagrams, even a picture of yourself.  Liven up your presentation with some graphics.  Chris will be publishing a few tips on how to include images in forum posts, check back here for more details shortly.
• Tell us what is unique about your implementation.  You'll definitely receive extra points for having used a Bamboo Web Part in an inventive or unanticipated manner. 
• Keep it real.  Tell us how this technology affects real people in the workplace.  Has teamwork or productivity improved since you deployed this solution? 
• Have a sense of humor, and be yourself.  Remember, we'll be reading a lot of SharePoint use cases... if you make us laugh, or make a personal connection, I promise we will reward you for it.
• Make it useful.  Share some information that others can benefit from.  Ultimately, that's what this is all about, sharing information for the general good. 
• You don't have to reference your company name.  We would love for you to tell us who you are, tell us all about your business and post links back to your site.  But we know that some companies or government agencies require review before you share information like this.  We promise not to punish you if you have to anonymize your entry.  We'll work with you to protect your privacy as necessary.

Contest Rules

• Entries must be posted by midnight August 31st, 2008. 
• Winners will be selected and notified no later than September 5th, 2008
• Winners will be determined subjectively by the Bamboo Nation team.  Our decisions are final.
• Prize substitutions will be permitted for the Grand Prize winner only.  If you would rather have the iPod Shuffle than the $500 gift certificate, no problem. 
• This contest is informal, just for fun, and we reserve the right to change the rules or cancel the whole thing if the legal department gets involved.
• Bamboo employees are not eligible, but Bamboo partners may participate.  If you are a consultant or a system integrator, feel free to write a use case describing a solution you have developed for a client.

So, c'mon stop what you're doing, take a few minutes and post your use case right now.  A fifteen minute investment could win you five hundred bucks, you've got nothing to lose.

Sometimes a benign character can cause a real headache.

Try adding a column in a SharePoint list. Name it "My Benign_x" and try to save it.  Can you save it?

Here is my screenshot when I saved the result:

AN EXCEPTION!

 An exception! Why? What is happening in "Microsoft.SharePoint.Utilities.SPStringUtility.EscapedCodeToLower" method to cause this error?

I decided to use the Reflector for .NET tool  to find out. And what I found out is just hilarious!

Here is the "nice" code that throws exception; Checkout the IF statement block. Just keep doing i++ and eventually you get the index out of bound exception.

Sometimes I wonder how quickly we (developers) forget what we learn in coding 101 class(es).

/mp

I will be speaking tomorrow evening (Aug 6th) to the New York City SPUG.  My topic will be SharePoint Alerts.  I'll highlight some of the lesser known capabilities and configuration options when it comes to implementing this SharePoint feature.  Hopefully each member of the audience will learn something about Alerts that they can take back and implement that will increase the value of their own SharePoint environment.  Not keen on Alerts?  In that case, why not come for the free giveaway? Bamboo has provided me with a $500 coupon to give away as a door prize.  This coupon is good for $500 off any Bamboo Web Part!

For more information and to register to attend, please visit the following link: http://www.sharepointusergroup.org/NewYork/default.aspx 

Special thanks to Bob Fox and the team at B&R Business Solutions (http://www.bandrsolutions.com/) for hooking me up with the NYCSPUG.

Vienna posts the answers to some frequently asked sales questions that might help you with your current or future Bamboo purchases.

"We have a 10 server, clustered production environment.  Do you offer volume discounts on your Calendar Plus Web Part server license for 10 units?

Thanks, 
Martin* from California" 

One of the only things that I remember from my courses in economics is something called "economies of scale".  It goes a little something like this: the more you produce, the cheaper it is to produce additional items.  I don't really think that has anything to do with why our products get lower priced with volume, but just like Costco is more economical because you buy in bulk, our software is discounted in bulk too. 

If you have more than three production servers that you need licensing for, we are here for you.  Just contact us at sales@bamboosolutions.com, and we can knock those dollars off the final amount.  Again, just like non-prod licenses, we here at sales are the gatekeepers to your discount. Are you big like Martin in Cali? or twice or thrice the size? Talk to us about enterprise licensing, we'll be happy to help.

Besides volume, we also have a 15% discount for non-profits.  Unfortunately this does not include government or educational organizations. If you're a 501c(3) that's teaching kids about government, we'll still give you the 15% then.   

So, did you know?  Now You Know.

‘Til next time: happy purchasing and keep those questions coming.

Have other questions? Go check out the Pre-Sales Forum for more frequently asked questions or contact us at sales@bamboosolutions.com. 

*names have been changed

nFocus Technologies is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner located in Indianapolis, IN with offices in Chicago, IL and affiliated offices throughout the continental United States and Europe. Their philosophy revolves around three essential elements:  Trust, Experience and Teamwork.     We are looking forward to working with them and leveraging their expertise in Microsoft Dynamics.

Check out our latest patch releases with new features and bug fixes.

Alert Plus Web Part (HW05 R2.4) -
New Features:

• Solution deployment for WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007.
• Summary e-mail notification sent for multiple alerts option now available.

Known Issues:

• Should use List Rollup 3.2.5 with Alert Plus 2.4 to benefit from all bug fixes provided below.

Bug Fixes:

• No email sent if user has not logged into SharePoint has been fixed.
• Custom Schedule issues with different languages.
• Alert Plus Web Part links issue with different languages.
• Alerts sent when a folder is created in alert list has been fixed.
• Support for Calculated field on List Rollup has been fixed.

Data-Viewer Web Part (HW37 R1.2) -
Enhancements:

• List Rollup interface
• Dynamic filtering on the entire data set instead of each page.

Known Issues:

• User can click on Export to Excel button to export data out. However, the button will be disabled until the page is refreshed.
• Web Part will show "System out of Memory Error" when it is bound to an unsually large amount of data (i.e. 21,000+ items & 50+ columns).
• Upgrading to 1.2: For users who configured the Web Part to show SQL data, after upgrading, you will have to delete the Web Part from the page and add it back again. Before doing so, you should save your configuration settings in the tool pane since deleting the Web Part will also delete these settings.
• For the List Rollup data source option, you must use data views/forms created with List Rollup version 3.2 or higher.

Bug fixes:
Cannot access non-dbo schema table or view in SQL 2005 tables.

Limitations:

• Can't dynamically filter on columns that are the following types: Calculated, Lookup, Number set to percent, Person or Group, Date and Time and Hyperlink or Picture.
• Sorting for the Number or Currency data types will behave like string data type.

User Profile Plus Web Part (HW29 R1.1.4) -
Enhancements:
Uses Solution Deployment procedure

Bug Fixes:

• Hangs in Internet Explorer 6
• Does not handle extremely large numbers of entries correctly

Tree View Web Part (HW03 R1.3.4) -
Enhancements:
Now uses Solution Deployment installer

Bug fixes:

• Version history does not display correctly when using Version Control
• When Management Content Types are enabled, clicking New points to the wrong page

Gas prices got you down?  Boss won't let you leave your desk?  We understand that not everyone was lucky enough to be able to come to our Hands on Workshops or jaunt off to fun tradeshows across the country.  Budgets are tight, we understand!  But, because being for the people is sorta our thing, we've got something for you.  Starting tomorrow, Friday August 1, we'll be launching our twice weekly Webinars on two topics: Project Management and Business Intelligence (11 AM EST) and SharePoint Administration (1 PM EST). 

Click on the link here to sign up - they last for 1 hour and we'll showcase several of our most helpful products from our Project Management and SharePoint Administration Suites and be there to answer questions. Check them out, learn some stuff, and then let us know what you think!