While some power users my not like the new Ribbon (you can hide it), most non-power users will probably find it much easier within a couple days. I had my experiences of "how do I find this" with the ribbon, but overall very nice. Also, since the Ribbon is open for development I expect to see more function-specific or industry-specific customization in the future.
I particularly like some of the new functions when working with PivotTables. For instance, although perhaps mundane, the IFERROR provides a much more elegant solution to error-checking than an If and Iserror combo.
Finally, here's a macro snippet to 'wrap' the IFERROR function around formulas that have already been created. Very useful when working with other people's files or updating with different data.
Enjoy the increased productivity...
Sub ErrorToZero()
X = Right(ActiveCell.Formula, Len(ActiveCell.Formula) - 1)
ActiveCell.Formula = "=IFERROR(" & X & ",0)"
End Sub
Last night we tried to leave campus in the middle of a Seattle "snowstorm", in quotes because it really wasn't much snow but for this area it seems to have the same effect. We moved three car lengths in 15 minutes, on campus. So we turned around and parked the car and walked home. Nice little walk in falling snow.
Now campus is nearly shut down - cafes, shuttles, etc - are all closed although buildings are open. DOT has instructed people to stay at home, and the traffic cams show they're listening, but that's probably more due to the fact that all the schools are closed today.
Working from home...with a hand-crafted eggnog latte at my desk.
A quick post from Stockholm...I got to visit 'the field' or 'subs' (in Microsoftish, short for subsidiary) this week. I spent a day visiting with the Danish office on Monday, then a two day sales meeting in Copenhagen and now in Stockholm visiting with people here.
And last night, I visited the Stockholm Ice Bar with a colleague. Much fun to hold an ice block 'glass' surrounded by foot-think blocks of ice as walls, columns, bar, and couch. Here's a good summary site.
This is very cool...while it doesn't yet seem to be the type of service that can replace NetFlix it would be a nice alternative for movies/tv, especially for those of use who don't get cable.
Well, to be honest, I don't have either a 360 or a HD tv yet...so this is all wishful thinking. :)
Zune...I held a Zune yesterday. Amazing. I think our household will be getting at least two this holiday season.
Yesterday was the annual company meeting, and thanks to Finance Boot Camp I got to site in the 2nd row with a great view of all the speakers: Bill Gates, Steve Balmer, Ray Ozzie, Jay Allard, etc. It was a pretty incredible day and a lot of fun to see all the branded goodies. I got a 175g ultimate disc with the beta test of Windows Live Mail (been running the beta for quite a while now).
I also found out how chilly this time of year is at SafeCo Field...even when surrounded by thousands of people. Next year I need to wear wool socks. :)
A friend of mine recently asked if I will be changing the title of the blog now that I'm no longer at the GSB and have started work. So if anyone has any brilliant ideas for re-naming the blog just let me know. :) Anything more original than "Microsoft Mennonite"? I may need to keep GSB somewhere too for search engines. Anyone have knowledge on that one?
Oh and I was disappointed to discover that MennoKnight was already taken as an Xbox gamer tag. So I went with the boring Mennonite instead.
The IE7 Beta 2 was released today. I installed today and have been exploring my usual websites to see how things look. The magnification button is pretty cool and will be appreciated by previous generations. Also I've started looking at Onfolio, a web research and feed reading plug-in. Might be helpful when researching for papers later this quarter. Onfolio is part of the Windows Live toolbar.
3/9/06 has arrived (a while ago at CeBit) and the official news and pictures of the ultramobile pcs are out. Here is the official press release. And the official website is up with a number of pictures and details. And this appears to be an indepedent site (OrigamiPortal) with a number of articles and pictures...
Finally, the official community site...
One thing I think is interesting is that most rumors said this would not be a product launch, which it's not, however products will be launched by Samsung as early as next month and ASUS soon after. Pretty cool!
While I am a few days behind the blog curve, I am intrigued with the possible outcome of the Origami rumors. The NYT has an article on it today. The 'official' site is here. Technorati has a number of links on the subject and this Mexican site has some supposed . screen shots (link from NetworkWorld) from a few hours ago. This is the complete clip... Looks pretty cool.
I've continued to play with Media Center 2005 and my cable service. I've also been playing with MSN TV's scheduling service - called MSN Remote Record Service, which allows me to schedule from MSN any recording on the Media Center PC at home.
The only issue I have currently is that I'm not running the PC into the tv, since the PC is fairly outdated, so my recording and set-top box is jerry-rigged. The DVR-MS files are good quality, but huge. And I can't use Windows Movie Maker to edit the files. Hopefully this will be better integrated with Vista.
Tuesday evening the recruiters came back into town; it's always fun to get to hang out again and catch up. We had a lot of sushi at SushiSamba Rio and also caused the restaurant to run out of mint...as in mojitos. :)
Saturday I took some time to load Windows XP Professional Media Center on my laptop and on my old Dell desktop at home. It was an interesting process, finding all the right drivers since I hadn't planned out that aspect of it ahead of time. Thankfully I had backed-up drivers not to long ago. Also fun playing around with Media Center and setting up music, pictures, etc.
I also set up Media Center Extender for Xbox (unfortunately I do not yet have the Xbox 360). While the animations and smoothness of the Media Center GUI are not present on the Extender for Xbox, it's pretty slick to pull all the music, pictures, and videos that I want. I even paid too much for a 50 ft ethernet cable just to set it up this weekend. Oh and I ordered this Hauppauge card as TV tuner.
Finally, the major challenge of setting up Extender for Xbox is getting the firewall settings correct. I'm currently using the Windows OneCare Beta, and needed to manually (I guess that is the correct verb for typing in specific port values for it to work) set the ports. This Microsoft Knowledge Base 883352 Release Notes has a helpful section on networking - I opened the ports described (only for internal router traffic) and it worked. :)
I have decided to return to Microsoft following graduation to work with the same group that I interned with this past summer. I'm excited to return, although my last couple quarters will be thoroughly enjoyed while I have the time yet. :)
Some good coverage of Microsoft in the FT recently around a PWC survey of most respected companies. Especially interesting is the small note on the role of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
I must admit, as a Treo 600 owner, that I am very excited to see the new Palm and Microsoft partnership.
Final week at Microsoft. Actually just one more day and I have to give up the blue badge. I don't think I'll miss the "t-" in front of my email alias though. :)
It's been a great summer for a lot of reasons. I had my final scheduled coffee break and my final scheduled lunch...actually tomorrow's may need to be ad hoc considering it is the final day.
Went to Dragonfish tonight with some friends - one of the better Prime card restaurants. Returning tomorrow for a final dinner with co-workers before I depart on Saturday.
Looking forward to a quick trip back to Goshen spend some catching up time with the family and also enjoy a change of pace, hopefully some coffeeshop or just coffee time with the laptop getting caught up on scheduling and plans for LEAD and the first quarter.
Oh and results of RBS come out tomorrow.
I had some recent questions about MBAs at Microsoft, so I thought I'd share my response (tweaked slightly for public consumption). [Do I need a disclaimer here? If it's not obvious, all comments are my own and do not reflect Microsoft policies.] :) Also, feel free to check out the official Microsoft MBA site.
....................................
MS wants MBAs across the organization (many MBAs are already there
in fairly high levels) in many business functions including corporate,
finance, marketing, etc.
Marketing Roles
- Product Planner - 18-24 month timeframe planning around a version or
two out of what will be released within 12 months
- Product Management - marketing focused product activities across all
business groups
Finance Roles
- Finance - various roles within business groups
- Business Development - various activities within business groups
Corporate Roles
- Corporate Planning/Analysis - finance activities at a corporate level
- Corporate Strategy - (usually recruited separately than others) -
internal consulting group
- Corporate Development - (usually recruited separately than others) -
acquisition transaction execution
Product Development
- Not recruited for at MBA programs - this is where the *real* work gets done by CSs and engineers who make the products that make the company
3. Because MBAs are almost always in non development areas (except
Product Planning which is slightly more technical and reports up
through product development) there is no comparison to development (CS
roles). Clearly dev makes the products and BillG has a special place in his heart for development, however SteveB appears more slanted to business side since he was not a coder. Sales is very very important and has a clear respect in the org (SteveB lead the sale org at one point). Most Redmond people haven't sold anything in their lives and to move up in management a stint in the sale org (called "the field") is almost a requirement.
In addition to all this, the summer is an amazing time in Seattle and the internship has many resources allocated to it - lunch speakers are definitely a highlight! Definitely a great experience in its own right.
US News has a nice little overview of BillG's home. The diagram is actually fairly accurate and it has some nice information.
Thanks to Heather's "Marketing and Finance at Microsoft" Blog.
I assume many of you saw the press release on the pricing of the 360. Unfortunately I can't pre-order before I leave. But a fellow intern did in fact win a 360 in a recent raffle...of course he doesn't have it yet, but it'll be shipped to him on release.
Oh, and I did get to play around with a beta unit a couple days ago. And read some internal docs on it. Pretty nifty stuff - especially the software.
Finally, Robbie Bach spoke at a recent MBA Intern lunch - very solid guy and very cool. He attended the other GSB.
Monday night was the intern BBQ at Bill Gates' home. I heard that BillG (as he's known internally at Microsoft) used to have dinners for all new employees at his previous home. The current home is designed well for hosting large groups - there were more than 200 there on Monday. Other than seeing the actual location and very very nice water environments and some of the more public areas (no tours of the actual house), the neatest aspect of the night was that Mr. Gates answered questions for more than 2 hours straight. He was mobbed by the undergrad interns and most questions seemed to be more technically focused, and he seemed to enjoy the interaction. He speaks very well and seems to think on this feet well.
The portion of the home that we did see - main staircase down to the waterfront, theater, external gardens, and pool house - were amazing. Excellent use of natural and wood materials in a very classy fashion. I've heard that much of the house sits back into the hillside, which seemed true after the drive back up the lane.
It was definitely one of the summer highlights. :)
Yesterday the MBA interns had a tour of XBox's PlayTest facilities including the usability labs and play labs. We all played a couple games of Halo 2 against each other. I wasn't the most skilled...but near the top. :)
Following up on a comment a couple days ago, I wanted to list a few links if anyone is interested in MS game testing or Accessibility testing.
The first work day of each week is generally my Ultimate Frisbee night. Microsoft has a summer hat league - of mostly learners and quasi-good players with a couple excellent team captains and teachers mixed in. I'm dreadfully out of shape, although gradually improving. Still using the same shoes from undergrad so maybe it's time for a new pair.
Tonight we had a refreshing cool rain/drizzle and the excitement of a security-forced time out as a helicopter took off from part of the ball fields carrying someone, relatively important I assume. :)
Last Friday I had the chance to attend an XBOX 360 presentation as part of Microsoft's Breakfast Series. Most of the Breakfast Series don't have 1400 people attending, so this one had a lot of extra energy. Multiple times I let go an audible and physical "Wow!" The presentation included some just 'baked' code along with a demo of some very very cool features. Looks like a great thing to look forward to for this years annual post-Thanksgiving shopping trip.
Today was the end of my second week at Microsoft. The time has gone very quickly, and I've enjoyed immersing myself with the people, company, culture, and projects! I also really like the Seattle area - lots of green all around thanks to the nice amount of precipitation. :)
I would recommend taking at least a week or two between the end of Spring quarter and the beginning of an internship...to rest and also to mentally transition from school schedule to work life again.
Hopefully more updating this weekend, including some links I need to add.
Last Tuesday was the first day of the internship and New Employee Orientation. We had an excellent orientation facilitator, with great Audience Captivation Training skills. :)
The afternoon was a neat tour of Seattle inlcuding the locks and salmon ladder between the lake and the bay.
The rest of the week seemed to fly by - meeing my mentor and manager again, connecting with the rest of the team, getting setup with a laptop and attending intern bowling night. Bowling night actually turned into billiards night also, which was a lot of fun. And then arcade night. Jurassic Park III is a fun shooting game. :)
Friday afternoon was a team building event - and we played Whirlyball; which I was familiar with thanks to Chicago GSB admit weekend.
Great first week and hopefully will get into the projects more directly this next week.
First entry of a new category...
Information out today about Office 12 and the timeline around beta and release. Interesting commentary about SOX, related to Office documents.