It baffles me. There's  a perfectly good SBS 2003 newsgroup (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs) which is very active and has some very good people providing support.

Then there's a SBS 2003-only article giving details of how to upgrade from WSS 2.0 to WSS 3.0 (and keep WSS 2.0) *only* in that SBS 2003 environment.

Yet despite the fact that no-one in the WSS newsgroup has yet managed to answer questions about that procedure (not really surprising because the vast majority of them don't have SBS 2003 and so they can't follow the article even if they felt like it), people still continue to post questions *in the .windowsservices* newsgroup about it.

What are they trying to achieve ?  If we don't have SBS 2003 we're not going to install it no matter how many SBS 2003 specific questions that come there.

Yet if anyone dares to reply and suggest that they post to microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs the likelihood is that they'll get snapped at.

The computer world's a mad place sometimes (or is it just the people in it?).

I can only assume that there was a DNS mess-up in Germany that led to www.asaris.de being redirected to the other company I mentioned in my last post.

Now, at least, the WSS FAQ mirror is working again after giving me the biggest scare I've had for many years.

Breathes out (and again and again and again)

It seems to be a regular event. On the last day of the 2005 I just happened to be on-line when I received an e-mail that the SharePoint hoster of the European mirror site was moving to a new server and so the site was down for a couple of days and then reappeared with a new address that I had to map into DNS servers etc.

There was nothing to complain about. Hosting is provided free to me by the german Asaris company and they were moving to their own servers from those of a third-party.

At the end of 2006 I rather expected something similar - this time because I suspected that Asaris would be upgrading to MOSS 2007 (the earlier site ran on a WSS site within SPS 2003) - but nothing happened just before the New Year so I thought I was OK for a while.

Now after the site has worked well so far in 2007, it's suddenly gone down and when I checked www.asaris.de (the WSS FAQ site is actually http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/default.aspx) I was transfered to http://www2.mycema.com/default.aspx and all attempts to add sites/walsh to that failed. (Yes I did try).

So I've done what I could do and whipped off an e-mail and I am keeping my fingers crossed that they didn't contact me because they are going to transfer my sites.

But if not, and if I've lost my free hoster, I'll be looking for a new one that is prepared to host the mirror site in return for an ad on the front page.

But for now guys, use the wss.collutions.com site !

It's really a major pity that the direct link to the Books List has gone just as the SharePoint v3 Books are starting to come out....

Fingers tightly crossed ... Mike

P.S. They do seem now to be hosting using MOSS 2007 so hopefully, hopefully they have moved my stuff across ....

Look here for the list of SharePoint v3 books

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/V%20Books.aspx

It's been a long wait but finally one of them, Todd Bleeker's book on WSS 3.0 listed fourth is OUT !

Next to come is maybe the Adminstrator's Guide (Bill English et al.). 

Is life so dull in Minnesota ?

Note: All of the addresses of the KB / Articles - 2007 Products / MS / Non-MS Articles below were valid at the time I added them to the WSS FAQ site and to this file. I can't guarantee that they still are.

(This is also posted to the WSS newsgroup at microsoft.public.sharepoint.windowsservices - web access via http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/newsgroups/server/sharepoint.mspx)

(Items are added to the WSS FAQ throughout the week so you will find new items more quickly by checking at wss.collutions.com or www.wssfaq.com daily.)

From 24th - 31st December 2006

 

I 2007 KB Articles    (*now only one section for WSS and MOSS*)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928726

Error message when a user tries to view a chart in Excel Web Access: "Failed to download Excel Services Chart"

29th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928030

When you insert a label in a document that you have created and then saved in a SharePoint Server 2007 document library, some characters do not appear in the Label field

28th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928730

You may expose internal server names or path names when you post an Excel 2007 file to a SharePoint Server 2007 Web site if the file uses a CELL(<address>) function

23rd December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928743

Analysis Services data cache sharing of an OLAP cube may not work correctly in Excel Calculation Services

22nd December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928750

The Office SharePoint Server 2007 Excel Services server may not have sufficient memory to function correctly when the "Maximum Private Bytes" attribute is set to a value that is less than 100 MB

22nd December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928749

Excel Services will not load workbooks from sites that are mapped to internal sites that are listed as trusted locations in SharePoint Server 2007

22nd December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928302

Anonymous users can search the version comments in a document or in a picture in SharePoint Server 2007

21st December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928751

The Sort Order is not applied when you select a new Sort Order that is not the default Sort Order for a site locale in Office SharePoint Server 2007

21st December 2006

Modified

None

II. Articles - 2007 Products  (*still for the moment with other Office 2007 products - this may change in the future*)

New

A. Office 2007 Server Products

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=5e9bf2af-7019-4723-b8d9-6d2a376d302e&displaylang=en

Using InfoPath Forms on a SharePoint Site Get Started

29th December 2006

http://www.mikeysgblog.com/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?List=2a6f6104%2D74fc%2D44a8%2D9105%2D8e1ccca15897&ID=426

Installing The PDF Ifilter In SharePoint and Registering the PDF Icon (Blog - Michael Gannotti using information from Marvin Mitchell)

29th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/SharePoint/?rss=http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/SharePoint

An Overview of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (TechNet Magazine Jan 2007 - Thomas Rizzo)

28th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Security/?rss=http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Security

7 New Features That Enhance Security in SharePoint  (TechNet Magazine Jan 2007 - Adam Robert Buenz)

28th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Search/?rss=http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Search

Find It All with SharePoint Enterprise Search (TechNet Magazine Jan 2007 - Matt Hester)

28th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/CommandPrompt/?rss=http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/CommandPrompt

Powerful Command Line Administration for SharePoint (TechNet Magazine Jan 2007 - Todd Klindt)

28th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Wiki/?rss=http://www.microsoft.com/technet/technetmag/issues/2007/01/Wiki

Wiki While You Work (TechNet Magazine Jan 2007 - Mauro Cardarelli)

28th December 2006 (date added)

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/tonstegeman/archive/2006/12/26/17238.aspx

Exporting and importing SharePoint 2007 content using the object model (Blog - Ton Stegeman)

26th December 2006

http://blog.funknstyle.com/?p=563

SharePoint 2007 – Document Library Send To Feature (Blog - Amanda Murphy)

22nd December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=8626ec5d-115a-431a-a8b0-dd4b91b1821a&displaylang=en

SharePoint Surveys Get Started

22nd December 2006

http://blogs.technet.com/wbaer/archive/2006/12/22/prescan-errors-what-they-mean.aspx

PRESCAN Errors: What they mean (Blog - William Baer)

22nd December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=e120ae9b-750b-4f1d-ab98-9c10c48cc52e&displaylang=en

IT Showcase: Streamlining Records Management Using SharePoint Server 2007 Workflow

22nd December 2006

https://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/WebCastRegistrationConfirmation.aspx?culture=en-US&RegistrationID=1287452235

MSDN Webcast: SharePoint Server 2007 Web Content Management for Developers and Designers (Level 200) (Andrew Connell, Mindsharp)

21st December 2006

http://www.ideseg.com/AddCustomWorkflowActivitiesToSharePointDesignerPart2.aspx

Add custom workflow activities to SharePoint Designer (Part 2) (Blog - Carlos Segura Sanz)

13th December 2006

http://www.ideseg.com/AddCustomWorkflowActivitiesToSharePointDesignerPart1.aspx

Add custom workflow activities to SharePoint Designer (Part 1) (Blog - Carlos Segura Sanz)

12th December 2006

http://www.ideseg.com/AccionesDeFlujosDeTrabajoPersonalizadasEnSharePointDesigner2.aspx

Acciones de flujos de trabajo personalizadas en SharePoint Designer (2) (in Spanish) (Blog - Carlos Segura Sanz)

9th December 2006

http://www.ideseg.com/AccionesDeFlujosDeTrabajoPersonalizadasEnSharePointDesigner1.aspx

Acciones de flujos de trabajo personalizadas en SharePoint Designer (1) (in Spanish) (Blog - Carlos Segura Sanz)

8th December 2006

B. Other Office 2007 products

None

 

C. Other New 2006/2007 Products

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=3119f516-a14a-4144-848f-0390dd13eb60&displaylang=en

Microsoft® Expression Web Quickstart Guide (ver 1)

23rd December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=4a4cc4c9-a0e9-49c7-8bf1-e0264a2094e9&displaylang=en

Microsoft® Expression® Design Portfolio Starter Kit

22nd December 2006

 

Modified

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=bae62cfc-d5a7-46d2-9063-0f6885c26b98&displaylang=en

Rights Management Services Administration Toolkit with SP2 (Ed. no longer in beta)

23rd December 2006

Deleted

I have removed all the links to SharePointv3-based sites. There are now too many to try to keep track of.

 

III WSS v3 FAQ

New

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=929

III.80 How do I transfer a WSS site in a Virtual Machine to a production site?

Modified

None

Deleted

None

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

IV WSSv2 KB Articles (plus SPS 2003 Hot fixes)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;929260

You cannot use the "Minimize" option and other menu options in Web Parts in the personal view on a Windows SharePoint Services site

21st December 2006

Modified

None

V. MS Articles for WSSv2

New

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=b81ef41f-11ed-43f5-817f-a62a02dc3cc4&displaylang=en

SharePoint Meeting Workspaces Get Started (2003)

22nd December 2006

Modified

None

VI Non-MS Articles for WSSv2

New

None

Modified

None

VII WSSv2 FAQ

New

None

Modified

http//www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSS%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=626

VIII.10.55 Free WSS-relevant Programs - SharePoint Document Puller (S.S.Ahmed) * Now ver 4.0*

My desktop has been playing up recently (I'm a slow mover so that means roughly for 3 months) with the two main indications (apart from the slow start-up and occasional freezes of my wife's boot system) being the fan going almost immediately to LOUD and the occasional shut down of the computer for no apparent reason (upon which you can't just turn it back on; you have to turn it on; then turn it off at the mains then on at the mains). This latter occured every time I tried to install Vista on that machine on a parallel partition but today occured when only Outlook was open and doing absolutely nothing.

So finally I pulled out all the cables; dragged it out from under the desk (it's a tower model "desktop"); and opened it up. A bit of dust, sure but not much so I looked at a few things inside the case and finally got to the processor fan. Most of the slots between it and the processor were not the colour of the original metal but were white (the colour of small particles of dust).

So I poked about a bit with a pencil (which I reckoned was safe) and started extracting small chunks of white dust. A painfully slow process but well worth it because now the computer has been back on for about 20 minutes; is doing some heavy processing (converting .ra files to .mp3) and is still maintaining that low hum.

Now I'm wondering about Vista. Pity that in the meantime I've grabbed the space on that partition :)

One of the things (and running a close second to the latest phenomena of posting to a newsgroup for all SharePoint products and versions and not bothering to say which one you are using) I dislike intensely in the public SharePoint newsgroups is the habit of some people of saying they have a problem; explaining what it is (so far so good) and then unnecessarily slagging off Microsoft for not having fixed this.

Now I follow closely the KB articles that Microsoft issue and there are an amazing number of WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007 KB articles appearing at the moment which are either pointing out that something is by design; giving a fix or confessing an error and giving a workaround. Given time there will be code fixes and inevitably a Service Pack followed just as inevitably by post-Service Pack fixes etc.

So Microsoft are following errors that are reported but every time I see a message with the kind of unnecessary "why haven't Microsoft fixed this" statements (and worse) all I can think is that if anything this particular obscure thing *won't* be fixed in a hurry because Microsoft people are just as human as the rest of us and humans don't respond well to being told they are idiots.

P.S. Make that running a close *third*. The most annoying thing continues to be people who mark their (public newsgroups remember which equals volunteer support) posts as Urgent! and then bitch about not getting a reply within a few hours. In fact make it *fourth* because of all the people who post the same message to a lot of different newsgroups either immediately or after those few hours had elapsed without an answer. There was one guy recently who sent 6 questions to one SharePoint newsgroup and received answers within 24 hours to 2 of them. So then he sent identical copies of the other four messages to another SharePoint newsgroup. Amazing.

P.P.S. If any of the "Urgent" guys are reading this, call Microsoft PSS (Product Support Services) with your credit card available. They have to listen to you - it's their job.

Note: All of the addresses of the KB / Articles - 2007 Products / MS / Non-MS Articles below were valid at the time I added them to the WSS FAQ site and to this file. I can't guarantee that they still are.

(This is also posted to the WSS newsgroup at microsoft.public.sharepoint.windowsservices - web access via http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/newsgroups/server/sharepoint.mspx)

(Items are added to the WSS FAQ throughout the week so you will find new items more quickly by checking at wss.collutions.com or www.wssfaq.com daily.)

From 18th - 23rd December 2006   (posted a day early)

 

I 2007 KB Articles    (*now only one section for WSS and MOSS*)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928284

The order of blog post objects changes during publication when you use Word 2007 to publish a blog post to a SharePoint blog site (ver 1.1)

21st December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928035

You cannot add an alert or a new item to the Document ID Log Report in SharePoint Server 2007

21st December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928741

A maximum number of 25 sessions can be active at the same time on Excel Services when you enable anonymous access to a SharePoint Server 2007 Web site (ver 1.1)

20th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928728

You receive an error message when you use Excel Web Access to refresh the data connections for an Excel 2007 workbook

19th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928469

Setup is not successful when you install MSXML 6.0 and then you try to install a different language version of SharePoint Server 2007 (ver 1.1)

19th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928037

Error message when you try to create a document template in SharePoint Server 2007: "To save to the server, correct the invalid or missing required properties"

19th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928742

You cannot load an Excel 2007 workbook in Excel Web Access when a SharePoint Server 2007 Web site uses Basic authentication and when the trusted file location type is set to HTTP

19th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928309

The content from a folder in a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 document library is no longer synchronized with Outlook 2007 after you rename the folder

18th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;929649

How to use SQL Server to take a snapshot of a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 content database

18th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928747

The "View in Web Browser" option does not appear as expected when you try to view an Excel workbook in SharePoint 2007

15th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=927081

Error message when you try perform an in-place upgrade of the servers in a server farm that are running the Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 Indexing Service: "Application Web Config for this IIS site (1) could not be found'

13th December 2006

Modified

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928031

Review form buttons are disabled after an assigned role member clicks "Claim Task" and then clicks the Approve button in SharePoint Server 2007 (ver 1.1)  (slight name change too)

15th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=925714

An Excel 2007 workbook does not load from a Web page that uses EWA when there are many connections to the computer that is running SharePoint Server 2007 (ver 1.3)

14th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=926319

You cannot change to a view other than WebView view, create a new folder or delete an item when you use the Open dialog box in a 2007 Office program to open a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 site on a computer that is running Windows Vista (ver 2.0)

14th December 2006

 

II. Articles - 2007 Products  (*still for the moment with other Office 2007 products - this may change in the future*)

New

A. Office 2007 Server Products

http://www.andrewconnell.com/blog/archive/2006/12/23/5535.aspx

Hiding field controls in a page layout from presentation (Blog - Andrew Connell)

23rd December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/ldusolier/archive/2006/12/22/17172.aspx

Using the BDC feature of MOSS 2007 to interact with information stored in external data sources, for example SQL Server and Oracle data bases (Blog - Luis De Solier Grinda)

22nd December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=35ebf87f-bf98-4e6f-9987-e861533e3a8d&displaylang=en

Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Application Templates: Solution Accelerator Upgraded Version 2.0

21st December 2006

http://andrewconnell.com/blog/archive/2006/12/20/5451.aspx

Moving layout files (master pages, page layouts, CSS, etc.) in a MOSS Publishing site between multiple environments (Blog - Andrew Connell)

20th December 2006

http://www.andrewconnell.com/blog/articles/UsingVisualStudioAndMsBuildToCreateWssSolutions.aspx

Using Visual Studio 2005, MakeCab.exe and MSBuild to Create Window SharePoint Services v3 Solution Files (*.WSP's) (Blog - Andrew Connell)

20th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/ssa/archive/2006/12/19/17093.aspx

Creating a Custom Web Service for SharePoint (Blog - S.S. Ahmed)

20th December 2006

http://office.microsoft.com/search/redir.aspx?AssetID=AM101638931033&CTT=5&Origin=HA101639821033

Visio Drawing of SharePoint Database Administration

20th December 2006 (date added)

http://office.microsoft.com/search/redir.aspx?AssetID=AM101638891033&CTT=5&Origin=HA101639821033

Visio Drawing of SharePoint Application Security

20th December 2006 (date added)

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=79589&clcid=0x409 

Deployment for Office SharePoint Server 2007 (white paper)

19th December 2006 (date added - dated December 2006)

http://tinyurl.com/yee2t8

TechNet Webcast: Disaster Recovery Strategies for SharePoint Server 2007 (Level 200) (Bryan Von Axelson)

18th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/helloitsliam/archive/2006/12/16/17010.aspx

MOSS2007 – Write your own custom authentication provider (Part 4) (Blog - Liam Cleary)

16th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itshowcase/content/feermtwp.mspx

Facilitating Effective Employee Reviews at Microsoft (MOSS 2007 is part of the process)

21st November 2006

B. Other Office 2007 products

None

 

C. Other New 2006/2007 Products

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=e79691f0-be0f-40a6-940c-5d3a679c5526&displaylang=en

Commerce Server 2007 Performance Guide

20th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=f05fc67a-1a2d-45c3-8a9b-6d4123f560ea&DisplayLang=en

Commerce Server 2007 Starter Site Installation Guide (ver 1.0)

19th December 2006

Modified

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=4e50be6e-3f92-4552-a78c-b3be1d94d5da&displaylang=en

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Add-in for Microsoft SharePoint Technologies - Community Technology Preview (CTP) December 2006 (ver 9.00.3033)

19th December 2006

Deleted

None

III WSS v3 FAQ

New

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=924

II.08 How do I install WSSv3 in Account Creation mode?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=921

III.77 Application Templates: How do I get them to be included in my list of templates?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=923

III.78 How do I specify what properties are linked to in AD?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=925

Why don't I have the Data Connection Library listed in the Libraries section ? (MOSS 2007)

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=926

VI.23 Navigation Custom Control for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) (free - Stephen Huen)

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=927

VI.24 Site Map Web Part for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) (free - Stephen Huen)

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=928

VI.25 Summary Links User Control for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) (free - Stephen Huen)

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=922

VIII.10 Professional VMWare Server (Wrox - Eric Hammersley)

Modified

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=644

III.06.02 Anonymous Access: How do I get it to work on a blog item?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=851

III.71 WMSDE came with no database tools, what's the situation with embedded SQL Server 2005 Express?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=804

V.04 Developer's Guide to the Windows SharePoint Services v3 Platform (Charles River Media - Todd Bleeker)

Deleted

None

IV WSSv2 KB Articles (plus SPS 2003 Hot fixes)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;929104

Description of the SharePoint Portal Server 2003 post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package: December 12, 2006

15th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=929189

Description of the Windows SharePoint Services post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package: December 4, 2006

12th December 2006

Modified

None

V. MS Articles for WSSv2

New

None

Modified

None

VI Non-MS Articles for WSSv2

New

None

Modified

None

VII WSSv2 FAQ

New

None

Modified

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSS%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=579

I.23.4 What is fixed in the fix packs to WSS Service Pack 2?

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSS%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=580

I.28.02 What is fixed in the fix packs for SPS 2003 Service Pack 2

It's a minor quandry (and let's be clear I prefer to be on this side of this quandry). If I can install a product with no problems, then I have a certain amount of difficulty in helping people who are having problems installing the same product. Does this make me a bad MVP?

Perhaps I should explain how I did this installation and what document I was referring to when I did it.

As I wrote this was the standard *new* installation of MOSS 2007 (RTM) on a single server using the built-in database system. The next installation I try will be using SQL Server and I'm thinking of first doing the installation with SQL Server 2K SP4 or 5 and only when that (hopefully) goes OK, repeating with SQL Server 2005. 2K is still a well-known old friend and 2005 is still very much the new kid on the block for me so that approach helps me to sort out SP problems first rather than those caused by using SQL Server 2005.

As support documentation I used the installation sections of the December 2006 "Deployment for Office SharePoint Server 2007" white paper http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=79589&clcid=0x409 and I have a few comments about that though by and large it was OK.

I was doing this install on a VM that was already running Beta2TR of MOSS 2007, but I didn't bother with the upgrade in site because a) I don't have any data other than test data and b) I decided a while ago that I would get experience that could be used for a long time in the future rather than just the temporary experience of upgrading from Beta2TR which nobody will have the slightest interest in in a couple of months. Time is in short supply so these decisions need to be taken.

What I've learned in the past are that a MOSS install needs 1GB+ (in this case for the VM so the machine needs around 1.5GB at least - another reason for doing this while "on holiday" at home because the work machine has 1GB) and that before doing a new installation you need to remove as much as possible of the programs that were there before. I've found that removing everything you can from Control Panel / Add or remove programs is the best first step AND that that includes removing both .NET Framework 3.0 *and* .Net Framework 2.0. They'll both come back in any case but in the right versions and I'm happier when I know I've got rid of both of them first. Another thing I always do is - after having deleted all these programs - to re-boot. It might not be necessary but it doesn't hurt.

So with that done and the VM re-booted, I first checked (as the MS paper said) that the Application Server role was still there. This was followed by the installation of .NET Framework 3.0 using the exact URL specified in that article (which was correct.)

But now the third step is a curious one. It says to see that ASP.NET 2.0 is enabled. This is curious because every time I have installed .NET Framework 3.0, ASP.NET 2.0 has always been enabled directly afterwards. Microsoft playing safe I suppose.

Then you install MOSS 2007 (in my case from the .iso file) and here it says that if you haven't deleted earlier installations properly you may have problems with the installation routine when it creates the configuration database and in this case you need to create a new config db with a psconfig statement that it gives.

My problem here is that if this had happened to me, I wouldn't know *at what stage* I ought to run this command. The MS paper doesn't say. They just (in typical expert style) assume you know.

My next problem is that the text of the paper says that to install to a difficult location you need to click on Advanced (rather than Basic) Installation and then specify on the File Location tab the location you want to install to. The problem with this is that the File Location tab's text says that this is *only* to re-locate the index files.

So which is it guys - what the MS paper says or what the product UI says ?

Anyway I only had C: available on a VM anyway so I didn't bother with File Location. What I did do is wait for the Installation Phase to finish and then run the Configuration wizard and wait until it completed successfully and my web site appeared. Then I took a snapshot and closed down the "server". I'll do some configuration of it next time.

P.S. I had a quick look at the installation of a server farm which was the next section of the MS paper and there were a couple of examples of sloppiness.

One was that whereas the first step in a standalone installlation (before .NET Framework 3.0) was to Install and Configure IIS (=Application Server role), this wasn't mentioned at all in the server farm installation where it is equally essential.

The other was that *twice* MS people called Excel "Excell" (with two "l"s).

The third thing I noticed was that there was a recommended order for the installations before which there was nothing ! What there should have been was a note that you should first install SQL Server somewhere in the domain before starting the MOSS 2007 installations - that piece of information appeared *after* all the MOSS 2007 installations were listed.

This is like saying "do A, then B, then C, then D - oh, and by the way before you do A you must do Z.  A bit poor that ...

I've been using the free Newsgator browser edition since it came out and have continued to be amazed at the amount of positive amendments that have been made to the site since then. I used to recommend it to everyone.

Until now that is.

Because now they've made two major changes.

The first is they've made the default for blog feeds "summary view" and try as I may I can't find the "Display Properties" that allow me to change it (according to a self-ad on their site). Could it be that the free Browser edition doesn't allow you to change this default ? At the moment I'm muttering to myself everytime I have to open the daily link to the Dilbert site to see the cartoon.

[Later: it's not in the menu line or part of My Settings - it's in the bulk of the text above the "Mark All Posts on this Page as read" - see the first comment]

The second is that they've added Google AdSense ads, which is fair enough because they have no doubt costs involved in keeping my info on their servers and I also of course have Google ads on the WSS FAQ sites and even on each blog item here.

BUT my (and Jim Duncan's for the US WSS FAQ site) implementation of the Google ads is as inobtrusive as possible whereas the Newsgator people seem to have designed their implementation to p*** off as many people as possible.

You see whereas I and Jim both use the kind of Google ad that suits the location - so we might have a two-ad horizontal ad or a four small ads vertical ad alongside a text section that is *at least* as long (and usually longer) as the ad section, Newsgator have *per feed* a full five ad vertical column.

This of course isn't obtrusive if you have a feed with over 10 items - then the column is no longer than the text part of the page, but I have lots of feeds that consist of a single daily (or semi-daily) item and these are grouped so that I usually select the group.

What then happens is I get a single item from my first feed followed by a mass of white space; followed by the single item from my second feed followed by a mass of white space and so on - and all of course because alongside every piece of white space there are completely unnecessarily FIVE vertical ads.

Totally in your face and very very poorly thought out because if there is one thing I'm NOT going to do, it's click on ads that absolutely infuriate me.

[Later: that first comment also said they were working on the "whitespace problem"]

[Even later: They seem to have removed them altogether for a re-think - I recommend a horizontal set of two under every set of blog items, but then I would wouldn't I :) 

 Later the same day .... they are back and are just a mess as before (don't they test these things properly?). What I have is three different feeds in one section: the first feed has two items; the second one item; and the third two items so what you might expect is two ads; one ad and then two ads alongside them. What you actually get is 2 items: five ads [lots of empty space]; 1 item: no ads but space taken up for the equivalent of 5 ads [even more empty space]; 2 items: 2 ads [so they can if they want to!!]. What a mess!!]

Note: All of the addresses of the KB / Articles - 2007 Products / MS / Non-MS Articles below were valid at the time I added them to the WSS FAQ site and to this file. I can't guarantee that they still are.

(This is also posted to the WSS newsgroup at microsoft.public.sharepoint.windowsservices - web access via http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/newsgroups/server/sharepoint.mspx)

(Items are added to the WSS FAQ throughout the week so you will find new items more quickly by checking at wss.collutions.com or www.wssfaq.com daily.)

From 11th - 17th December 2006 

 

I 2007 KB Articles    (*now only one section for WSS and MOSS*)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928745

Some "Date Filter" and "Value Filter" commands may be unavailable when you use Excel Web Access to view an Excel workbook in SharePoint Server 2007

14th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928031

Review form buttons are disabled after a user clicks "Claim Task" and then clicks the Approve button in SharePoint Server 2007

14th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928304

You cannot select a new index server on the "Edit Shared Services Provider" page in SharePoint Server 2007

13th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928619

Adobe Reader files cannot be found after you add the .pdf file type to the list of crawled file types in SharePoint Server 2007

13th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928036

Users still have the Contributor permission on a released task in a SharePoint Server 2007 document library

13th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928740

Changes to an Excel 2007 workbook may not be displayed when you resave the workbook to a SharePoint Server 2007 document library and then view the workbook in Excel Web Access

13th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;927012

Error message when you perform a search query after you upgrade to the release version of Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0: "Your search cannot be completed because of a service error"

13th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928292

The text in a bulleted or numbered list becomes misaligned when you use Word 2007 to publish a blog post to a SharePoint blog site

12th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928327

Error message in Word 2007 when you try to publish a blog post to a blog that was created in Windows SharePoint Services: "Word cannot publish the pictures in this post"

11th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928299

The width of empty table cells is not preserved when you use Word 2007 to publish a table to a SharePoint blog site

11th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=929073

Error message when you start Forefront Server Security Administrator: "ERROR: Unable to connect to service"

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=929072

Error message when you use Forefront Security for SharePoint: "ERROR: Unable to connect to service." (ver 1.1)

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=929074

The scan engines are not updated when you schedule a scan engine update in Forefront Security for SharePoint, and an error message occurs: "ERROR: Unable to load manifest"

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;927156

Error message when you try to use the SharePoint Products and Technologies Wizard: "Exception: System.ArgumentException: Error during encryption or decryption"

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;927918

The computer restarts when you use the Config.xml file in the SetupUpgradeSilent folder to silently upgrade a computer that is running Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 to Windows SharePoint Services 3.0

7th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928830

Error message when you try to create a document library or a new site after you upgrade to Windows SharePoint Services 3.0: "Unknown Error" or "Method not found"

7th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928034

The Document ID log report does not contain information about deleted documents in SharePoint Server 2007

5th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928029

Document library does not open successfully when you try to use Internet Explorer 7 to open a SharePoint Server 2007 or a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 document library (ver 1.1)

4th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928038

Guidelines for managing the Group Approval workflow process in SharePoint Server 2007

2nd December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928753

You cannot locate an Excel 2007 workbook when you specify http://localhost in the workbook URL parameter for an Excel Web Access Web Part

1st December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=926813

You cannot upload or save a file when you try to use a 2007 Office program to upload the file to a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 document library (ver 1.1)

1st December 2006

Modified

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=925714

An Excel 2007 workbook does not load from a Web page that uses EWA when there are many connections to the computer that is running SharePoint Server 2007 (ver 1.2)

4th December 2006

II. Articles - 2007 Products  (*still for the moment with other Office 2007 products - this may change in the future*)

New

A. Office 2007 Server Products

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/helloitsliam/archive/2006/12/14/16973.aspx

MOSS2007 – Write your own custom authentication provider (Part 3) (Blog - Liam Cleary)

15th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=a70bd8f8-a0f0-4d00-9010-8e40b7c98f68&displaylang=en

Upgrade Toolkit for Windows SharePoint Services Sites and Templates Guide

15th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=4030d847-31bc-43ea-90ec-111b546d5411&displaylang=en

Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Application Template: GroupBoard Workspace 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=baa3ad86-bfc1-4bd4-9812-d9e710d44f42&displaylang=en

SharePoint Designer 2007 Trial Version

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=6bfa7447-a88d-4780-a981-b508a94ca120&displaylang=en

SharePoint Designer 2007 Trial Version for Developers

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=3e9af02d-174c-44b5-93fa-2b6db14efe6e&displaylang=en

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 Trial Version for Developers (Note: x86)

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=21b49283-e20c-4ba4-8c48-0ecbc6709c09&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Jerome Thiebaud about Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=3c84231f-722d-48d4-a071-df19a72bbbf4&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Tom Rizzo about Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5331ed9a-5723-4e51-9138-a6e59c7c0b69&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Jeff Wierer about Microsoft Office Excel Services

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=1de5949a-53fc-4081-ba1d-99c7c0913b8d&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Manish Sharma about records management

14th December 2006

http://tinyurl.com/ykofau

TechNet Webcast: An In-Depth Look at Search Technology in Office SharePoint Server 2007 (Level 200) (Matthew Hester)

13th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/helloitsliam/archive/2006/12/12/16887.aspx

MOSS2007 – Write your own custom authentication provider (Part 2) (Blog - Liam Cleary)

12th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/dwise/archive/2006/12/11/FilterViewbasedonWorkflow.aspx

How to Filter a View based on Workflow Status (Blog - David Wise)

11th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/helloitsliam/archive/2006/12/11/16842.aspx

MOSS2007 – Write your own Custom Authentication Provider (C#) (Blog - Liam Cleary)

11th December 2006

http://www.sharepointblogs.com/jason/archive/2006/12/11/16849.aspx

Define site column, content type, and add to document library using the object model (Blog - Jason Wang)

11th December 2006

http://blogs.msdn.com/ecm/archive/2006/12/11/building-tylerbutler-com-part-4-the-main-home-page-and-migrating-content.aspx

Building tylerbutler.com, Part 4: The Main Home Page and Migrating Content (MS Blog - Tyler Butler)

11th December 2006

http://tinyurl.com/ykhcrb

TechNet Webcast: Real-Time Collaboration and Office SharePoint Server 2007 (Level 200) (Keith Combs)

11th December 2006

http://tinyurl.com/yaqwvk

MSDN Webcast: Office SharePoint Server 2007 Business Data Catalog (Part 2 of 2): Developing Web Services (Level 200) (Mike Fitzmaurice)

8th December 2006

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=79322

Plan for building multilingual solutions by using SharePoint Products and Technologies

November 2006 (added 10th December 2006)

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/exams/70-541.mspx

Preparation Guide for Exam 70-541 - Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 - Application Development

30th October 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/exams/70-542.mspx

Preparation Guide for Exam 70-542 - Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 - Application Development

30th October 2006

B. Other Office 2007 products

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=6b0dfaf8-e232-4415-943a-26a4a7bf768d&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Christian Stark about Microsoft Office InfoPath Forms Services

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=beb85a7e-d94c-46ff-b63a-0667ef19d827&DisplayLang=en

Groove 2007 Document: Microsoft Office Groove 2007 Getting Started Guide

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=1616548f-31aa-4a8d-b8da-c91a906fe9ab&DisplayLang=en

Groove 2007 Document: Microsoft Office Groove 2007 User's Guide

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=2d1189bf-d86a-4acf-9dcc-4d61f500ad6d&displaylang=en

Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007 Trial Version

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=70f6ebda-5846-4e65-894f-a6e63c7119fe&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Jared Andersen about Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=e04b0dcc-8d79-46ad-af93-8bb5bae5a13d&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Gray Knowlton about Microsoft Office Word 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=8d1b2d6f-c470-4ab5-8833-31624a3a5453&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Alex Robinson about Microsoft Office OneNote 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=acf8b530-a4fe-4749-b891-58b94754a571&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office 2007 Audio File: Interview with Ryan Hoppe about Microsoft Office Groove 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=b2a6c1db-3d17-4fdf-8365-9b18fa5bcbe3&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office 2007 Audio File: Interview with Michael Worosz about Microsoft Office Excel 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=38128fe2-6a44-4a14-882d-fec9653f0dd2&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Jessica Arnold about Microsoft Office Outlook 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=7c9822cd-bfcc-4304-ab5e-fe750baa6abc&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Anne Weiler about Microsoft Office Enterprise 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=c2722280-f3a9-4f0e-b2cd-5b004a90c0aa&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Gray Knowlton about Microsoft Office Open XML File Formats

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=13cb85ff-96a6-4dd6-adfb-08440b99cf46&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: The Crabby Office Lady talks about fonts

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=a3ed2f95-03c2-4c5e-8bdb-e8428e890469&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Ritu Chaturvedi about Microsoft Office Visio 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=fbda4096-4aed-4dd6-b9fb-f16d7c998e63&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Mark Alexieff about Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=afadab97-c4de-4cce-8454-b978aa03ccd2&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Dev Balasubramanian about Windows Rights Management Services

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=6ce42907-3759-4dd7-83ea-bd8a233e9d53&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with William Lyon about Microsoft Project 2007

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5f35ed05-212b-4258-8f10-7c8f7813c646&DisplayLang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Jensen Harris about the new Microsoft Office 2007 user interface

14th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=87cde655-4fe6-47cd-afde-2ee5186bd3f2&displaylang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: Interview with Mor Hezi about Microsoft Office Access 2007

13th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=21b4c1b8-3332-414f-b868-5ed310b7c951&displaylang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: The Crabby Office Lady talks about templates

13th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=5eab8053-c5db-4633-a1f2-de7cdb81af0b&displaylang=en

Microsoft Office Audio File: The Crabby Office Lady talks about forwarding e-mail

13th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=7554f536-8c28-4598-9b72-ef94e038c891&displaylang=en

2007 Office System Driver: Data Connectivity Components

13th December 2006

http://tinyurl.com/uz4jh

Momentum Webcast: A Sneak Peek at Mobility Features in Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office System (Level 100) (Stephen Deming)

12th December 2006

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=8b48bd31-f043-4ab4-96eb-c6e958fe4ec9&displaylang=en

2007 Office System Document: Bringing Web 2.0 to the Enterprise with the 2007 Office System

12th December 2006

C. Other New 2006/2007 Products

http://tinyurl.com/ym857p

TechNet Webcast: How to Design Your Windows Rights Management Services (RMS) Deployment (Level 200) (Tim Upton, Titus)

14th December 2006

 

Modified

None

Deleted

None

III WSS v3 FAQ

New

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSSv3%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=920

What problems have been reported with IE7 (when used with WSSv3/MOSS 2007 sites)?

Modified

None

Deleted

None

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

IV WSSv2 KB Articles (plus SPS 2003 Hot fixes)

New

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=929197

Description of the MSNBC Web Parts that have been discontinued in the online Web Part gallery for Windows SharePoint Services (ver 1.1)

11h December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928215

Description of the SharePoint Portal Server 2003 post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package: November 17, 2006

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;928402

Description of the SharePoint Portal Server 2003 post-Service Pack 2 hotfix package: November 20, 2006 (ver 1.1)

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=926008

Error message when you create a new Data View in a Windows SharePoint Services 2.0 Web site that connects to an Access database: "The data retrieval service encountered an error during connection to the data source"

8th December 2006

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=926409

Error when you use the SharePoint Migration Tool to try to restore a Windows SharePoint Services Web site: "Error getting manifest for http://localhost (fatal)"

7th December 2006

Modified

None

V. MS Articles for WSSv2

New

None

Modified

None

VI Non-MS Articles for WSSv2

New

None

Modified

None

VII WSSv2 FAQ

New

None

Modified

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSS%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=580

I.28.2 What is fixed in the fix packs for SPS 2003 Service Pack 2

http://www.asaris.de/sites/walsh/Lists/WSS%20FAQ/DispForm.aspx?ID=193

III.59 How can I make the link between Web Part Connections a dropdown list rather than the standard radio buttons?