Microsoft challenges penguin cuddliness with TechNet kindness

Baby back ribs. A nasty name when you think about it, but with meat falling off the bone, a pile of roasted potatoes, a friendly merlot, and the Patriots on TV setting a new record for undefeated … ness, who’s thinking about nastiness? I can’t even remember the Seattle poopypants fiasco -- and on the slim chance she’s reading: Please never say that word again. With a BBQ-sauce-and-wine cocktail slowly congealing in my goatee and the Pats crushing the opposition off to my left, I’ve established a sanctuary of safety, a cloud of calm, a haven of … never mind. Point is, anxiety has taken a backseat to personal comfort.

And yes, there’s a Redmond segue here, although as usual, it’s somewhat tenuous. In case the never-ending spew of server products from the poopy-oriented Northwest has on occasion become too much for you, I strongly advise checking out the TechNet Virtual Lab .

Need to get your mental fingers deep into the guts of a new Microsoft server product? Can’t afford a test lab or all the configuration time required to set up software with which you’ve got little experience? TechNet Virtual Lab to the rescue. And no need to purchase TechNet membership either; just fill out some user registration information -- and, Microsoft, you could use some work on this script -- and you’re ready to download any of eight different server modules.

Each module comes not only with evaluation software but with full documentation presented in what amounts to lesson plan format. The combination allows users to play with these servers in a sandbox environment on a connected or stand-alone machine without the need to dedicate hardware to your learning curve. Sure, downloads take some time, and the lesson plan does have a bit of the Microsoft moonie atmosphere about it, but for anyone not familiar with the software in question, Virtual Lab's value is unquestionable.

The bad news is, Microsoft stopped at only eight modules. Where’s Commerce Server , CRM, Storage Server, or Live Communications Server? Guys like me love the MOM (Microsoft Operations Manager) , ISA (Internet Security and Acceleration) Server, and similar modules, but in this age of IT-add-value-or-hit-the-bricks, elucidating on some of the other tools in the Microsoft shed could certainly make many of our lives a bit easier.