Windows Logo Program Newsletter for January 18, 2011

Sign up for other newsletters | Unsubscribe | Update your profile The Windows Logo Program Newsletter provides up to date information about the Windows Logo Program. Did you get this newsletter from a friend? Subscribe to the Windows Logo Program Newsletter. Announcing the Windows Logo Kit 1.6 Release Schedule Windows Logo Kit (WLK) 1.6 is expected to be released to manufacturing (RTM) on approximately January 28. It will then be released to the web (RTW) within a week. WLK 1.6 will become a required kit for logo submissions effective June 1, 2011. Until that date, partners can choose to use either WLK 1.5 or WLK 1.6 for logo submissions. WLK 1.5 expires at 23:59 P.M. Pacific Time on May 31.   Obtaining a logo for Windows XP can only be done using WLK 1.5, and only until 23:59 P.M. Pacific Time on May 31. Partners can, however, obtain a driver signature for Windows XP by submitting through the "Unclassified" program in WLK 1.6. Drivers submitted through the Windows XP Unclassified category are eligible to go on Windows Update. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/whql/resources/news/whqlnews_120710.html. Partners are required to use Windows 7 Service Pack 1 to test their submissions 90 days after the RTM of the service pack. This is documented in Policy-0002. Edition for January 18, 2011 In This Issue: Announcing the Windows Logo Kit 1.6 Release Schedule What's New on WHDC? Windows Logo Program References • Windows Logo Program Newsletter Archives Sign up for other newsletters | Update your profile © 2010 Microsoft Corporation Terms of Use | Trademarks | Legal Information

Microsoft respects your privacy. Please read our online Privacy Statement. If you would prefer to no longer receive this newsletter, please click here to unsubscribe or reply to this message with "UNSUBSCRIBE" in the subject line. To set your contact preferences for other Microsoft communications, see the communications preferences section of the Microsoft Privacy Statement. Microsoft Corporation One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052 USA

Save Time and Money with Partner Benefits

View this email in your browser Public Edition | January 17, 2011 Follow us:   Your Network. Your Benefits. Your Advantage. In todays marketplace, competition is fierce. But joining the Microsoft Partner Network offers you an advantage. As a member, you have access to a set of core benefits, aligned to the partner business cycle, that can help you save time and money—and help you make the most of your unique expertise. Each membership opportunity offers ways to strengthen your capabilities, better serve customers, and develop new opportunities. The deeper your commitment is to Microsoft, the more benefits you receive, and the higher their value is to your business. When you purchase a subscription or earn a competency, you get even more benefits that are tailored specifically to those membership opportunities. And if you earn additional competencies? More benefits. Benefits You Can Receive Internal-use licenses for the latest Microsoft software Business and technical training through the Partner Learning Center Customizable marketing tools and resources in the revamped Partner Marketing Center Exposure to tens of thousands of customers through Microsoft Pinpoint Developer tools, software, communities, and resources through MSDN subscriptions Access to TechNet Subscriptions, which provide similar tools and resources to IT professionals Technical advisory and incident support provided by Partner Technical Services Updates about the latest news, offers, and training, through partner newsletters Why Join? | Microsoft Partner Portal | Enroll in the Partner Network Build Your Business Bring Customers to the Cloud—Quickly Join the partner network to take advantage of Practice Accelerator for Business Productivity Online Suite –Standard. Get the tools you need to move customers to online services with the same functionality and security of on-premises environments, and with the added agility of the web. Build a Better Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Practice Get tools and resources to help you effectively deliver a solution that can reduce your customers’ hardware, software, and IT staff costs. Build New Service Offerings and Reach More Customers Sign up for the Microsoft Platform Ready for Hosters program to access software, training, support, and exclusive marketing offers. Product and Solution Center See How Internet Explorer Compares to Other Browsers Watch a side-by-side comparison that shows the performance of the Internet Explorer 9  browser against Firefox, Google Chrome, and others. Enter the SharePoint Journeys Video Contest Create a video that shows how your unique use of Microsoft SharePoint 2010 improves how people work together, and you could win a pass to SharePoint Conference 2011 in Anaheim, California. Training and Readiness Prepare Your Sales Team for the Hosted Exchange Opportunity Take advantage of Windows Phone 7 market momentum to increase your Hosted Exchange business. Help your sales team learn about the benefits of this winning combination with online sales training—available at no charge to Microsoft Partner Network members. Enroll Today and Get No-Charge Training Network members have access to hundreds of no-charge training opportunities through the Partner Learning Center. Join today and explore them for yourself. Technical Support Need Support for Your Cloud Services? Access presales support, competitive assistance, and deployment guidance when you join the Microsoft Partner Network. And take workshops for Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite and Windows Azure. Offers and Promotions Special Partner Offer: Upgrade to Expression Ultimate Step up from Microsoft Expression Studio 4 Premium to Expression Studio 4 Ultimate and gain the advantages of SketchFlow for the reduced price of US$199. Follow Us on Twitter Like Our Page on Facebook In Other News Start Growing Your Business by Subscribing to a Microsoft cloud Program Take Advantage of the Visual Studio and Expression Studio partner Offer Visit BizIntelligence.TV, the One Stop for Everything BI Go to Our Facebook Page to Tell Us What You Think about Partner Training Get the Latest Training News on Twitter You are receiving this newsletter at your request. Visit the Microsoft Partner Network Portal Newsletter Legal Information This newsletter was sent by: Microsoft Corporation One Microsoft Way Redmond, Washington, USA 98052 Sign Up for Other Newsletters © 2011 Microsoft Corporation.    Terms of Use | Trademarks | Privacy Statement

Microsoft in Government: Take a second look at Microsoft Virtualization

Sign up for other newsletters | Unsubscribe | Update your profile | Microsoft Government Home

January 13, 2011   If you're using the VMware ESX hypervisor to consolidate server workloads, reduce costs, and gain efficiencies, download the white paper to learn why you should take a second look at Microsoft Hyper-V and System Center. News and highlights   Delaware public notaries move into digital age with help from Microsoft The Microsoft-based eNotary system will provide advantages over a paper system by increasing speed, lowering costs, and enhancing document security and the trustworthiness of the notarial seal. – CivSource   California government agencies favor Microsoft for e-mail California state agencies are choosing to migrate employees to Microsoft-hosted email over a state-hosted system by about a 2:1 ratio. – InformationWeek   Companies invest in tomorrow Although not a traditional defense contractor, Microsoft invests billions of dollars annually that benefit the Department of Defense and government agencies. – Signal   Microsoft cloud infrastructure passes FISMA test Microsoft's cloud infrastructure has passed a key security certification validating its use for the federal government, paving the way for broader adoption of its cloud-based services among agencies. – GCN   Microsoft straightens out cloud strategy Things will get rowdier for vendors of cloud collaboration, communication and office productivity applications now that Microsoft plans to unleash a take-no-prisoners assault on the market with Office 365. Technology update   Jumpstart your deployment Evaluate the new Microsoft desktop technologies, including Windows 7, Office 2010 Professional Plus, Internet Explorer 8, and Application Virtualization, with Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack and a proof of concept. Download the Jumpstart Kit now!   Microsoft Silverlight 5 to boost media, app development Microsoft recently unveiled Silverlight 5, which promises to improve media playback, reduce application development time, and add support for 3-D and hardware acceleration. – CNET   Microsoft shows off tech side at toy show Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer discussed the core engineering behind the next version of Windows and the chips it will run on at the consumer electronics show. – The Seattle Times   Windows Embedded Handheld 6.5 makes debut Microsoft made available Windows Embedded Handheld 6.5, an operating system targeted primarily at devices for custom business applications, such as bar-code scanning and RFID tag reading. – ZDNet For developers   Enter the Windows Phone government apps contest Register your state and local government application for Windows Phone 7 for a chance to win an Xbox 360 4GB console with Kinect.  Hurry—the contest ends February 18, 2011 at midnight (PST).   Live events  Windows Phone 7 Event for Public Sector (Olympia, Washington, Jan. 25, 9 A.M.) Public Sector Developer Dinner: SharePoint 2010 as a Development Platform Series (Reston, Virginia, Jan. 26, 6 P.M.) Live webcasts Feature demonstration of Visual Studio (Jan. 20, 2:00 P.M. ET) Overview of Visual Studio 2010 (Feb. 10, 2:00 P.M. ET) Feature demonstration of Visual Studio (Feb. 17, 2:00 P.M. ET)  Events Join us online on January 27 for the Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 global launch event Attend this no-cost global virtual launch event and join Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer as he introduces Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. Once registered, choose the public sector track and learn how Dynamics CRM 2011 can help you enrich constituent service interaction. Join Microsoft at FedScoop's 2nd Annual CyberSecurity Summit The summit will be held on February 24 at The Newseum in Washington, D.C.  Come network with top decision makers from the federal government and government IT community as they come together to discuss the current state of cybersecurity in the federal government. In this issue: » News » Technology update » For developers » Events     State and local government   Meeting the needs of today's government workforce through desktop optimization Jan. 18, 1:00 P.M. ET   Driving effective grants management & tracking Feb. 9, 1:00 P.M. ET   Transforming government IT with cloud power March 16, 1:00 P.M. ET     GovLoop webcast series: Harness the power of the cloud   Intro to cloud January 27, 2:00 P.M. ET   Implementing your cloud strategy Feb. 3, 3:00 P.M. ET     Bing Maps   Managing your agency's geospatial imagery services in the cloud Feb. 17, 2:00 P.M. ET      Federal State and Local Federal State and Local Federal State and Local Not yet a subscriber? Sign up!  Questions? E-mail us.   Microsoft respects your privacy. Please read our online Privacy Statement. If you would prefer to no longer receive this newsletter, please reply to this message with "UNSUBSCRIBE" in the subject line or click here to sign in and unsubscribe. These settings will not affect any other newsletters you've requested or any mandatory service communications that are considered part of certain Microsoft services. To set your contact preferences for other Microsoft communications, see the communications preferences section of the Microsoft Privacy Statement. One Microsoft Way Redmond, Washington, USA 98052 Sign up for other newsletters | Unsubscribe | Update your profile | Microsoft Government Home © 2010 Microsoft Corporation  Terms of Use | Trademarks | Privacy Statement