Sneak Peek: SQL Server 2012 learning products in development!

SQL Server 2012 is coming! Microsoft has already started developing some of the exams, courses, and books that will help our customers to learn SQL Server 2012 and to showcase their new skills. Here’s a sneak peek at what’s in the works.

The quick view

Title	Course	Book*	Exam
Querying Microsoft SQL Server	10774	Training Kit	70-461
Administering a Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Database	10775	Training Kit	70-462
Building Data Warehouses with Microsoft SQL Server 2012	10777	Training Kit	70-463
Developing a Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Database	10776	Exam Reference	70-464
Designing Database Solutions for SQL Server 2012	10778	Exam Reference	70-465
Implementing Data Models and Reports with Microsoft SQL Server 2012	TBD	Exam Reference	70-466
Designing Business Intelligence Solutions with Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Platform	TBD	Exam Reference	70-467

*There will be several other great SQL Server 2012 books as well, which won’t have corresponding exams and courses. More news on those later.

What’s different about the courses and books this time

• 1:1 mapping between exam, course, and book (no more two-course mapping!)
• An exam preparation book for each exam
• More real-world scenarios and business context

What’s different about the exams and certifications this time

• More community involvement in identifying the skills to be tested (over 300 people participated!)
• Higher expectations of skill level and experience for the successful candidate
• More direct focus on core skills such as querying and on business context
• Recertification required every three years at the Pro level

Wait just a minute. Did you say recertification?

Why yes, I did. In order to ensure that our certifications remain a meaningful and valuable indicator of candidate’s skills, SQL Server 2012 Professional-level certifications will require recertification every three years. Initially, the recertification requirement will be one or two exams. You can find out more by viewing the frequently asked questions about recertification on our web site.

Source: Krista Wall (Microsoft) via Born to Learn Blog!

Get the Skills. Keep the Kindle!

Receive the new generation Kindle Wi-Fi, preinstalled with Microsoft Official Course content and a Microsoft certification voucher when you enroll in a participating Microsoft Boot Camps from Unitek Education

THE SKILLS AND TOOLS YOU NEED TO SUCCEED.

In just one to six days, a Unitek Boot Camp provides the benefit of a live instructor a Microsoft Certified Trainer and classroom learning that is immediately practical and applicable on the job. Microsoft Certification takes training one step further as it validates your skills and helps you become more marketable as an IT professional or developer.

ANYTIME, ANYWHERE ACCESS TO COURSE MATERIAL.

Take learning content with you on a new Kindle, an ideal delivery tool for digital content. This offer is available for some of the most popular Microsoft Boot Camps exclusively from Microsoft Learning Partners, Unitek Education. When you attend classroom training, you will receive your Kindle pre-installed with the digital version of Microsoft Official Courseware plus a certification voucher to drive immediate exam delivery. Unitek Education’s Boot Camps will help prepare you to earn your next certification. With digital Microsoft Official Courses, you have the flexibility to consume course materials wherever you are, on most any device. It’s a cost-effective alternative to costly books and no CD installation is required.

VALUE OF CERTIFICATION

By earning a Microsoft Certification, you gain relevant skills that employers respect and you get the opportunity to connect with a global community of other certified professionals. The Microsoft Certification Program also provides you with access to valuable Microsoft resources and benefits, such as access to the member website, career-building tools, and training. Explore the benefits of certification—and start your journey toward your ideal career.

Participating Boot Camps:

• MCTS and MCITP: Exchange Server 2010 Boot Camp – 6 Days
• MCTS: Configuring Office SharePoint Server 2010 Boot Camp – 5 Days

    

4670 Auto Mall Parkway, Fremont, CA 94538 | www.Unitek.com/training | 1-888-825-6273

Complimentary Exam Coaching Sessions from Microsoft

Recently, Microsoft has added several new recorded Live Meetings to their Learning website, including exam coaching sessions. Presented by Microsoft Certified Trainers (MCTs), these sessions include an overview of the technologies you can expect to find on exams, along with the skills that are measured.

Browse exam coaching sessions for:

• Exchanger Server
• SharePoint Server
• SQL Server
• .NET Framework
• Windows Server
• Windows Client

Enjoy!

A New Path to Microsoft Certified Master in SQL Server 2008

SQL Server experts worldwide who have the skills, knowledge, and experience now have a better opportunity to prove it. With the new Microsoft Master program for SQL Server 2008, training is now optional and the required exams are available at selected high-security Prometric testing centers around the world. Microsoft is offering a variety of ways to prepare for the exams at your convenience, and they ensured that the quality and integrity of the certification remain at the same high level. If you have what it takes to become an MCM in SQL Server 2008, this is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for.

Free E-Book Offer: Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2

or a limited time, you can sign up to download a complimentary 10-chapter e-book: Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2, by Ross Mistry and Stacia Misner. Learn all about the powerful new database administration and business intelligence development enhancements available with this new edition of SQL Server 2008.

Microsoft Learning Product Releases for July 18-31

1.       Microsoft Official Courses (MOC) are instructor-led training courses offered by our Certified Partners.  Not all classes will be offered by all partners.  Find a training center through Class Locator and see if they will be offering the course you need.

2.       Community Courses (CC) are instructor-led training courses offered by our Certified Partners wherein the content is authored by our learning community.

3.       General Availability for MOC and CC is dependent on our Certified Partners, but the earliest is Orderable Date + 7 days.

4.       Products with no link currently don’t have a URL – search for the course in the training catalog

 Microsoft Exchange Server 2010

Title	Type	RTM (MCT Availability)	Orderable Date (MPN Availability)	General Availability
Deploying Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Configuring Mailbox Servers in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Managing Recipient Objects in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Managing Client Access in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Configuring Message Transport in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Implementing Messaging Security in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Implementing High Availability in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Implementing Backup and Recovery in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Configuring Messaging Policy and Compliance for Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Maintaining Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Deploying Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Managing Mailbox Servers and Recipients in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Managing Client Access in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Managing Message Transport and Security in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Implementing High Availability and Disaster Recovery in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Configuring Messaging Policy and Compliance in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Introduction to Planning an Exchange Server 2010 Deployment	E-Learning			7/23
Planning the Exchange Server 2010 Infrastructure Environment	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying Client Access Services in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying Message Transport in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying Mailbox Services in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying Messaging Security in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying Messaging Compliance in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Deploying High Availability in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Planning and Implementing Disaster Recovery in Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Transitioning to Exchange Server 2010	E-Learning			7/23
Configuring, Managing and Troubleshooting Microsoft® Exchange Server 2010 (German, Japanese, French)	MOC	7/30	8/16 (Japanese, French), 8/30 (German)	8/23 (Japanese, French), 9/6 (German)

 

Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010

Title	Type	RTM (MCT Availability)	Orderable Date (MPN Availability)	General Availability
What’s New in Microsoft® SharePoint® 2010 for IT Professionals	E-Learning			7/21
TS: Microsoft SharePoint 2010, Configuring (German, French, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazil))	Exam			7/27, 9/30 (Portuguese(Brazil))

  

Microsoft Office 2010

Title	Type	RTM (MCT Availability)	Orderable Date (MPN Availability)	General Availability
Beginner Skills in Microsoft® Outlook® 2010 (Italian, French)	MOC	7/19	8/2	8/9
What’s New in Microsoft® Office® 2010	MOC	7/28	8/11	8/18
Beginner Skills in Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2010 (Spanish, Japanese)	MOC	7/28	8/11	8/18
Beginner Skills in Microsoft® Outlook® 2010 (German)	MOC	7/28	8/11	8/18
Beginner Skills in Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2010 (German)	MOC	7/28	8/11	8/18
Skills Training in Microsoft® SharePoint® Designer 2010	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
Beginner Skills Training in Microsoft® Visio® 2010	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
Microsoft® SharePoint® Designer 2010 Part 1 – Setting up a New Site	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
Microsoft® SharePoint® Designer 2010 Part 2 – Workflows	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
Microsoft® SharePoint® Designer 2010 Part 3 – Content Types	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
Microsoft® SharePoint® Designer 2010 Part 4 – Integrating Business Data	MOC	7/29	8/12	8/19
What’s New in Microsoft® Access® 2010 (German, Spanish, Japanese)	E-Learning			Now
What’s New in Microsoft® Publisher 2010 (German, Spanish, Japanese)	E-Learning			Now
What’s New in Microsoft® Visio® 2010 (German, Spanish, Japanese)	E-Learning			Now
Skills Training in Microsoft® Outlook® 2010 (German, Spanish, Japanese)	E-Learning			7/28
Skills Training in Microsoft® Word 2010 (German, Spanish, Japanese)	E-Learning			7/28
Skills Training in Microsoft® Excel® 2010 (Spanish)	E-Learning			7/28

 

 Microsoft Essential Business Server

Title	Type	RTM (MCT Availability)	Orderable Date (MPN Availability)	General Availability
Configuring, Implementing, and Managing Windows® Essential Business Server 2008	E-Learning			7/28

 

 Microsoft Windows Server 2008

Title	Type	RTM (MCT Availability)	Orderable Date (MPN Availability)	General Availability
Implementing and Managing Microsoft® Server Virtualization	MOC	7/20	8/3	8/10
Fundamentals of Windows Server® 2008 Network and Applications Infrastructure (Spanish)	MOC	7/30	8/13	8/20
Configuring and Troubleshooting Windows Server® 2008 Active Directory® Domain Services (Spanish)	MOC	7/30	8/13	8/20
Configuring and Troubleshooting Internet Information Services in Windows Server® 2008 (Spanish)	MOC	7/30	8/13	8/20

Source: Born to Learn

Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations

There is an interesting new article in Certification Magazine that reports that database administrator is one of the fastest-growing occupations. It also provides a good ‘day in the life of a DBA’ narrative. If you are either considering a career as a DBA or are seeking to move your career forward as a DBA, you should definitely take a look at this article.

If you’re familiar with our Global Salary Survey (conducted in 2009) you might remember that on average – certified DBAs earn more than $8,000 more per year than non-certified DBAs. Also from our Global Salary Survey, we found that database administrators who have a lot of experience are earning just under $100,000 per year. So even in a tough economy it’s a great time to be a database administrator, and if you are not Oracle-certified – it’s a great time to consider certification as a way to (1) build your credibility, (2) increase your marketability and (3) improve your career.

Read the article here: “Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations” (Certification Magazine)

QUICK LINKS:

• Oracle Certification: 2009 Global Salary Survey
• Certification Magazine: “Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations“ 

New Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide for SQL Server 2008

Working with SQL Server 2008 (either original release or R2)? Check out the updated Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide for Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2. 

The guide helps:

• organizations confidently plan a Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 implementation.
• database administrators and technical decision makers identify which server roles will be needed.
• architects and administrators determine the infrastructure components, server placement, and fault-tolerance configuration.

Source: Born to Learn

Which Microsoft Training popular right now?

Most of us are curious about what others are thinking and doing. The exchange of information on the internet – shaped by polls, opinions, and ratings – can have an impact on where we buy, eat, shop, and vacation.

If you’ve ever wondered which learning resources other techies find useful, then this post is for you. In this post we’ll reveal the most frequently used online courses and collections in the Microsoft Training Catalog (as of March 2010). These resources also tend to get our most favorable customer feedback. With the 25 percent discount on paid online training available through May 31, now’s the perfect time to try out the courses that your peers enjoyed!

Check out the links below, or search in the Training Catalog to find online and classroom training, books, and much more.

Most popular for…IT professionals

• Collection 2778CE: Querying and Modifying Data in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 with Transact-SQL
• Collection 6369: Implementing and Maintaining Microsoft SQL Server 2008
• Collection 10268: MCTS (Exam 70-642): Configuring Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure
• Premium Collection 10272: MCTS (Exam 70-640): Configuring Windows Server 2008 Active Directory

Most popular for…developers

• Collection 5160: Core Development with the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Foundation (formerly part of Collection 2956)
• Collection 5161: Advanced Development with the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Foundation (formerly part of Collection 2956)

Most popular for…office workers

• Course 10166: Windows 7 Essentials I
• Course 10167: Windows 7 Essentials II
• Collection 5258: Core Training for Microsoft Office Word 2007
• Collection 5259: Core Training for Microsoft Excel 2007

 New training and special offers for IT Pros, Free training resources for IT Pros and audience participation, New Training and Special Offers for Developers, Free Training Resources for Developers, Online training and special offers for Microsoft Office

Source: http://borntolearn.mslearn.net/btl/b/weblog/archive/2010/05/11/spring-cleaning-what-s-popular-right-now.aspx

Explore SQL Server 2008 R2 breakthrough capabilities on Channel 9

See how StreamInsight provides real-time monitoring and analytics on incoming event data that would otherwise not be possible. Find out how PowerPivot for Excel 2010 and SharePoint 2010 enables information workers to analyze huge amounts of data from multiple sources with lightning fast speed. Hear from the experts on the latest capabilities with SQL Server 2008 R2.  Watch now!

 Source: Born to Learn (Gerry)