From my sources at MSFT... This adapter will be out in 3 weeks. It is code complete, and has passesd QC. I was able to corner some Microsoft execs last week and they promised that they were “Back in the Game” on this. As you may recall, MSFT didn’t release an update to the GP integration for CRM 4.0. So, the customers who had gotten the “Free” integration before were forced to pull that out and install a new solution. Most went to Scribe from what I understand. I am still dubious on this integration as we have not been given a community ...<< MORE >>
I know that I am one of 154,000 others, but somehow I feel important today. Guy is an inspiration to me on a semi-regular basis.
Dynamics CRM 4.0 Accelerators boost your competitiveness by delivering functionality that is not available out-of-the-box today with CRM version 4.0. The release of these Accelerators demonstrates Microsoft’s ongoing commitment to drive innovation in between major releases of Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Use these Accelerators to shorten your sales cycle and further leverage your investment in Microsoft Dynamics CRM.
The current release of Accelerators for Microsoft Dynamics CRM includes the following:
Ready to put Accelerators to use for your business? Contact me (pierreh@ehtc.com) for a demonstration.
You can download the presentation here.
4/16/2009, 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time – http://www.crmug.com
As you may know I am part of the team that provides technical expertise to the CRM User Group. This national organization meets online several times a month, provides session content during Convergence, and during our own conference in the fall. We have been redoing several sessions for members that did not get to Convergence. This session will focus on feature differences between 3.0 and 4.0, and upgrade best practices.
So if you haven't upgraded to Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 yet... Wondering why you should? Need to build a better business case? Already upgraded and want to share your experience or resolve an issue? Every installation is different - so join us to discuss the upgrade process and what version 4.0 offers. Share approaches for testing, training, and go-live. Review the Outlook client setup. And discover resources to help your upgrade go smoother and quicker.
Did you miss Convergence? No need to miss any of the great CRMUG breakout sessions - so join us for an encore performance of this popular CRMUG breakout session from Convergence. This redux is an expanded version of the session that I did at Convergence. So if you missed it please see if you can attend.
If you haven’t considered joining the CRMUG please do so. You will find it to be a fantastic value.
Scribe just released a new edition. I have been running Scribe for about 6 years now, been doing this too long. Here are 5 new important features that will help reduce the time it take to build DTS's. Plus it gives them a chance to sport the new logo.
Historically, the Scribe Workbench generated generic names for target steps created by the user. With Scribe Insight 6.5, you can now change the default name to something more meaningful to you. When you add an insert step you now have the option of naming the new step and adding a comment. Existing steps can also be renamed and the comments can be edited. To rename an existing step, in the Configure Target Adapter window, click on the step you want to edit, and click Rename Selected Step. This opens the Step Name dialog box where you can edit the step name and comments.
Step copy now includes lookup and data link mappings from the original step as part of the copied step. I will be loving this as we have to tailor the DTS's to repeat the same steps for each price list. So it gets very busy to do it over and over and over. Here is why (http://blog.solomon2crm.com/2008/11/25/rgtsl-to-crm-multi-currency-part-1.aspx).
A Refresh button in the Test dialog box lets you refresh your source data without having to close and re-open the Workbench.
In the Configure Source dialog box, click Update Source. This opens the Update/Delete Source Rows dialog box. Click Insert Formula to open the Formula Editor where you can create and insert a formula. Formulas that you create and enter in this way are not checked or verified before being inserted, so please be careful.
Currently there is an update source functionality when connecting to the source. If the source is updatable and the source keys are set then you are also able to update any source fields, especially XML messages, with the error message returned by the target whenever there is an error recorded. This will keep the error description within the source file and be easily reported back to the source system instantly. Added functionality also gives the option to automatically update a date field in the source with the date the record is successfully integrated.
The GetRowError() function returns the error for the target row being processed if there is a problem or if there is an empty string after the row was processed successfully. GetRowError() can be used to update a field in the source with the error for the target row.
Barrons is reporting that Goldman is recommending selling off your Salesforce.com shares. It's trading and $32 but its target price should be $23 – that is a 30% drop. But since when is this news? Marc Benioff, CEO and Founder, has been selling 20,000 shares a day for quite some time. Their stock has tanked over the last year. It was trading north of $70 last year. People are concerned about the effect of the revenue impact of service based apps, also their development platform is not taking off as hoped.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/100465-salesforce-com-pricey-and-coming-down-fast

Back in the day, we used batch files for tons of stuff, remember edlin? I also remember using Copycon Autoexec.bat to create all the driver loads for NICs and mouse drivers. Oh the memories, no editors - just the command line and an a teenager's imagination. Loading programs into your TRS-80 from a cassette tape; getting your first modem, 1200 bps 2400 bps if you were lucky, all to download Oregon Trail from the local BBS; and talk some smack with the other Star Trek geeks; all the while we listening to the Police and Van Halen.
Well, I have found a good use for them again... to recycle the Scribe Services. So here you go, 2 great batch files to have on your Desktop if you run Scribe Insight.
First to edit a batch file you need to right click on desktop and make a new text file.
Then copy this text into the window.
net Stop "Scribe Monitorserver"
net stop "Scribe MessageServer"
net stop "Scribe EventManager"
net stop "Scribe BridgeServer"
net Stop "scribe AdminServer"
Then save as
StopScribe.bat
Clicking on this file will stop all of the Scribe services on the box.
Now you want to start them up too.
Here is the syntax for that file.
net start "Scribe AdminServer"
net start "Scribe BridgeServer"
net start "Scribe EventManager"
net start "Scribe MessageServer"
net start "Scribe MonitorServer"
Save as
StartScribe.bat
Now you have 2 icons on your desktop that will allow you to stop or start the Scribe Services with 1 click.
Note that the order of the start up and shut down process are important. If you do it from the services control panel you start from the top down, and stop from the bottom up.

I read the Microsoft Surface Team product blog. It always has cool stuff.
Financial Services demo-
Physics Engine Demo -
DaVinci (Microsoft Surface Physics Illustrator) from Razorfish - Emerging Experiences on Vimeo.
The best of all – The Parody Ad