Well it took 10 years longer than we all anticipated, BUT you can now purchase a 1 Terabyte Solid State Drive for less than 100 dollars.
Well it took 10 years longer than we all anticipated, BUT you can now purchase a 1 Terabyte Solid State Drive for less than 100 dollars.
Posted at 01:45 PM in Announcements, Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0)
The first Thursday of the month the Dartmouth Lake Sunapee Linux Group meets over at Dartmouth to share knowledge and to geek it up a bit. They kick off their meeting with a meet up at Ramunto's in Hanover, NH and then the group wanders on over to a very cool room on Campus. (White Board, Black Boards, Projectors, Ivy League Classroom)
Over pizza we discussed NTFS, FAT16, FAT32, files with embedded metadata and general buzz in the world of tech in the Upper Valley. We really do need more opportunities to do more of this around here. There are SO MANY hidden disconnected gems.
Once over at campus Lloyd presented nifties, first on what he has been doing with Python and (dare I mention the word, Microsoft) Azure. It is so thrilling for me to see these two worlds starting to bubble together in the quest for empowering great technology. There were questions, discussions and mind shifts, but good discussions. Even little old me was able to offer contributions.
We also discussed Jupyter .
"Project Jupyter is a non-profit, open-source project, born out of the IPython Project in 2014 as it evolved to support interactive data science and scientific computing across all programming languages."
With a heavy bent on large, concurrent, mathematical and statistical analysis needs. I was not able to add much to the discussions, but I love a chance to push myself out of my comfort zone. My Mom had her doctorate in statistics so in my baby years the word SAS often kicked around our household.
Other Tidbits Shared
More Python Tips
working with distributed data and
using Selenium for things other than testing web applications.
Posted at 07:44 AM in Industry Feedback, Vendors, Add-on Products | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tags: Azure, base, databases, Distributed data, DLSLUG, Linux, Microsoft, Python, SAS, Selenium
Microsoft Dynamics 365 User Group Community FOCUS https://ugfocus.com/houston-register |
Posted at 04:54 AM in Announcements, Industry Feedback, MSDYN365CE v9, Partner Resources, Project Mgmt and Methodologies | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tags: CE, CRM, Customer Engagement, Dynamics 365, Dynamics Communities, Houston, Microsoft, Training, User Groups
Put on the hat "Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Customer Engagement" and the dimensions explode. There are so many different angles to think about such as
and the list goes on!
I recently completed a Solution Architecture Assessment engagement and was amazed at all of the categories of discussion and knowledge sharing that bubbled out of a three month, intense, team empowerment project.
So where to start??
Posted at 02:33 PM in Announcements, Certifications and Testing, Extensions/Development , Industry Feedback, Vendors, Add-on Products | Permalink | Comments (0)
1. Workflows can be REAL TIME (Synchronous) or ALMOST REAL TIME (asynchronous) and if you are a business user creating workflows you want to coordinate the timing. In the world of plugins and extensions timing coordination of steps is all part of the job, but in the world of workflows sometimes it is easy to forget about what we are really asking for.
2. Deleting and Cleanup in the world of customization and multiple environments are a specialized thought process. The system supports a merge mindset so when you want to do cleanup (and you are using unmanaged solutions) you want to make sure you cleanup all your environments. I like to use the technique of naming fields, business rules, forms, views and other such configurations in DEV with a prefix of something like ZToBeDeleted so that after a deployment to TEST and PRODUCTION it is easy to do house cleaning.
3. You are not the only one extending and configuring. Coordination equals huge successes and incredible power and depth. It is a product that is always evolving from the power and insight of the incredible team at Microsoft and then there are the other new features that are purchased, reviewed, updated, coordinated and released. If you are writing unsupported code you are asking for headaches OR if your hired gun is writing unsupported code. Take the time to get it done right. Take the time to vet your resources. A low hourly rate does not mean long term reduction in cost.
4. Software as a Service (SaaS) in the world of Dynamics CRM means that you are continuously getting the chance to improve your businesses cutting edge differentiator through the use of the newest technology and business techniques. Get the Learning Mindset and embrace the wave while also taking bite sized, very manageable growth steps forward. Setup your environment so you have a DEV, TEST and PRODUCTION instance so that you can have DEV upgraded first, then TEST (with a release to TEST and Regression Testing) and then roll to production. For smaller firms perhaps only two instances, but always give yourself that learning arena for the larger feature releases.
5. Just because it looks pretty, and has a really cheap initial price does not mean that you won't be paying more in the long run. In the world of ONLINE and the CLOUD do your research with other customers. Understand the 1, 2 and 3 year average costs and understand what you get for the money. The models can be very different. There are hundreds of applications that can be replaced by Dynamics CRM and with the right resources (trained helps) the price is right. Just because Access and Excel are available with office, doesn't mean they are the right solution for a multi-user environment where people need to share real time data across many different devices. Oh and then there is the Out of the Box integration to the Office 365, SharePoint, Microsoft Excel E-Mail, and so much more.
It really is mind blowing.....
Posted at 02:57 AM in Configuration/Customization , Dynamics 365 in Enterprise , Industry Feedback, MSDYNCRM15 v7, MSDYNCRM16 v8, Project Mgmt and Methodologies | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tags: CRM, Dynamics CRM
Calling All CRM Users: Please send feedback on the new DYNAMIC HELP Features!
"This feature was introduced in the Dynamics CRM 2015 for Outlook Client and is referred to as “Dynamic Help”. Prior to this feature, the Outlook Client included a help link that always directed you to the same troubleshooting page regardless of which error you encountered. For each error code that occurs during configuration, Dynamic Help can now direct you to a KB article designed to help resolve that specific issue. This feature was also backported to CRM 2013 Update Rollup 1 for Service Pack 1 and CRM 2011 Update Rollup 18. The Dynamic Help feature is also included in the new CRM App for Outlook. "
To Read More and To provide Feedback CLICK,
One Person Can Change the World!
Posted at 11:57 AM in Certifications and Testing, Industry Feedback, MSDYNCRM11 v5, MSDYNCRM13 v6, MSDYNCRM15 v7 | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tags: CRM, Dynamic Help, Dynamics CRM, Feedback, Training
"Oh, it is just a richly built custom .NET application"
Posted at 06:53 AM in Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
There is probably a better way to do this, but alas there comes a time when you just do it. So the following is a running historical list of interesting tweets from Dynamics CRM Convergence sessions. Starting today and running backwards in time.
CRMLady - Back in RI - 41 Degrees, and a clear night (or is it morning?)What a great #conv10. The tech content was deep in all the sessions attended.
CRMLady - The CRMLady Blog Microsoft Convergence: The beginning of the last day http://ow.ly/17cgma
Posted at 06:41 PM in Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
If you are a "CRM Administrator" have you looked at your System Jobs recently? Now for all those working on various projects ... Have you checked out the System Jobs in your development environments?
Choose SETTINGS
Choose SYSTEM JOBS
Immediately you will see a list of various information regarding various "system jobs" that might have run or might be "waiting".
Make particular note of the items in the waiting state. Do you know what they are waiting for? Should they really be waiting? Do they need to be cancelled?
Next Question: Are you managing your system job log? Has it been purged lately?
Did you know that Duplicate Detection is a System Job?
Posted at 01:45 PM in Configuration/Customization , Industry Feedback, Project Mgmt and Methodologies | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Tags: Dynamics CRM, System Jobs
Know of any great new Dynamics CRM RSS feeds? or web pages that shouldn't get missed? It is time to update my blogs left navigation.
Posted at 11:28 AM in Announcements, Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Everytime I offer kudos I realize all the other people who are related to those little things that make a difference. For instance David Jennaway, who actually wrote the plugin I mentioned in my earlier post and SHARED it.
Jeff Reiser, Premier Field Engineer who continues to be an incredible resource as I watch people ramp up and Microsoft in general who despite their size still manage to digest the huge amount of field feedback that travels the back channels.
What you don't feel heard? Next time you are reading a knowledge base article that doesn't meet your needs use the comment box at the bottom of the screen. In the world of Dynamics CRM I am often surprised by the responses to my comments posted in what sometimes we assume is the infinite black hole.
Posted at 04:14 AM in Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
I still need to get these into the Microsoft Request engine, but here are a couple of the hot ones on my plate that bubbled up in thought when I was reading Richard Knudson's blog post today on the same subject.
What would be great to see in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 5.0
1) Business Unit Ownership
2) Enterprise scalability for Team ownership
3) Performance Tuning/Improvement for Form Assistant
4) Outlook Client Configuration Flexibility including the locking down by user of configuration options
5) Menu management/Navigation Pane management without editing XML files
6) From a "It is a CRM application" support for common field functionality so programming doesn't have to bother with this such as Country lookup, SIC and NAICS code management, Zip Code options, etc.
7) From the perhaps this would be a cool utility category: a tool to rename all the New_ prefixes to something else.
8) A super easy, don't need to be technical advanced find option to create views. Yes, the one we have today is powerful, but it is still "techie" and frustrating for some business users. In this same light let them pick any field from any entity to include in the view.
9) A really advanced report writer with a really super easy interface. There are some pretty cool third party BI tools on the market that meet this need, but talk about a blow a few users away feature.
10) User definable portals and dashboards
11) For the developers: The Developer toolkit which is so cool that traditionally trained advanced software developers can't keep their hands off it. Creating a situation where they would rather write in "xRM" than in .NET only ;)
Posted at 05:44 AM in Extensions/Development , Industry Feedback, Partner Resources | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Tags: CRM, Dynamics CRM, XRM
In the world of XRM and training experienced developers to think "CRM" one of the key nice to haves would be a place to show the new developers all the entities that exist that CANNOT be modified. These are the core Micrsoft Dynamics CRM Development Team building blocks.
I have continued to test the "Request a New Feature" on Microsoft Connect. Recently I requested that a view be added to the Entities view to include a view of all entities that are locked. (I can then show this to new developers and say - you can't change these, learn what they are and work with them ;)
I had the strangest response back - First they didn't understand what I asked for, second they said that a feature I didn't ask for was in the next version and lastly the fearture they indicated was going to be in the next version is in the existing version. Sigh - sometimes I wonder why I keep trying... here is the response.
Greetings from Microsoft Connect!
This notification was generated for feedback item: Custom Entities view: All Locked Entities which you submitted at the Microsoft Connect site.
Thank you for your suggestion. The next version of CRM will only show entities that can be customized. All other entities (for internal use only) will not be displayed. Regards
You may receive a general "Feedback Item Updated" notification as well, if any other changes were made by Microsoft.
Thank you for using Microsoft Connect!
Regards,
the Microsoft Connect Team
Please do not reply directly to this message, as it is generated from an unmonitored email account. If you have comments related to your Feedback, please enter it in the Comments section (post a comment to Microsoft) of your Feedback item by navigating to the Feedback item in the link above.
If you are having trouble accessing the Feedback link above, please go to the http://connect.microsoft.com/help/ page to report the issue, In your submission, please make sure to paste a copy the link above into the report.
Posted at 06:40 AM in Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
Part of me thinks it is wonderful that I am being alerted that my CRM Online database is going to have maintenance, but after seeing the below message every time I logged in for the last few weeks and then once the maintenance was completed seeing a new message with a date two weeks later I started to get a bit annoyed.
First the Dynamics CRM database does not need maintenance every two weeks even if it is hosted (onPremise database might get touched once every six months) and second this is just one click through that is a bit much if displayed every time someone logs in!
Adding insult to injury you get another message if you default to the administration tab on entry.
- Sigh -
Posted at 01:01 PM in Industry Feedback | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)