By Brian Swanson on 6/6/2005 7:05 AM

Microsoft announced recently they are beginning the “beta testing” of a new certification.  The Microsoft Certified Architect....

I believe at this point that I am not qualified for this certification...Just to be considered for attempting to become a certified architect you must have a minimum of 10 years architecting experience.  I've been in the computer industry since before I was out of high school...I've done a wide variety of jobs since I found this hobby I get paid for...But, I will now be working towards this certification...This is my new goal...

I think I COULD be qualified for this certification.  This certification is not just about Microsoft technologies, it's about architecting the right solution for the customer/problem.  I've been certified by other software and hardware vendors, so I believe my knowledge extends well beyond Microsoft technologies.  I haven't done a good job of staying current on other operating...

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By Brian Swanson on 4/15/2005 2:33 AM

I LOVE Google….

 

They continue to amaze me with their methods of delivering information, and how easy they make my life.  They have managed to become a portal of sorts, like Yahoo and MSN have been for a long time, without changing their simple interface.

 

Google will do SOOOO many things for you that most people aren’t aware of.

 

Looking for pizza in your area? Just type in PIZZA followed by your zip code Looking for the current price of a stock? Just type in the stock symbol Have a tracking number for a package that you’d like to track? Just type in the tracking number and Google will provide a link to the correct shipper’s tracking site Looking for the definition of ‘carpe diem’? Just type ‘define carpe diem’ Looking for the address of a business or individual? Just type their name followed by a city and state, and it’ll provide you the information it has. Want to do a quick calculation, but don’t feel like loading your calculator? Just type the calculation...

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By Brian Swanson on 1/11/2005 9:32 AM

I find myself talking about the products I use regularly to anyone who will listen to me, so I thought I would share links to them.

I use each of these products daily and love each of them for the way they enhance some part of my life.

FeedDemon– RSS Feed Reader
Trillian v3.0 – Instant Messenger client (3.0 rocks if you haven’t tried it, there is a free version of 3.0 as well)
Audible.com – Audio book aggregator (makes my drive to an from work so much better)
GMail – internet email system (with POP3 support now, so all my mail is received in Outlook)
Google Suggest – same ole search engine, but better (still in Beta)

Feel free to shoot me an email if you have any questions about any of them….