We are holding a FREE All Day training event at the Microsoft office in Waltham, Ma in partnership with Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard.

The event is called “The Connected Home Day”. It’s a full day training for novice computer users who want to learn how to build and secure a home network, use Microsoft Media Center to it’s full potential and use Windows Home Server to store and backup their important documents and precious Digital Photos and Videos. We will also be covering the Analog to Digital conversion in Feb 2009 and what it means to the average person.

It sounds like it would be a nice event to go to and learn a thing or 2.  Being that it is sponsored in part by Microsoft, I would not be surprised if they had free copy of something for the attendees.  I wonder if my company needs anyone in that area in mid-September…

• Join Microsoft and HP Online to Hear About the HP MediaSmart Server
• Join Me on June 25th For An Add-Ins Webinar With HP and Microsoft
• Windows Home Server Session at TechEd 2007
• Budding Photographers - Learn How to Integrate Windows Home Server Into Your Workflow
• Add-in: Digital ArchHound for Windows Home Server

Most of the post I do have to agree with.  Marketing at Microsoft sucks.  Not that I can blame them for sucking.  After all, how good a marketing department do you have to have when, in many company segments, market penetration is 90+%?  Windows, Office, Visual Studio just to name a few.  Such is the power of the Average Consumer and Microsoft’s entrenchment in the business environment.

In an effort to branch out into other markets, Microsoft’s marketing department is woefully unprepared to deal with a market segment that they do not already control.  Take the Zune, for example.  The Xbox is doing rather well against the competition, however, the last I heard was that they still have not made a profit in this segment.

But it was the comments at the end of the article that I felt was in some ways possible, but made me sit up and disagree with vehemently at the same time.

“Microsoft needs to market an embedded device instead of a machine with a large hard drive and full-fledged Windows OS,” said Patrick DeRosier, CTO of Hanson, Mass.-based solution provider CPU Guys

“I could see competitors like Linksys beating Windows Home Server by releasing a router with a 500 gigabyte hard drive that’s managed from a Web browser,” he said.

I agree with this statement in that the Average Consumer likes that appliance that you can plug-in and it works.  Which is how I would view that device that Mr. DeRosier speaks about.  In many ways, I am an Average Consumer.  But I am also a tech enthusiast and, in particular, a WHS enthusiast.

A storage device, whether it be a NAS device, a Linux server, a WHS, or other related storage “box”, is that the data on it is MY data.  Whether that data is in the form of backups, movies, music, and pictures.  I expect and demand to have complete control over the how to manage that data.  Anything short of that is unacceptable.

By it’s very nature, “appliances” takes control of that data out of your hands.  The one appliance that comes to mind is that DVR that comes from the cable company.  You can record a few shows and movies on it.  As you run out of space, you have to delete the old ones to make room for the new ones.  You cannot expand it and you have no access to the data.  In other words, you have no control of that data.

Perhaps the Average Consumer would be quite happy with that plug-’n-play appliance.  Until they need to manage that data.  Whether in the form of expansion or saving that data elsewhere.  There is an axiom out there somewhere that basically says “data will continue to accumulate to fill all available storage.”  With an appliance, once filled, what do you do then?  At that point, the Average Consumer will feel less than happy with that device.

So, in the end, I hope an appliance does not replace a WHS.  I want more control of my data than an appliance will ever be able to give me.  So, please Microsoft, give your marketing a department a swift kick in that pants so that this does happen!  End of Rant!

• Will Your Next Home Server Be An Appliance From Your Cable Company?
• The Beginner’s Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 1
• The Need for Home Server Organisation, As Well As Storage
• How To… Add A USB Hard Drive to Windows Home Server
• CES 2008: Windows Home Server vs Network Attached Storage - A New Battleground

• Direct competition
• Trade associations
• Internal Microsoft interests
• Competing technologies

Direct competition

#1 on the list is perhaps the easiest to discuss.  There are several programs and/or services available that want to be your Media Center.

• Cable TV companies
• Satellite TV companies
• TiVo
• Sage TV
• J. River Media Center

This is a very short list of the competition.  Wikipedia has a more complete list of several of the hardware and/or software alternatives to Windows Media Center.  Why do I include cable and satellite companies in this list?  Quite simple.  These companies make a great deal of money renting you/selling you that “must have” DVR.  If Windows Media Center takes the place of that DVR, they stand to lose that revenue.  A recent article that was posted on the WGS site reinforces this possibility.

This could be one of the many reasons that unencrypted and encrypted QAM exists.   If you can record HBO movies onto that your cable providers’ DVR, but nowhere else, that is a decided advantage for them.  I really don’t think they want WMC to become very popular and/or very feature rich.

Then we have the competing hardware/software services.  I have not used any of those services that are available out there, but from what I have read about some of them, the only one that comes close to being a Media Center that fully encompasses the features of WMC is J. River Media Center.  How well does it work?  I would really like to hear from any users out there.

Trade associations

Digital Rights Management, or DRM for short, is a major road block standing in the way of enjoying access to all the digital media that enters your world.  Whether this media comes from your cable company, DVD, or CD.  We have the

• RIAA
• MPAA

both suing everyone in sight who are knowingly, or unknowingly, “sharing” a song they downloaded from the Internet.  To the Average Consumer, these may be the only Trade Organizations they have ever heard of.  They most certainly have got to be the top 2 most hated organizations in recent history.  However, this is not the place to debate DRM.  The consequences of DRM, the RIAA, and the MPAA is probably a major reason why unencrypted and encrypted QAM exists.  Most DVD’s are shipped in an encrypted format.  I really have no idea if CD’s are still encrypted, as I have not bought one in a long time.  Or anyone else…

I really don’t want to get into a debate about all this, as I am not in the least bit qualified to do so.  After all, I am just one of those Average Consumers.

If I do purchase a DVD, or a CD, or a MP3 song, I simply feel (as a consumer) that I should be able to view/listen to that media through any device I have in my home.  So if I copy one of those DVD’s or CD’s to my computer, is that illegal?  To tell you the honest truth, I don’t know.  Perhaps the RIAA and MPAA does not care either, as long as you don’t make it available for download by anyone with an Internet connection.

The one thing I do know that as more features become built into Media Center, the easier it will become to record, and perhaps distribute, media that cuts into the revenue of the original distributors of that media.  While I do feel that most consumers do not want to “steal” anyone’s intellectual property, it is simply far too easy to click on that “Download Now” button.  It is a very fine line between consumers rights and owners rights.  I’m just very happy that I am not a part of any groups responsible for trying to untangle this mess.

Internal Microsoft interests

In the world of Windows Media Center, perhaps WMC’s worst enemy is Microsoft.  They have massive abilities to churn out all sorts of software.  How well they all work together could be the subject for a massive debate.  Perhaps by design in some cases, perhaps by a lack of coordination among the various divisions at Microsoft.  In some cases, it even appears that some of their offering are redundant.  OneCare, for example.  It is basically most of what is included with Vista Defender plus an anti-virus program.  And once again, I really do want WMC on my WHS!

I am quite sure that many of the anti-trust suits they have had to defend themselves from have also changed their business model.  Windows, Office, Server 200x, Visual Studio, are all legacy products that are in continual development and provide a significant amount of revenue to the company.  But if we look at Windows for just a moment, we can find all sorts of little utilities included.  Some are quite nice, some not.

• Paint
• Windows Movie Maker
• Windows Media Center
• Notepad
• The “Live” programs, which are free add-ons to Windows.
• and more.

Could they make them better?  More feature rich?  Sure they could.  Sell them as separate products?  Sure they could.  Will they?  In most cases, no.  Why?  There are limits to the internal resources of a company, for one.  Microsoft wants to sell you an Operating System, not a better Paint program.  Divide the resources and something has to suffer.

And, as I mentioned previously, anything that Microsoft does anymore seems to be scrutinized by just about every software company out there and by many governing bodies.  In some cases, they may very well be justified.  Just look at the cost of Microsoft Office compared to any competitor’s offerings.  In some cases, I get the feeling that many of these companies/government agencies just see a new Microsoft product as another opportunity to line up along the Microsoft money trough.  I really wonder…

One thing I am sure of is that Google better take some lessons on all this, as I’m sure one day, someone will cry “foul” loud enough to get the some government agency involved.  I guess the mentality of “if you can’t build a better mouse trap, sue ‘em” can kill just about any company.  In the U.S., AT&T was the first company that took a fall because they were too big and too powerful.  At least the cable companies are smart enough to have split up their “territories” so as to “seem” like there is competition out there.

Competing technologies

Ah, the competing technologies.  In the world that I grew up in, we had TV.  3 or 4 channels.  Great classic television shows.  The Golden Age of television.  The emergence of the VCR was huge in that it opened up a whole new industry for the purchase and/or rental of theatrical movies. And to record your favorite TV show!

Stereo records.  Singles on 45’s and LPs on 33-1/3’s.  I barely remember 8-tracks, but is was really neat when cassettes came out because you could record that LP to a cassette and play it your car.

Pictures.  Most of the world took their film down to the local camera shop and had them developed on Kodak paper.  A few had those nifty instant Polaroid cameras.

If you look closely, you will notice everything mentioned above was some type of analog format.  Analog is a relatively difficult form to copy.  What the consumer purchased was a copy of the original.  I remember purchasing a Direct-To-Disk LP once.  It was expensive, but the clarity and dynamic range was incredible compared to a “normal” LP.  Every time you make a copy of an analog recording, the quality of that copy suffers.  Quite simply the best kind of copy protection ever invented!

Then we hit the Digital Age.  Or perhaps it hit us.  Records gave way to CD’s.  mp3’s are killing off CD’s.  DVD’s killed VHS tapes. Does anyone even own a film camera anymore?  And then there is the computer. Since the mid 1980’s, slowly but surely, the PC (or MAC) has become as necessary in the home as the TV.  Instead of creating a list here, I will refer you to Wikipedia once again.  Here are examples of the digital audio and video formats available.  These are some of those competing technologies (or formats, if you prefer).

Just reading through those 2 articles makes my head hurt (as an Average Consumer).  And I have not mentioned all the digital image formats out there.  Is there a reason for all those various formats?  Sure there is.  Lossey formats are smaller in size than lossless formats.  People distribute raster images rather than vector images due to size and the increased difficulty in trying to edit a raster image.  But to the average consumer, they could care less as long as they can play that song on their mp3 player or look at that picture in their favorite viewer.

The moral here is that it is a lot more complicated world, now that it is digital.  Incompatibilities between software formats and associated hardware have a tendency to discourage the Average Consumer.  Their question is “What is a codec, and why do I need it?  I just want to play xxxxx!”  Before the digital age, everything was plug-n-play.  Not anymore, which is kind of sad.

And the digital age has become a nightmare, for both industry and the consumer.  If you make a copy of anything digital, the copy is identical to the original.  Industry has fought back with all sorts of strategies.  Copy protection, software activation, proprietary formats, encryption schemes, and others.  I detest all of them as much as anybody else.  Just remember, though, you have no one to blame for it except yourselves.  If we could have simply resisted the temptation to click on that “Download Now” button, we wouldn’t have to to deal with poorly implemented copy protection schemes.

Conclusion

Well, that is about it.  I’m sure that I could have split this last discussion into a few more parts.  Or I could have gone into a lot more detail, but as an Average Consumer, my head is beginning to hurt.  And, you must remember, I am an outsider looking in.  I’m not privy (nor are you) to all the decisions made in various media distribution companies and associations.  I am sure that they are all looking for the best way to protect their property and extract the maximum amount of cash from the consumer.  That is the way it has always been and the way it always will be.  And since I own a few shares of stock here and there, I would like those companies to be profitable, also.

Thanks for reading all this.  I hope you have enjoyed this series.  In this last part, I hope that I have provoked a few questions and thoughts about where we are all headed in this digital age.

• The Beginner’s Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 1
• The Beginners Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 2: The Total Microsoft Package
• Media Center University Expands Again
• Will Your Next Home Server Be An Appliance From Your Cable Company?
• Do You Want Your Next Home Storage Solution to Be an Appliance?

It was the prediction of future news that caught my eye. “But Theocheung says the real spike in consumer adoption won’t come until after consumer electronics companies begin building server-like functions into their entertainment system products, which will overtake the PC as the primary source of such store-and-synch capability. In particular, he expects cable operators to be leaders in this transition, doing for servers what they did for DVRs by including the functionality in set-top boxes.”

This is not surprising in that if marketed and implemented correctly, Microsoft’s Media Center and Windows Home Server could begin to take revenue from the cable companies if the PC became the consumer’s choice for a DVR.  This would not make the cable companies very happy.

The one thing that the article did not mention is what happens to all that digital media if you move, change providers, etc.  Personally, I would prefer a little more control over my “server” and what I can put on it.  And how to preserve it.

Only time will tell.

• Do You Want Your Next Home Storage Solution to Be an Appliance?
• Forrester Research: Home Servers In The Digital Age - Windows Home Server Will Accelerate Growth Of A New Product Category
• Windows Home Server Launch Links Round-up
• The Beginners Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 2: The Total Microsoft Package
• Check Out the Home Server Show

In order to transform Media Center into that Home Entertainment Center, the user must invest in the hardware needed to accomplish this transformation.  Which is the subject for today’s discussion.  What is truly needed and what is it going to cost?  The Average Consumer probably has some of the required components, perhaps not.

As I discussed previously, the Total Windows Media Center Package consists of the following hardware:

· A TV.

· A 5.1 (or better) sound system

· A Media Center computer.

· An Extender.

In order to promote Media Center as the cornerstone of a Home Entertainment Center, Microsoft needs to work with manufacturers and vendors to promote and market the Total Windows Media Center Package.

Most PC manufactures, including Dell and HP, do not manufacture, or even sell, the complete set of components.  This should not stop them from creating partnerships with companies that can fill in the blanks, however.  Vendors, such as Best Buy (in the U.S.) do have all the components on hand.  Microsoft just needs to partner with them to promote the Total Package.

What follows are examples of some packages that could be promoted through various outlets.  I have included a “basic” package, a mid-range package and a high-end package.  Please note that components are all “out-of-the-box” items.  The Average Consumer would probably not be interested in building a MC computer, for example.  In the U.S., Best Buy would be a likely store of choice for a consumer, as they are everywhere, they sell all the components needed, and if you have a problem, you can take the item back for an easy exchange.  So off I went to the Best Buy site and started shopping.

The Basic Package:

  The LG 42″ 720p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV.  42″ is what I would consider to be the minimum size for a home entertainment system.

Cost: $1099.99

  Sony XM-Ready 900W 5.1-Channel Home Theater System with Apple iPod Dock.  Just your basic HTIAB 5.1 system.

Cost: $169.99

   HP Pavilion Slimline Desktop with AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor 5400+

Cost: $619.99

  Linksys Wireless Media Center Extender Model: DMA2100.  Just your basic extender.

Cost: $299.99

Total cost of the basic system: $2189.96 plus tax.

The Mid-range Package:

   LG 52″ 1080p Flat-Panel LCD HDTV.  A nice step up in picture size and a few more bells and whistles.

Cost: $2399.99

  Sony BRAVIA 1000W 5.1-Ch. Home Theater System w/ 5-Disc Upconvert DVD Player.  Looks nicer and hopefully sounds better, and has a few more bells and whistles.

Cost: $514.99

    HP Pavilion Elite TV Desktop with AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core Processor 9850.  Just another step up from the basic computer.

Cost: $1199.99

  Linksys Wireless Media Center Extender with DVD Player Model: DMA2200.  More features, more cost.

Cost: $349.99

Total cost of the mid-range system: $4464.96 plus tax.

The High-end Package:

  Sony BRAVIA XBR 70″ 1080p 120Hz Flat-Panel LCD HDTV.  You can spend more!  The center piece to make your friends say WOW!

Cost: $32,999.98

Denon 910W 7.1-Ch. XM Satellite Radio-Ready A/V Home Theater Receiver.  No more HTIAB solution.

Cost: $1699.98

  MartinLogan Abyss 12″ 600-Watt Subwoofer - Black.  Big and powerful.  I’m sorry that it is black.

Cost: $999.98

  MartinLogan Matinee Dual 5-1/4″ Center-Channel Speaker.  Looks nice, but still black.  Oh, well.  Hide it and the sub.

Cost: $1399.98

MartinLogan Purity 6-1/2″ Electrostatic Floor Speakers (Each) - Dark Cherry.  Now there are some nice wood finishes.

Cost: $1499.99 x 2 = $2999.98

Vienna Acoustics Grand 6-1/2″ 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair) - Rosewood.  More nice finishes.

Cost: $1649.98 x 2 pair = $3299.96

    Sony VAIO TP Living Room PC with Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor T8100.  What is nice is that it does not even look like a computer!

Cost: $1649.99

  Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite Console - Black.  Of course, Microsoft would like to think the Xbox 360 is at the top.

Cost: $449.99

Total cost of the high-end system: $45499.84 plus tax.  You can spend a whole bunch more.  I don’t know, I might want to buy a nice car for this money!

Obviously, the consumer will probably already have some of these items.  In my case, I have what I would term a “mid-range” 5.1 sound system.  I do not have a dedicated Media Center computer, but I would really like to turn my WHS machine into one!  And if you can believe it, I only have analog CRT TV’s in my home!  While not necessary for a Media Center, an LCD TV would be a nice improvement to take advantage of all those newer technologies, such as HDTV and Blu-ray movies.  Regardless, having some of these items on hand already will reduce some of the sticker shock.  However, the retailer must be able to advise the consumer on how well a partial package will integrate with existing components.

As I just implied, the one overwhelming downside of the above packages is cost.  Even the “base” package requires a considerable investment by the consumer.  That is where Microsoft, the manufacturers, and the vendors all need to partner to develop a marketing strategy to promote and convince the consumer of the “need” to have the Total Windows Media Center Package.  In addition, careful attention must be given to the features of the various components.  HDMI input/outputs may not be required, but it is a marketable feature.  The same applies to Blu-ray drives.  Cable-card inputs, once again, is another feature that may be a marketable.  These features, and others, add cost and are not necessarily required or compatible with a MC setup.  A balance between features and cost must be carefully considered.

During the course of this write up, I asked for some alternate input from a couple of writers on the WGS team.  It was interesting to note the differing ideas on how to obtain the package and what should be part of the package.  Matt Miller went straight to the Internet and put together a couple of packages for me.  Of course, I do not believe that Matt is one of those “out-of-the-box” consumers I have been referring to.  And he already has a pretty good idea of what is required for a “package”.  Anyway, one was a nice looking HP setup sans the sound system, as HP does not sell those items.  I really have to admit that HP has been putting together some nice products, lately.  Which does lead me to the other purchasing route: the Internet.  Even my wife has discovered that the cost of products can be significantly cheaper using this method.

Cost consideration is a significant factor when choosing the Internet route.  Especially if you already know exactly what you want and you are shopping purely on price.  If you are just looking for “something”, the Internet has a slight tendency to lose out to the retail store.  Maybe it is just me, but I do not “browse” the Internet as I would a shopping mall.  Then again, I hate browsing through shopping malls, also!  The Internet also lacks that touchy-feely bit that you can get at retail outlet.  And the main theme of this series is about “promoting” the package.  For a Home Entertainment Package centered around Windows Media Center, you’ve got to experience the package in order appreciate what it is capable of, hence the retail path.

And now to James Quintin.  James is from the UK, as are a significant (majority?) number of you readers.  Pounds and Euros, and VAT are a bit out of my league, and James put together a package.  It is interesting to note that he did not consider a sound system necessary for a base system.  He is very possibly correct, however, just like Media Center you don’t know what you are missing until you experience it!  James’ package:

HP Pavilion Slimline - From £415.  BTW, I think all 3 us chose the same slimline series!

Linksys Extender - £149

Sharp 37″ HD Ready 1080p Digital TV - £650.  It is interesting to note that I considered a 42″ the minimum size, while James goes for the 37″.  I know, us Americans, the bigger, the better!

Total - £1,214

Wow!  Based on the current exchange rate, the U.S. consumer can’t complain too much about consumer prices.

You may have noticed one missing item from the above systems, a network.  There are simply far too many variations to document network requirements as part of the above packages.  I will leave it up to Best Buy (OK, maybe not!) to help determine any networking requirements that the consumer may need.

As in all things consumer, competition is also vying for the consumer dollar, Euro, or whatever currency you use.  Which is the topic of the final part of this discussion.

See you next time…

• The Beginners Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 2: The Total Microsoft Package
• The Beginner’s Guide to Windows Media Center - Part 1
• Media Center Plug-Ins and Applications
• Integrating Windows Home Server with Windows Media Center
• WinHEC 2007: Software Partners Announced for Windows Home Server

That’s the question on the Windows Home Server team’s minds over at Redmond right now - they’ve just launched their first user survey for English and German users, which you are cordially invited to complete.

Check it out:

English Survey
German Survey

(I’m not sure if Doctor Who actually has a Windows Home Server, but I guess even the Tardis may need backing up from time to time)

• Win an Exclusive Windows Home Server Scrolling LED Badge!
• What’s Happening With That Data Corruption Bug?
• Windows Home Server Quickstart Guide: German Translation Available
• Beta Testing for Beginners: Part 1 - Getting Into the Beta Programme
• HP MediaSmart Server Owners: Time to Speak Up

Last week I attended the annual Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference held from 7-10 July in Houston, USA. This event is the largest gathering of Microsoft partners with approximately 8,000 partners and a further 2,500 Microsoft staff attending.

Microsoft used the event to present their strategies and roadmap for technology to their partners from around the world, with 143 countries represented. Key announcements at the conference included details of Microsoft’s Software Plus Services offering of Business Productivity Online Suite via the “cloud” which will be offered soon.  There were also rousing keynote presentations by Microsoft executives including Chief Executive Officer, Steve Balmer and Chief Operating Officer, Kevin Johnson as well as an inspiring address by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus founder of the Grameen Bank.

So how would a “consumer” product like Windows Home Server be relevant at such an event? Well when you’re part of the Windows Server family with siblings like Windows Server 2008, Small Business Server and the forthcoming Essential Business Server it’s easy!  It was great to hear Microsoft executives such as Bob Kelly, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Server & Tools Division expousing the virtue of WHS as a key part of the Windows Server family.

Windows Home Server featured as part of the display of Windows Server family products in keynote presentations and on the exhibition floor, along with Vista Media Centre. The demonstration on the show floor featured a HP MediaSmart Server connected to an XBOX 360 showing the integration features and media sharing, whilst a very simplistic demonstration it did draw a good degree of interest from conference attendees. The WHS booth was supported by a couple of Microsoft employees who were WHS enthusiasts as opposed to members of the WHS team. There were also a limited supply of copies of the “Mommy, Why Is There A Server In The House?” book available, until stocks ran out on day one - needless to say I grabbed a supply for us to use as prizes in future WGS competitions - so stay tuned.

Microsoft’s Sean Fitzsimmons, a Technical Account Manager, from Houston was busy at the Windows Home Server booth

More than 30 copies of Windows Home Server software were given away after presentations by Microsoft and their partners in the Windows Essentials Server Theater. In addition 5 HP MediaSmart EX47 Servers were given away to those completing an entry in a competition which involved wearing a WHS badge and centred on the Essential Server Solutions exhibit area. There was also a $120 discount off the HP MediaSmart Server systems at www.hpshopping.com for attendees who decided to try out Windows Home Server - note a discount code is needed to obtain this discount which runs through to 19 July.

Next years Worldwide Partner conference will be held in New Orleans. Who knows what features Windows Home Server will have by then.

• Join Microsoft and HP Online to Hear About the HP MediaSmart Server
• Windows Home Server Session at TechEd 2007
• Will We See OneCare for Windows Home Server?
• Windows Home Server at WinHEC This Week
• Windows Home Server Toolkit Webcast Available

I have to say, I’m not a talented photographer but my wife really is and we have years of photos stored safely on our home server. I’ll be interested to hear how the professionals, Reed Hoffman of Blue Pixel, Debbie Grossman and Philip Ryan of Popular Photography magazine utilise Windows Home Server in their workflows.

Webinars are scheduled as follows: 

• July 17: Reed Hoffman of Blue Pixel
• July 22nd: Debbie Grossman and Philip Ryan of Popular Photography

You can register now for the webinars - be quick, though as the add-ins webinar sold out really quickly!

Here’s the background:

Are you a digital photography enthusiast or advanced amateur photographer producing tens or hundreds of gigabytes of digital photos, design files, music, video and documents? Is managing, accessing and protecting your digital media becoming a seemingly impossible task?

While it’s been said that a picture is worth a thousand words, with today’s high resolution megapixel digital cameras, a picture’s often worth 4+ Mbytes of precious storage space. We are all living increasingly digital lifestyles and accumulating hundreds of gigabytes or even several terabytes of content. In fact, Coughlin & Associates, Inc. estimates that by 2013 the average home will require 9 TB storage capacity, of which 5 TB will be needed for commercial digital downloads of music, videos and photos .

Join HP and Microsoft for one of these FREE live webcasts as they demo the award winning HP MediaSmart Server, based on the wildly popular Windows Home Server software from Microsoft.

This event will show you why the HP MediaSmart Server is the perfect solution for Digital Photographers:

• Accessing your files easily with protection over the internet
• Sharing your life online with family and friends using HP Photo Webshare
• Organizing your personal files and digital entertainment in one location
• Protecting all of your digital media and documents

In addition to a live demonstration, you’ll also hear from leading digital photography experts, like Reed Hoffmann, a pioneer in digital imaging and Microsoft Icon of Imaging photographer (www.reedhoffmann.com), as well as Debbie Grossman and Philip Ryan, senior editors from Popular Photography Magazine (www.popphoto.com) on how the explosion in digital photography media consumption is driving the need for the new home server category.

Representatives from Microsoft will also be on-hand to respond directly to audience questions related to the new Windows Home Server software.

Sign-up: Microsoft.com

• Join Microsoft and HP Online to Hear About the HP MediaSmart Server
• Join Me on June 25th For An Add-Ins Webinar With HP and Microsoft
• HP MediaSmart Server Update to Sync With Power Pack 1 Release
• HP MediaSmart Server Add-ins Webinar - Selling Out Fast
• Photos From Yesterday’s Windows Home Server Launch in Taiwan

The main news from today’s session is that HP have taken the decision to hold the release of their long- awaited update for the MediaSmart Server until the final release of Windows Home Server Power Pack 1, to ensure full compatibility with Microsoft’s update.

Whilst Microsoft have not announced any further release dates for Power Pack 1 other than their earlier “first half of the year” statement, they’ve dropped a few heavy hints that the final release would be “quality driven” and as such, I’d be surprised to see Power Pack 1 released for a good few weeks yet. (NB. This is a guess)

I know that both companies are really keen to get their respective updates out as soon as possible, but it’s right that they’re not released until they’re ready.

A few more snippets from the Webinar:

• David over at the Home Server Showhas details on a new promotional deal saving $75 on the HP MediaSmart Server which was announced to those attending the webinar.
• As the webinar was completely sold out, a recording will be made available to view here in the next day or so.
• Further webinars are scheduled from July 15th on using the HP MediaSmart Server for Digital Photography and Business Travellers - sign up here.
• You can also check out webinars on the HP MediaSmart Connect (which I’ll be reviewing over the weekend) featuring The Digital Lifestyle’s Ian Dixon and others by signing up here.

So, thanks to everyone who attended, and a big thanks to HP and Microsoft for the opportunity to chat about We Got Served!

• Windows Home Server Power Pack 1 Released to Manufacturing
• Get Ready: Power Pack 1 Hits Automatic Update Tomorrow
• Windows Home Server Team Announce Power Pack 1 Public Beta With Data Corruption Bug Fix
• Living the Digital Lifestyle Again
• Windows Home Server Power Pack 1 – Coming Your Way!

We’ll be featuring a number of popular add-ins, and you’ll also have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have about extending Windows Home Server, as well as questions around WHS Power Pack 1.

Last I heard, registration was pretty much full, but do head on over to the registration page to find out more, and sign upFor those of you who miss out, there may be an opportunity to follow up with a second webinar - if so, you’ll hear about it here first.

• HP MediaSmart Server Update to Sync With Power Pack 1 Release
• Join Me on June 25th For An Add-Ins Webinar With HP and Microsoft
• Is Windows Home Server Power Pack 1 Ready for Release?
• Ask the Windows Home Server Team!
• Living the Digital Lifestyle Again