TechEd Europe – We few we happy few we Band of brothers

As some of you know this was my first experience of TechEd Europe, all my previous conferences has been in the US. Last night prior to the Country drinks I had a dinner with the roundtable members and I addressed some concerns that I now would like to redraw. This TechEd has been equivalent to my US experiences.

Well TechEd is no more at least for me, and with that I would like to thank everybody that has been involved in something that has turned out to be an important part of my life, not just my professional but also my personal life. I have under the wing of TechEd made friends for life.

So it is with a heavy heart I say: TechEd is dead long live Iginite!

After the invite to the Roundtable discussions I made a post called “We few we happy few we Band of brothers” and would like to do that again.

Mr Shakespeare created a lot of great stuff but this always comes to mind when a great conference like TechEd is closing.

TechEd for me is really two parts, content and networking. and with networking I don’t mean flippin business cards. This European TechEd experience of mine would not have been possible without a little help of my friends. You know who you are and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I can’t wait until the next time I bump into a friend I made here in Barcelona. We truly are a brand of brothers…

Shakespeare’s Henry V, 1598:

KING HENRY V:
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember’d;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.

I hope to see you all in Chicago my brothers and sisters.

IAMKREWE

TechEd Europe, Day 0

Well today TechEd Europe started with the Pre-Conference Seminars.

I didn’t attend any pre-conf sessions so I was intending to register. But once I found my way to the conference center I realized that I forgot my passport in the hotel room. Bummer So I register tomorrow morning instead

We’ll my good friend and Community reporter colleague Simon Davis got his so here are our review of the backpack.

Nice small bag compared to the black TechEd North America backpack.

This gray little beauty is perfect for commuting.

TechED Europe 101 Locations

Just a few hours ago I got a location for the Teched 101.

What about a place that offers discounted beers at a central location in Barcelona, Plaza Real, Lets meet at the Claciar bar where we get discounted prices on the beer and a separate private location up stairs. I’ll be there from 14:00 hours and later.

if you have any questions or things you think about stop by and get your questions answered or stop by and have a chat.

See ya tomorrow

TechEd Europe 2014 101

I have received a lot of questions about aattending TechEd and what it’s all about.
In previous years there has been a TechEd 101 session to get tips and tricks on the entire TechEd Experience.
What do you say, would you like to join an TechEd 101 meet up on Monday?
Where I (or we if if I can find some more) will present an overview of TechEd where the major components of the event are explained and you learn how to take advantage of all that is offered. Whether it is your first time at TechEd or you are a conference veteran, there’s always something to learn that will make your time at TechEd more valuable.

I will check for a location and post here on the blog, on the TechEd Europe forum and on twitter.
Let the fun begin..

TechEd Europe, Day –1

Today is travel and theKrewe Meet’n Greet day. I fly out to #BCN this early evening and will head straight to #theKrewe Meet’n Greet party (after a quick stop at the hotel to throw my bags off).

TheKrewe Meet’n Greet

#theKrewe Meet’n Greet wouldn’t be the same without the dear #theKrewe friends at Vision Solutions and Thycotic Software.

The first Sponsor is one of that theKrewe had a long relationship with and that is Vision Solutions. Vision Solutions is a global sponsor of theKrewe.
Make sure you visit Stand: 83 and thanks their support of theKrewe.

Vision Solutions is the premiere provider of high availability, disaster recovery, migration and cross-platform data sharing solutions for Windows and cloud computing. Our Double-Take solutions allow organizations to adopt cloud-based disaster recovery, perform near-zero downtime migrations without risk and share data on any combination of physical, virtual or cloud servers.

The second sponsor is Thycotic Software. Thycotic Software are also a global sponsor.
Make sure you visit Stand: 54 and thanks their support of theKrewe.

Thycotic deploys intuitive, reliable, IT security solutions that empower companies to control and monitor privileged account credentials and identity access for administrators and end-users. A member of the Inc. 5000, Thycotic is recognized as the fastest growing, privately held PAM provider in the USA. Trusted by over 2,500 organizations worldwide – including members of the Fortune 500, enterprises, government agencies, technology firms, universities, non-profits, and managed service providers. To learn more, please visit thycotic.com.

During the week make sure you stop by their booths.

It would also be great if you also visit theKrewe US sponsors and thank them for there support of theKrewe:

New Horizons Learning Centers – Stand: 43
Pluralsight – Stand: 9

Without sponsor support, theKrewe would not be able to provide you with great events and nifty swag at events like Microsoft TechEd. TheKrewe sponsors are part of our community because they get us and know what we are about. Make sure you take the time at Microsoft TechEd Europe 2014 to stop by their booths, introduce yourself, and thank them for their support of The Krewe!

Would you like to become more involved with The Krewe from a sponsorship level? Contact admin@iamkrewe.org to start the conversation.

See you in Barcelona in a few hours.

The week of TechEd Europe

Well time flies and soon I will 🙂 It feels like yesterday that I arrived on Swedish soil after the TechEd Europe Roundtable discussions and today it is Oct 25:th and –2 days until Jason Zander and Joseph Belfiore kicks off the conference.

TechEd Europe 2014: Day –2

I will report regularly during the conference as a Community reporter so even if you are on site or can’t make it to Barcelona for #TEE14? make sure you follow #TEE14Community and the entire Community Reporter team for real-time updates so stay tuned for more great content.
Simon Davis – www.twitter.com/sidetnee
Peter de Tender: www.twitter.com/pdtit
Tim Nilimma-Svard: www.twitter.com/timnilimaa
Fredrik Nilsson: www.twitter.com/fredriknilsson_
Adnan Hendricks: www.twitter.com/microspecialist
Mirko Colemberg: www.twitter.com/mirkocolemberg
Mike Resseler: https://twitter.com/MikeResseler
Glenn Block: https://twitter.com/gblock

(If you don’t use Twitter I added a widget so you can follow the updates.)

My intention is to blog every day (if i don’t I sure will tweet a lot) and this is the first blog post with last minute packing tips and introductions to #theKrewe

Packing for your trip?

I’d like to share some last minute packing tips that I have gathered over the years traveling to various places. (Some doesn’t apply to all trips but you get the idea.) A tweet from a good friend of mine made me add a new heading. 😉

In your pockets:

• Credit cards/money
• Remember your travel documents (Passport, VISA, ESTA or other travel documents). If you plan to use your phone, take a screen shot of barcodes and such. (There is nothing more annoying then waiting behind someone that suddenly lost internet connection and cant get to the e-mails.)
• Mobile phone

In your Carry On:

• One change of clothes. If your luggage gets lost you will at least be able to change when you get to the hotel.
• Hygienic articles, toothbrush, toothpaste and so on
• Your computer and other necessary equipment.
• Pain killers, and nasal spray. I got that tip from a flight attendant some 20 years ago. There is nothing worse than clogged ears during a flight. Use it about an hour before take-off to clear the canal between ear and nose. Have worked really well 🙂
• Power adapter, bring two. One for the necessary phone charge in the conference area and one for your hotel room.
• Your pair of comfortable shoes (if not worn)

In your luggage:

• A power strip that you connect the extra adapter to. Makes it easier to charge all the equipment in the comfort of your room.
• One change of clothes that are a bit nicer, a button down shirt and a pair of pants and shoes. It is nice to be able to dress up if you get invited to a nice evening occasion. A suit isn’t really necessary.
• Several pairs of socks and underwear. You will walk a lot so blisters and “infantry fire” is your worst enemy so change often. (http://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infanterield Swedish article about the military term, translate it if you want to know what it is)
• A warmer sweater/hoodie the AC in the conference area tends to be set to arctic temperatures.

Hey I almost forgot, don’t pack any t-shirts! You will get plenty of those in the TechEd Expo area.

Now to #theKrewe

I met theKrewe for the first time in 2011 while preparing myself for TechEd North America and have ever since daily or weekly contact with friends that I have gotten to know thanks to theKrewe.

The following text is taken from the IAMKREWE website.

The Krewe is a community organized professional networking group. Our mission is to build a dynamic networking community through various activities and gatherings. The Krewe primarily meets at Microsoft TechEd North America every year where we have The Krewe Meet ‘N Greet the day prior to the opening of the conference. Our group takes Networking to a whole new level, we are all close friends and are open to helping each other in any way possible be it through charitable works or by helping solve a question that has you stumped in your professional life. We are IT people from every level of the career, you may find someone totally new to IT who is just starting off or meet someone who has 20 years’ experience and is an MVP, MCT, MCP and any other abbreviation you can think of.

To ghet the history of the group please read Michael Benders blogpost The Krewe: A Primer where the story behind the group is told.

TheKrewe at TechEd Europe

Last year during TechEd in Madrid, theKrewe made it’s first appearance. You can read more about the amazing story in Peter De Tenders blog post Why TechEd it is important to me… and to you…

This year theKrewe kicks off the entire week with the famous Meet’n Greet party at 7 SINS – Food Lounge Bar

Get your ticket to the party here. (If you haven’t already)

The TechEd Europe Apps – part 2

To help you stay in touch with your friends there are two apps that you should look into that are made by theKrewe members.

Windows Phone:
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/app/the-krewe/c2b4e87b-8e39-4c94-9eb8-8c5ad1849866

The app is made by https://twitter.com/freestylecoder

Windows 8.x
http://apps.microsoft.com/windows/en-us/app/thekrewe/e157795b-8e48-47e8-af9e-b9d17fff735a

The app is made by https://twitter.com/tecableguy

If you see someone wearing a Krewe t-shirt (there are quite a few different ones) or white/blue jersey as in this picture, say hi and start a conversation.

Well now I guess I need to follow my advice and make sure I pack all the stuff I need. I really look forward meeting you in Barcelona.

The TechEd Europe Apps – part 1

There are some apps that are really useful during TechEd Europe and with less then two weeks to go we better start learning how to use them.

In this blog post I will cover the Ch9 Events app. In the app you will sync your schedule and receive updates to the content catalog, before and during the conference.

In an upcoming post I will cover theKrewe apps for Windows Phone and Windows 8.x.

Start by downloading the Ch9 Events for Windows 8,x | Windows Phone | iOS | Android

Windows 8

1 Install the app from Windows Store

2 Log in using your Microsoft Account

3 Link your account to your Channel 9 profile. click the link http://channel9.msdn.com/linkaccount

4. Pin it to the start screen

5. Enjoy

Windows Phone

1. Install the app from Windows Phone

2. Log in using your Microsoft Account

3. Link your account to your Channel 9 profile. click the link http://channel9.msdn.com/linkaccount

4. Pin it to the start screen.

5. Enjoy

Apple

1. Install the app from iTunes

2. Create a EventBoard account

3. Link your account to your Channel 9 profile. click the link http://channel9.msdn.com/linkaccount

4. Enjoy

Android

1. Install the app from Google Play

2. Create a EventBoard account

3. Link your account to your Channel 9 profile. click the link http://channel9.msdn.com/linkaccount

4. Enjoy

It’s the little things..

It is the little things that people do that makes a difference.

I just received an e-mail from one of the students at the Private Cloud class I delivered training for last week.

“Hello from a Private Cloud student…

Hi Fredrik!
I would like to say thank you for a great delivery of the Private Cloud class.

I took the 70-247 exam today at AddSkills and passed with help of my notes from class. Thank you very much for all the help.

Kind Regards
……”

Happy Friday folks, mine sure is 🙂

Congrats, you’re an Insider

 

I suppose there will be a long evening 🙂