 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Microsoft TechNet Ash Nallawalla ash@melbpc.org.au |
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The Microsoft TechNet CD is a monthly CD-ROM containing about 100,000 pages of information on Microsoft database products, operating systems, and desktop applications. Its audience includes support professionals, systems integrators and administrators, and MIS managers. You need TechNet if you support or educate end users, administer networks or databases, create automated solutions, or evaluate and recommend information technology solutions. Now, for the first time you can purchase a single copy of Technet which is priced attractively for the PC enthusiast or small office.
How to use
TechNet provides a full-text Boolean search front end as well as a tree-like Table of Contents. For simple searches you can browse through the Table of Contents. Next, you can narrow your search further by browsing specific categories.
To find material on a concept that is "somewhere" on the CD-ROM, you use the full-text search engine. For example, you get a "SHARE.EXE" error and want to look for a technical note on it. You can find what you want by matching a text string such as "SHARE.EXE". For more elusive answers you need to know how full-text Boolean searches work and how the search engine works within TechNet.
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Alternatives
Internet users may know that the Microsoft Knowledge Base is available on the www.microsoft.com Web site. Why would you want to pay for a CD-ROM when the information is available free of cost (other than your Internet access)? The Web is slow, not just locally, but at the Microsoft site, which is one of the busiest in the world. It may take longer than the time you have available. (It is also available on CompuServe: GO MSKB.) A CD-ROM is much more convenient.
Note, however, that searching on the Web is limited to using keywords. If you don't supply the exact keyword then you might miss something that is right there.
The TechNet CD gives you full-text search across all of the CD-ROM, enabling your search to encompass everything from Knowledge Base articles to resource kits and technical notes.
Internet files are updated frequently and sometimes files are updated on a daily basis. However, the Web discourages posting very large files to avoid long download sessions for users, so some of the larger files may not be available.
What's new
Now a separate disc is devoted to the international Knowledge Bases, service packs, white papers, toolkits and more. There are some great new papers on Visual Basic 4.0, including the Enterprise Edition Reviewer's Guide, information on using VB 4.0 to build Windows 95 applications, add-ins, and chapters on VB and OLE servers. Also supplied are troubleshooting information on Microsoft SQL Server 6.0, a white paper on creating an architectural design and implementation plan for Microsoft Systems Management Server, Service Pack 2 for Windows NT 3.51, and a demo of New Technology Partners' Quota Manager for Windows NT. In the MS Office and Desktop Application department are some Access 95 additions: a table analyser, and question and answer pieces on replication and on MS Jet 3.0. Office 95 training material is also provided. The December 1995 issue, for example, contained updated drivers to fix the Windows 95 file and printer sharing security issue. The user interface has been revamped to give a Windows 95 look and feel.
Conclusion
If you need access to Microsoft support information, particularly the larger files that are provided on the CD-ROM, then this medium might be your best bet. The Microsoft TechNet CD-ROM (Single Issue) costs $60; $40 to
Communique and Communique Care members; $30 to Communique Pro members. You need at least one issue of this in your collection.
Reprinted from the April 1996 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
