Last week we posted the promo teaser here on the Springboard Blog for the Virtual Roundtable on Application Compatibility. As of today, the rebroadcast is live and ready for you to view.

If you missed the live broadcast, here’s your chance to hear Aaron Margosis, Paul Schnell; Darren Baker (also watch for Darren’s interview on TalkingAboutWindows next week), Greg Lambert Michael Sciacqua, Gov Maharaj, Celine Allee, Jeremy Chapman, and of course Mark Russinovich discuss the issues in getting your Windows XP and Windows Vista applications to work with Windows 7 quickly and effectively. From ACT 5.5 and Shims to discussions on key resources and tools, this VRT is a must see for those IT pros looking to make the jump to Windows 7.

To view the complete VRT, click here. 

Also, here are some of our previous VRTs you can view as well.

• Windows Vista Performance
• Let’s Talk Windows Vista Security
• Windows Vista Adoption and Deployment

I love keyboard shortcuts. Using a combination of two or more keys that, when pressed, can be used to perform a task that would typically require a mouse or other pointing device saves me time and effort both in Windows and other programs.

Here are some of my favorite Windows 7 shortcuts that you may not be familiar with that are great time savers. For a complete list of all shortcuts, check out this page here.

Do you have a favorite that you can’t do without? Share it with us in the comments area.

UPDATE: We have extended the RC download period till Thursday, August 20th, 2009.

Want to download the RC? The RC download program closes August 20th. After that, you won’t be able to get the download, but you can still install the RC and get a key if you need one. (To get a key, just go to the Downloads page and follow the instructions.)

If you’re using the Windows 7 Release Candidate, we hope you like what you see. Let us know - go to http://input.microsoft.com and tell us what you think. You’ll be able to give feedback on various aspects of the operating system.

Our latest Virtual Roundtable on Application Compatibility was another great success. Thank you to all our viewers who tuned in live to watch it last week.

Missed it? Well, here is a promo video of some of the highlights. Watch for details later this week here on where to view the full program.

If you’re anything like me and you love XBOX and IT as much as I do, you’ll get a kick out of this video. Trevor and Sam are back for their 3rd installment in the Talkin’ IT series. This time Sam has a “spinning green doughnut” that is taunting him. It’s the Great Master Russinovich and SysInternals to the rescue! Will Sam downgrade to Windows XP? Will he learn how to cut the fat from his MSCONFIG files? Will Trevor figure out what’s up with Mr. Canfield’s toupee? Watch and find out!

(Yes, we like to have a little fun as we attempt to inform IT professionals like yourself about Windows 7.)

If you aren’t familiar with Talking About Windows.com, Brandon did a piece on our first viral video here. But in all seriousness, we have a lot to say about the performance enhancements in Windows 7. OS optimization has been a key area of focus for us her at Microsoft.

Watch for new videos next week from key members of the engineering team and from IT pros like yourself.

So keep the comments coming and don’t forget to ask your questions to our Windows 7 Engineering team by joining the conversation at Talking About Windows.com

Our friends over in the Solution Accelerators team just released the beta version of the Microsoft Assessment and Planning tool (MAP) 4.0.  Many of you have discovered just how valuable these Solution Accelerators have been, based on the feedback we receive.  We want to bring this particular release to your attention, since assessing your current environment is a critical first step to see how ready your organization is for a Windows 7 deployment.

In the case of the Microsoft Assessment and Planning tool, this agentless and scalable toolkit has the ability to discover all computers within Active Directory and workgroup environments. It performs key functions that include hardware and device inventory, hardware compatibility analysis, and generation of actionable, environment-specific IT proposals for migration to most major Microsoft technologies.

For more information, head over to Baldwin Ng’s team blog posting here.  You might already know Baldwin as our resident expert on the Springboard Performance and Hardware compatibility zone.

(reposted from our blog of May 26th)

After we announced Windows XP Mode, I sat down again with Jeremy Chapman at the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas a few weeks ago to find out what he thought about Windows XP Mode as a solution for solving application compatibility issues.

Stephen Rose: Hi Jeremy, seems like I’m interviewing you a lot lately. So we’re at MMS here in Las Vegas and we just announced the Windows 7 Release Candidate and Windows XP Mode as a solution for allowing applications to run within a Windows XP session on a Windows 7 machine. What do you think about this technology? Will this solve everything for people having problems moving off Windows XP or Internet Explorer 6?

Jeremy Chapman: Windows XP Mode adds the seamless virtual desktop integration like we saw in Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MEDV), so you can see applications within the virtual operating system in the start menu:

And you can view applications within the physical operating system’s desktop without showing the entire virtual machine desktop.

It definitely makes the use of Virtual PC technologies much easier for the average user. As we’ve seen for the last decade or so, you can run legacy applications under the context of the legacy operating system. Initially that sounds like a good thing, as Virtual PC always has.

Stephen Rose: Explain what you mean by initially.

Jeremy Chapman: To the undiscerning eye, this looks like an easy fix and for many in sales and marketing roles, it might sound like a silver bullet for application compatibility. Despite the more intuitive user experience, the IT management issues with that are essentially the same as they have been for the last ten years or so with Virtual PC.

Stephen Rose: What do you see as the challenges with this technology then?

Jeremy Chapman: First, there are two operating systems to manage per userSecond, while we can automate and customize full operating system provisioning, it isn’t so easy to custom provision the virtual machine according to user roles and needs. Third, by default the virtual PC user account is a local administrator.

Stephen Rose: Ok, so is there anything that helps IT pros with any of these areas?

Jeremy Chapman: Definitely, MED-V (Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization) adds the control so you can sandbox the virtual PC environment from the physical environment. It also provides the administrative tools to provision within the virtual environment. There is granular control over how the two operating systems behave with one another and you can even pre-define which websites or web-based Line-of-Business applications need to be automatically invoked in the virtual machine’s web browser (Internet Explorer 6 by default). MED-V is also self adjusting as the virtual PC memory allocation based on available RAM on host, so that the virtual PC does not take significant resources from the user. Features like TrimTransfer update a master Virtual PC image, and MED-V will automatically distribute and apply the changes to all endpoints. Finally, MED-V will work on both Windows 7 and Windows Vista, and will not require processor-based virtualization support

Stephen Rose: That definitely sounds like the more manageable solution, but is running Virtual PC and MED-V the only recommended solution for Windows 7?

Jeremy Chapman: From the application compatibility perspective, the best thing to do is to get applications that run natively without any virtualization aids, recoding, compatibility fixes or compatibility modes needed. If you own the code and can recode the application, then do that. If you can’t recode a line-of-business application or are not dependent on support for a third party application, you can try compatibility fixes – or “shims” – to remediate the application. Finally, when all these options aren’t possible, then look into legacy operating system virtualization. If you have exhausted all other options for application remediation and intend on using Windows XP Mode, then I’d recommend following all the best practices in the Windows XP Security Compliance Management Toolkit to secure the virtual environment and manage configuration with Group Policy and desired configuration management in System Center Configuration Manager.

Stephen Rose: So who should be using Windows XP Mode then?

Jeremy Chapman: For individual users or smaller organizations where desktops are not managed, Windows XP Mode is a relatively easy solution to get working. You’ll need to find installation media for those older applications and manually install them, but it can get them working until you port everything over to the physical operating system.

Stephen Rose: So for a transitional period to the new OS, these legacy client virtualization tools can help people run their incompatible legacy applications. Is there anything else to remember with Virtual Windows XP?

Jeremy Chapman: We haven’t talked about hardware yet. So hardware needs to have hardware virtualization – Intel VT or AMDV – and have it enabled in the BIOS. Most business grade hardware produced in the last 2-3 years has that, but netbooks and older PCs often do not meet this requirement. The virtual machine also uses memory, so you’ll probably want to use PCs with 2 GB or more RAM.

Stephen Rose: Good advice. So where can people find more information on Windows XP Mode?

Jeremy Chapman: Check out Scott Woodgate’s blog post on the Windows Team Blog and Scott’s Q&A on PressPass. There is also a Virtual PC Tips and Tricks FAQ on Springboard located here

Stephen Rose: Thanks again for your time Jeremy.

Join Mark Russinovich, Jeremy Chapman, Aaron Margosis and more for our Windows 7 Virtual Round Table on Application Compatibility, live on Thursday June 18th.

Windows 7, is approaching fast and from the application standpoint is very similar to Windows Vista. We're going to examine Windows 7 application compatibility not only from the perspective of moving from Windows Vista, but also for those coming from Windows XP. Join us to discuss the most common challenges around application compatibility when coming from a legacy operating system, why changes were made along the way, compatibility technologies inside the OS and methods for getting incompatible applications to run on Windows 7. Along the way we share tips and tricks, demonstrate free tools to analyze and fix applications and answer your specific questions about application compatibility live.

In Part 2 of this Virtual Round Table discussion (planned for later this Summer/Fall), we'll discuss the options and approaches for using virtualization tools In depth to address application incompatibilities - including presentation virtualization, desktop virtualization and application virtualization. We'll be sending out more details and posting information to www.microsoft.com/springboard for part 2 as the dates are finalized.

As part of the "virtual" experience, you may submit your questions about Windows 7 Application Compatibility to the panel live during the event-or submit questions in advance to vrtable@microsoft.com.

Event Details:
Title: Windows 7 Application Compatibility: Your Questions Answered (Part 1)
Date: Thursday, June 18
Time: 11:00am Pacific Time
URL for Live Broadcast: https://ms.istreamplanet.com/springboard (will not be live till 10:45 am PST on June 18th)

Also don't forget, starting July 1st, the Windows 7 Beta will reboot every two hours. If you have not download and installed the Windows 7 Release Candidiate, please do so now by going here: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx

I am Stephen Rose, Sr Community Manager for Windows Client IT Professionals. Today, I am excited to announce that the Springboard Series Blog will now be part of The Windows Blog!

By partnering with The Windows Blog, we are taking one more step towards creating that one stop shop for key information on Windows through blogging at one location.

The Windows team is always looking for better ways to keep you ‘in the know' on the information important to you and the people you support. One of the best ways to do that is to keep all the important information in one location.

We here on the Springboard Team pride ourselves at being the ultimate source for Desktop IT Professionals. At www.microsoft.com/springboard, we have taken all the key tools, FAQs, whitepapers, screencasts, how-to's and technical guides important to IT Pros. By putting all this in one location, it makes it fast and so much easier for folks to find the information that they are looking for - no matter which no matter step in the implementation lifecycle they are in (Discover, Explore, Pilot, Deploy or Manage).

So it's the same blog but at a different place with a different look and more information.

As always, an thoughts, comments, or suggestions around Springboard or the blog are welcomed and encouraged.

I look forward to connecting with you.

Stephen

(for more IT Pro tips, tricks and information, join our Twitter feed at http://twitter.com/MSspringboard)