Tag beta

Thanks Beta Exam blog! And otherwise, if you recall all of the beta exams I’d talk about in the past, this is no different!

Note: This exam will be available for testing during the time when TechEd is going on, so be sure to definitely plan accordingly!

Registration begins: April 27, 2009

You are invited to take beta exam 71-680: TS: Windows 7, Configuring. If you pass the beta exam, the exam credit will be added to your transcript and you will not need to take the exam in its released form. The 71-xxx identifier is used for registering for beta versions of MCP exams, when the exam is released in its final form the 70-xxx identifier is used for registration.
By participating in beta exams, you have the opportunity to provide the Microsoft Certification program with feedback about exam content, which is integral to development of exams in their released version. We depend on the contributions of experienced IT professionals and developers as we continually improve exam content and maintain the value of Microsoft certifications.

71-680: TS: Windows 7, Configuring counts as credit towards the following certification(s).

· MCTS: Windows 7, Configuration

Availability

Registration begins: April 27, 2009

Beta exam period runs: May 5, 2009– May 18, 2009

Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the beta; we recommend that you register immediately! Beta exams have limited availability and are operated under a first-come-first-served basis. Once all beta slots are filled, no additional seats will be offered.

Testing is held at Prometric testing centers worldwide, although this exam may not be available in all countries (see Regional Restrictions). All testing centers will have the capability to offer this exam in its live version.

Regional Restrictions: India, Pakistan, China

Registration Information

You must register at least 24 hours prior to taking the exam.
Please use the following promotional code when registering for the exam: WIN7J
Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the beta; we recommend that you register immediately.

To register in North America, please call:

•Prometric: (800) 755-EXAM (800-755-3926)

Outside the U.S./Canada, please contact:

•Prometric: http://www.register.prometric.com/ClientInformation.asp

Test Information and Support

You are invited to take this beta exam at no charge.
You will be given four hours to complete the beta exam. Please plan accordingly.

Our good friends over at Engineering Windows 7 have released this little gem!

Here’s what you can do to bypass the check for pre-release upgrade IF YOU REALLY REALLY NEED TO:

1. Download the ISO as you did previously and burn the ISO to a DVD.
2. Copy the whole image to a storage location you wish to run the upgrade from (a bootable flash drive or a directory on any partition on the machine running the pre-release build).
3. Browse to the sources directory.
4. Open the file cversion.ini in a text editor like Notepad.
5. Modify the MinClient build number to a value lower than the down-level build. For example, change 7100 to 7000 (pictured below).
6. Save the file in place with the same name.
7. Run setup like you would normally from this modified copy of the image and the version check will be bypassed.

These same steps will be required as we transition from the RC milestone to the RTM milestone.

Wait, what the hell is going on here?!

Are you seriously telling me that by going and modifying a file, I can upgrade from the Beta version, RC and eventually to the RTM release of Windows 7?    Wowza! Now all I need to do is boot from VHD, and I have myself an upgrade path which is viable for real hardened testing :)

Please see the Free Testing Archive for tests like this and more!

Register for Beta Exam 71-505: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application Development

Registration Begins 11/21/2008

You are invited to take beta exam 71-505: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application Development. If you pass the beta exam, the exam credit will be added to your transcript and you will not need to take the exam in its released form. The results willnot appear on your transcript until several weeks after the final form of the exam is released. The 71-xxx identifier is used for registering for beta versions of MCP exams, when the exam is released in its final form the 70-xxx identifier is used for registration.

71-505: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application Development counts as credit towards the following certification(s).

· Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications

· Microsoft Certified Professional Developer: Windows Developer 3.5

· Microsoft Certified Professional Developer: Enterprise Application Developer 3.5

Availability

Registration begins: November 21, 2008

Beta exam period runs: November 25, 2008– December 15, 2008

Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the beta; we recommend that you register immediately. Beta exams have limited availability and are operated under a first-come-first-served basis. Once all beta slots are filled, no additional seats will be offered.

Testing is held at Prometric testing centers worldwide, although this exam may not be available in all countries (see Regional Restrictions). All testing centers will have the capability to offer this exam in its live version.

Regional Restrictions: India, Pakistan, China

Registration Information

Please use the following promotional code when registering for the exam: X356Y
You must register at least 24 hours prior to taking the exam.

To register in North America, please call:

· Prometric: (800) 755-EXAM (800-755-3926)

Outside the U.S./Canada, please contact:

· Prometric: http://www.register.prometric.com/ClientInformation.asp

Test Information and Support

You are invited to take this beta exam at no charge.
You will be given four hours to complete the beta exam. Please plan accordingly.
Find exam preparation information: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/exams/70-505.aspx

This exam is not ready yet! No Beta code to speak of.

But there is already talk about it, so the chances of there being codes.. Soon!

Until such a point, here are some study guides provided by the blessed Garth Jones!

70-635 MCTS: Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008, Desktop Deployment

70-635 Study Guide

He’s even created a Wiki Page for Exam Prep and Review! so check it out!

So, special props to Garth Jones, and look forward to an update to the Free Testing Archive when we get that Beta Code!

Thinking about getting Certified? Not sure what to do? What the value is?

I’d like to point you to our good friends at Microsoft running a Certification 101 Live meeting.

*Begin Blatant Theft from the MSLCommunity :)*

After many suggestions from you, and from our dear friend Trika, we are hosting another Certification 101 Live Meeting. This one will take place on Tuesday, November 18^th and will hopefully be the start of a regular schedule of these Live Meetings.

Audience: IT Professionals, developers who think they might like to get certified, but aren’t sure it’s right for them and/or aren’t sure where to start. People who have never taken a Microsoft exam and work with Microsoft products, or people who will be working with Microsoft in the very near future.

Registration: Join folks from the Microsoft Certified Professional team (including ME) to learn about the benefits and process of getting certified: choosing a certification path, preparing for your first exam, taking an exam, and what to expect after that. Click to register for:

• November 18, 2008 at 7:30 A.M. Pacific Time http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032394770&Culture=en-US)(What time is this in my region?)
• November 18, 2008 at 5:30 P.M. Pacific Time http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032394771&Culture=en-US (What time is this in my region?)

Here’s what we’ll talk about…

• what a technical certification can do for you–what is the goal?
• how to choose a certification track that will help you meet your goals – career or otherwise
• how do you know when you’re ready (expected experience level, time/money involved, etc)
• preparation options (what you need to know, how to learn it)
• the testing experience (registering, during the test, what happens when you’re done)

Our hope is to make this less intimidating for new people.

Please send the links around if you have co-workers or user groups who might find this helpful.

*End Blatant theft!*

Do check out and comment on their blog as well! this post Certification 101: Getting Started with Microsoft Certification and others are available there!