Tag Free

I’m sure you’ve seen my post here: $25 Certification Exam – Expires June 30th, 2009! (NA Only) or Prometric wants you Microsoft Certified by June 30th! oh and Clicking this link might save a life, Seriously  – So based around these very points, let me change it a little bit and tell you that *I* want you to get certified before June 30th!

Why do I want you to get certified? There’s never been a better time! The opportunity is here now, launch upon it! I have these pretty green vouchers with Discount Codes entitling you to take an exam for $100 off of the exam, that’s right! The exam will only cost you $25 to take!   And it has Second Shot built in to the voucher, which means if you do not pass the exam for whatever reason, you can use the same number to take your exam again for $0!

So, if I do the math correctly…

Wow! $25 for the chance to take an exam! Yay! (I’ve used one of these myself to pass an exam, and the interest in this has been amazing and great!)

I however want to open this up to more than just the people I already know on email, twitter and I meet at User Groups, so are you looking to get Microsoft Certified before June 30th?

There’s never been a better time, and let me know.. I’ll give vouchers out until I run out of vouchers… or until its June 30th, whichever comes first!

For some additional resources on training as well, I direct you to the following locations!

This is a number of supported, as well as Free Resources, so check them out!

How much does Free Microsoft Learning Cost? (Hint: Free!)

5 Free Virtualization Training Courses for the Holidays! (HyperV)

So if you’re interested in getting certified, let me know on twitter @cxi, shoot me an email CXI at pkguild.com , or CXI at NetApp.com (Or even leave a comment here, that’s fine!)

Good luck, and get certified! Thanks! – CXI :) (North America only: Only around 30 left!)

Thanks to the MSPress Blog!

Our celebration of 25 years of publishing by Microsoft Press continues this month with two more free e-books available for the next week! These offers expire on May 27, 2009, so download the e-books today:

Windows Server 2008 Terminal Services Resource Kit, by Christa Anderson and Kristin L. Griffin with the Microsoft Presentation Hosted Desktop Virtualization Team (PDF, 38.0 MB). In-depth and comprehensive, this Resource Kit delivers the information you need to set up, deploy, and manage a Terminal Services farm using Windows Server 2008. For more information or to buy the print version of this title, visit the Microsoft Learning website.

The Practical Guide to Defect Prevention, by Marc McDonald, Robert Musson, and Ross Smith (PDF, 4.3 MB). This practical, hands-on guide captures, categorizes, and builds a process of best practices to help avoid creating defects during the development process—rather than fixing them after extensive analysis. For more information or to buy the print version of this title, visit the Microsoft Learning website.

Note: You will need to temporarily allow pop-ups in order to download the free e-books.

That’s right! April 16th is the day for the:

Microsoft Certification Coaching Session: Preparing for your Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 – Application Development Exam (70-541)

If you’re interested in SharePoint and want to get Certified, this is a must see event!

More details below!

Duration:
60 Minutes

Start Date:

Thursday, April 16, 2009 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada)

Event Overview

Take advantage of this coaching session hosted by a Microsoft Certified Trainer to help prepare for your Microsoft Certification exam.

This session is intended for Developers and IT Professionals pursuing Technical Specialist: Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 – Application Development certification.  You will review key exam topics including deploying Windows SharePoint Services and custom components, developing components, manipulating site content and configuration.  The session will help you understand the key exam topic areas and how to better focus your study efforts.

Registration Options

Event ID:
1032406314

Also, if you’re interested in other events ‘out in the future’ check out this link

Free Certification Exam Preparation

A glance into the future will reveal:

April 21: Preparing for your Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring / Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuring Exams (70-640/642)

Register Now:  7:30 A.M. Pacific Time   (What time is this in my region?)

April 23: Preparing for your PRO: Windows Server 2008, Server Administrator / PRO: Windows Server 2008, Enterprise Administrator Exams (70-646/647)

Register Now:  7:30 A.M. Pacific Time   (What time is this in my region?)

April 28: Preparing for your Exchange Server 2007, Configuring exam (70-236)

Register Now:  10:00 A.M. Pacific Time   (What time is this in my region?)

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.

If you remember my past posts on Elevate America, there are now some updates to this!

Through a simple clickable map you can find out information on how to obtain YOUR voucher!

This information really speaks to the heart of the issue

The vouchers are part of a new national program Microsoft announced at the National Governors Conference in February. Elevate America hopes to offer job training to as many as 2 million Americans over the next three years.

And if you’re like Sue T. Carter, this comes at the best time possible

Sue T. Carter of Bellevue picked up one of the first vouchers. She said she has been working part time for more than two years and really needs to find a job that will help her pay her rent, because she is less than a month away from eviction.

Special thanks to our friends at the MS Learning Community for the heads up on this