[Via Stephen W. Thomas]
BizTalk Server 2006 Beta is now available for public sign up.
BizTalk Server 2006 greatly simplifies the administration and deployment process. Some of the other key enhancements are the flat file schema wizard, calling pipeline from an Orchestration, improved BAM, and suspended message routing, just to name a few.
To sign up for the beta program follow these easy steps:
1. Go to http://beta.microsoft.com
2. Sign in with your passport
3. At the top of the page it should say something like “if you have a Guest Id click here”.
4. Enter: BizTalkBetaTeam (case sensitive) as your guest id.
5. Fill out the survey. I think the link is located on the left side of the screen. Make sure you do not use a PO Box.
6. You should get a welcome email once you are processed. I do not know how long this will take. Mine took several days.
I recommend anyone interested in BizTalk to take advantage to this beta program. It will give you a great opportunity to see the new features of the upcoming release and to have access to the beta news group. Just a note, Visual Studios 2005 Beta 2 is also required.
Check also the BizTalk Server 2006 Beta 1 Installation instructions and known issues. The installation instructions explain how to install BizTalk Server 2006 Beta 1 on Windows XP, Windows 2000 Server, or Windows Server 2003. The known issues file describes known issues about this beta release.
And don't forget to provide Luke with all feedback on the installation and configuration guides for this release.
At the Microsoft Global Business Conference (MGB05) in Atlanta Brian Valentine and Kevin Johnson announced the official name of Microsoft's next generation Windows Client Operating System, formerly code-named “Longhorn: Windows Vista.
Beta 1 of Windows Vista, targeted at developers and IT professionals, will be available by August 3, 2005.
Check out:
[Update] The Microsoft Windows Vista site