THE OFFICIAL BLOG OF THE SBS DIVA

Dear Mike:

First off I have to apologize.  I'm picking on you because your name was in a CRN article about SBS.  You see you were labelled as a partner who “dislikes” SBS and that will instead push the midmarket bundle.  “Discounted software” you said and “let the actual customer needs dictate the number of servers”.  Yes Mike, let the customer needs dictate the solution, but don't close your eyes on SBS.

In 1998 I went to a class on networks and computers and in that CPE class I was first told about SBS 4.0.  I knew that it would be a perfection solution for my firm.  So I found a consultant who knew NT, but not SBS.  We muddled through, didn't screw it up too much.

So along comes SBS 2000 era and I went searching again for a SBSized partner.  And this time I was told “we don't recommend SBS”, “we find firms outgrow it”.

Yeah, right.  So here I am how many years later and still, there are Microsoft partners who turn a blind eye at their customers needs.  Oh they say they are listening, but I see the same pattern that I as a customer encountered.

You see, Mike, unless that mid market bundle, which right now is just a pricing bundle and has no 'specialness of SBS', has anything like SBS's killer apps of a monitoring email and Remote Web Workplace, all you are doing is hurting your Small Business customer.

Remember we 'can' add additional servers, member servers, additional domain controllers.  But if I'm a business owner that is in the target size for SBS, you'd really better show me a business value for 'not' being on SBS.  And it better be a good reason too. 

Rick Richardson at the Illinois Business and Technology show asked the audience “when's the last time you saw a killer app” to a room full of Accountants.  He said Visi-calc.

I said Remote Web Workplace.

I think I'm right.