ITKE

Filter to see only answered or unanswered IT questions

In case you hadn’t noticed, we recently added some new features to the homepage. We’ve upped the list of most recent questions and answers on the homepage from 60 to a whopping 200. Plus, you’ll also find a new tab for filtering unanswered questions.

In addition to the homepage, you’ll now find these 3 tabs on every major topic: Recent IT Questions, Recent IT Answers and Unanswered IT Questions.

So now, if you’re looking for questions to answer within your specific expertise, simply click the Unanswered IT Questions tab on any of the topics of your choice below.

Recent IT Questions
→ This tab displays the most recent 200 questions, both unanswered and answered. This is the default view.

Recent IT Answers
→ This tab displays the most recent 200 questions that have an answer or a partial answer. The answer may be rated, improved or reverted by fellow members.

Unanswered IT Questions
→ This tab displays the most recent 200 unanswered questions. This is a handy tab, especially during contests, to quickly view only unanswered questions.

We currently have a Most Active Member contest during the month of May, so jump to your area of expertise and start answering questions to build up your Knowledge Points and you could be our next winner. Thanks.

Community Manager

VIEW UNANSWERED QUESTIONS ON THESE TOPICS

VIEW ANSWERED QUESTIONS ON THESE TOPICS

SQL and SQL Server tutorial and reference guide

There’s no doubt our community is one of the best places to post an IT question. Our members are some of the best and brightest and the distilled knowledge of our membership can be a lifesaver when an IT issue is driving you mad. But did you also know that your fellow members are sharing their expertise in their blogs?

You’ll be amazed at the tips, tweaks and time-savers you’ll find in the blogs of your peers and colleagues on IT Knowledge Exchange. Our sister site, SearchSQLServer.com, has gathered together related posts from our SQL Server with Mr. Denny blog to create a reference guide for those just getting started with SQL or anyone wishing to brush up their skills.

So be sure to visit the SQL and SQL Server tutorial and reference guide and take a moment to browse through our growing number of IT blogs for other topics of interest.

Community Manager

Don’t let the taxman crimp your geek budget

Benjamin Franklin said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” If Uncle Sam has just taken a bite out of your geek budget, keep reading, as today marks the start of our newest Most Active Member contest. Our previous winners are already kicking back and enjoying their prizes — and you could be our next winner.

Check out the sweet new prizes we’re offering…

1st Place → Nintendo Wii game system

To truly understand how Wii revolutionizes gaming, you have to try it for yourself. Quite simply, Wii is for everyone. The ease of use and interactivity of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk allows for a unique social gaming experience for the whole family. You don’t just play Wii, you experience it.

2nd Place → Canon PowerShot SD100 IS 8MP Digital Camera

With 8.0-megapixel technology at its heart, PowerShot SD1100 IS Digital ELPH brings you high resolution images that maintain their sharpness and vivid impact even when they’re enlarged and cropped. The 3x Optical Zoom is a clear winner when it comes to getting up close and personal. And Canon’s invaluable Optical Image Stabilizer reduces the blur of camera movement, even in tricky low light situations.

3rd Place → $100 Amazon gift certificate

Redeem your gift certificate for whatever you wish. You’ll find a huge variety of geek gear on Amazon.com and this shopping spree is on us.

You’ve heard it said that April showers bring May flowers? All I know is that April Knowledge Points bring May prizes. Each time you ask your own question, answer or discuss IT questions, you are automatically earning Knowledge Points. Whoever is sitting in the top three spots at the end of the day on May 31st will claim the title of Most Active Member and win one of these great prizes.

So be sure to visit the main unanswered questions section on IT Knowledge Exchange often during the contest period and ask, answer or discuss an IT question and earn Knowledge Points. You can also find unanswered questions for specific IT topics.

The prizes are our way of thanking the top contributors for sharing their expertise and helping build the ITKE community knowledgebase. It’s a brand new contest and everyone has an equal chance of being the next Most Active Member. So read the Contest Rules and start participating today. Thanks!

Community Manager

p.s. And don’t forget about our other “Link to ITKE” Contest that ends on April 30th. All you have to do is add IT Knowledge Exchange to your blogroll or homepage. It’s that simple and you could win an Apple iPod shuffle. Enter today for the random drawing.

Visit these links to find unanswered questions in these categories
AS/400 (unanswered questions)
Channel (unanswered questions)
CIO (unanswered questions)
CRM (unanswered questions)
Database (unanswered questions)
Data Center (unanswered questions)
Data Management (unanswered questions)
Development (unanswered questions)
Exchange (unanswered questions)
Linux (unanswered questions)
Lotus Domino (unanswered questions)
Microsoft Windows (unanswered questions)
Mobile (unanswered questions)
Networking (unanswered questions)
Oracle (unanswered questions)
SAP (unanswered questions)
Security (unanswered questions)
SQL Server (unanswered questions)
Storage (unanswered questions)
Virtualization (unanswered questions)
Unified Communications/VoIP (unanswered questions)

Symmetry for the midmarket Chief Information Officer

Time is money, as they say, and nowhere is this more evident than in the midmarket. Midmarket CIOs face unique challenges but finding a reliable source of news and information can be difficult. So I’m happy to introduce our newest editorial blog geared specifically to technology management strategies for the midmarket CIO. If you’re looking for a savvy look at the latest issues, then drop by the CIO Symmetry blog today.

See why other midmarket CIOs are making news and you aren’t. We’ll gather relevant news for you to peruse – here — at your leisure. Considering attending a trade show aimed at CIOs, but you’re just not sure that effusive PR person is being totally honest with you? We’ll give you the skinny.
— CIO Symmetry

The bloggers, Zach Church and Brian Kraemer, are no strangers to the ins and outs of the issues facing midmarket CIOs and can usually be found on SearchCIO-Midmarket.com. They describe their CIO Symmetry blog as a proportional mix of news and wit for the midmarket. So be sure to mouse over and check it out today.

Community Manager

How to upgrade to Hyper-V Release Candidate

Since many of our members have an interest in virtualization, I wanted to point out a good post that I read recently. It’s a how-to, titled How to upgrade to Hyper-V Release Candidate. Mouse over and check it out.

If you haven’t visited the Virtualization Pro blog, found right here on IT Knowledge Exchange – then be sure to stop by today for some great blog topics brought to you by the SearchVMware.com folks. Thanks.

Community Manager

Linking to us could be music to your ears

Starting on April 1st (no fooling!) and running for the full month of April – our readers are eligible to win an Apple iPod shuffle. All you need to do to enter is add IT Knowledge Exchange to your blogroll or link to us from the homepage of your website. Then simply let us know where you’ve added our link and bada bing — you’ll be entered in our random drawing for a sweet little iPod shuffle.

If you have a Blog — Add IT Knowledge Exchange to your blogroll and then send me an email showing where, so I can enter you in our iPod giveaway.

If you have a Website — Add a link to IT Knowledge Exchange on the homepage of your website and send me an email showing where, so I can enter you in our iPod giveaway.

Linking to us could be sweet music to your ears, because if your name is drawn, we’ll be sending you an oh-so-cool Apple iPod shuffle (1GB model).

The 1GB model iPod shuffle lets you wear up to 250 songs on your sleeve. Or your lapel. Or your belt. Clip on iPod shuffle and wear it as a badge of musical devotion. Put some music on: iPod shuffle is the only iPod that’s wearable right out of the box.

You may enter once for each blog or website that you use to link to us. So for instance, if you have 2 blogs and you add IT Knowledge Exchange to the blogroll of both blogs – you’ll be entered twice in the drawing.

How simple can it get, right? You love getting answers to your IT questions on IT Knowledge Exchange, so help spread the word by linking to us – and you may just win an iPod for doing so. So add that link today and be sure to let us know where.

For more information, please read the full contest rules. Thanks.

Community Manager

The future of IT professionals?

I wanted to share an interesting blog entry I recently came across, written by Chuck Hollis, Vice President of Technology Alliances at EMC. It’s a good read, so mouse over and check it out. I’ve always been a sucker for these “what’s down the road for IT” type articles from industry pundits.

In my previous life as a full-time editor – along with every other editor on the planet – the conclusion of each year was synonymous with grinding out the mandatory predictions for the coming year. I no longer have to participate in that ritual but I still enjoy reading what others think.

The Future of IT (Professionals)
The mega-trend is hard to argue with; if anything, information and its associated delivery technologies are getting more important to business, and not less. In any given calendar year, I’ve yet to see someone who has less information, fewer new application requirements, etc. Maybe less budget, but that’s a different story …

Every year, IT becomes more and more important to more and more businesses.

I’d also argue that, over time, IT organizations move up the value stack. Less time is spent on the operations, etc. and more time is spent solving business problems. Every IT organization is at different points in this journey, but the trend is inescapable.

One thing is for certain about the future of IT. You’ll continue to face numerous challenges this year, next year and forever. No one ever said a career in IT would be simple – but I hope you’ll continue to turn to our community when you need the kind of real world help that can only come from your peers and colleagues on IT Knowledge Exchange.

Community Manager

Announcing the winners in the Xbox Elite contest

Our Xbox Elite contest has ended and the winners have been calculated. Kudos and congratulations to the 3 outstanding members below that will claim some very cool prizes for their high level of participation. Our 1st place winner, Denny Cherry, has now surpassed 10,000 Knowledge Points. Congratulations on both the Knowledge Point milestone and winning the Xbox Elite, Denny!

Be sure to click the username of these members to view their most recent IT answers and discussion.

1st Place – Microsoft Xbox Elite game system
→ Denny Cherry (Mrdenny)

2nd Place – Apple 8GB iPod Touch
→ Buddy Farr (Buddyfarr)

3rd Place – Amazon $100 gift certificate
→ Jerry Lees (Jlees)

Prizes are a great incentive – but getting answers to your toughest IT questions is even better. A big “thank you” goes out to all of our members on IT Knowledge Exchange. Everyone wins as the collective knowledge of our IT community is expanded more each day.

We’re busy thinking up the next member contest, so feel free to leave a comment or suggest a prize. I welcome your feedback. Thanks.

Community Manager

And the winner is . . .

Congratulations to Mrdenny who beat out some tough competition to win the XBox 360 contest.

After reviewing all the questions, answers and discussions and adding up the points on the ones we felt added to the community Mrdenny earned a total of 6,595 Knowledge points. Coming in a close second place was Buddyfarr with 5,425 Knowledge points and third place went to Jlees with 2,455 Knowledge Points.

Thanks to everyone who contributed. Prizes will be shipped out in the next few weeks.

Don’t forget that you can receive a free IT Knowledge Exchange t-shirt just by earning 500 Knowledge Points.

Stay tuned for our next exciting contest and unfortunately the 1st place winner of previous contests are not eligible for the following 2 contests.

Sean

Spread the word to your friends and colleagues

One of our members, Karl Gechlik, has published a nice write up about our community here on IT Knowledge Exchange. You can read his review on MakeUseOf.com.

Karl has participated in over 100 questions on IT Knowledge Exchange, so be sure to visit his Public Profile and browse his answers and contributions. While you’re at it, drop by Karl’s website at Ask the Admin. Thank you for spreading the word about us, Karl!

And to the rest of our community – please be sure to tell a friend or colleague about IT Knowledge Exchange – and consider linking to us from your own blog or website. Spread the word!

Community Manager