Wait, what?! Yay?! That’s right! The Exchange 2010 exams will be hitting beta soon, and you can get first crack at testing it in the beta process – All it takes is clicking random links and updating your profile to reflect the fact that you’ve been playing with the 2010 bits!

Step 1. Visit this MSL Post to get the highlights (thanks Krista Wall!) Exchange 2010 beta exams coming soon—submit your SME profile now!

Step 2. Visit this second MSL Post in order to get the details about the SME Profile on connect! One word, rhymes with sneeze—Sign me up!

Step 3. Alright, I didn’t follow steps 1 or 2 because I don’t like clicking links so I want to go directly to setting up my SME Profile on Connect

• Visit the Connect Home Page
• Click on “Were you invited to join Connect?”
• Put this invitation code into the box: SME2-JC3G-DKDY
• Fill out the survey/profile
• You’re set and on your way to being the part of this beta and other future betas! Yay?!

So, the keys are in your hands – So step up and be a part of the future of the Exchange 2010 exams… or sit on the sidelines waiting until its released in final form in a million years!

Hey, you remember the bus! Well, the locations have been published! Which is especially great if you’re a number of destinations along the path you will want to hook up and meet the bus along the way!

• Milan, 26 Oct
• Zurich, 27 Oct
• Paris, 28 Oct
• London, 29 Oct
• Brussels, 30 Oct
• Amsterdam, 2 Nov
• Frankfurt, 3 Nov
• Munich, 4 Nov
• Vienna, 5 Nov
• Prague, 6 Nov
• Berlin, 9 Nov

Host a Career Express and/or a TechEd EMEA community event!

The best part of the tour are the local stops the Career Express makes at training partners and community events. On the Career Express USA tour in May, we stopped at a luau thrown by a partner, high schools, and colleges. What do you get when you host an event?

1) Company profile promoted on Get On The Bus Tour website

2) Event resources to facilitate local event in your area as part of Get On The Bus Tour stop

3) Increased visibility with TechEd EMEA registrants and/or attendees

4) Technical training on Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2, and Microsoft Exchange Server 2010

If you would like to host a local event, we are taking applications until August 18. For more details, download the application form here: Bus Tour EMEA Event Application Form

Why yes, much of this was hijacked from Born to Learn, but hey! I had a lot invested in that trip and I equally want to see this one be successful! So get out there! Be a hosting location, or visit one of the hosting locations, it’ll be an experience unlike no other!

So, I discussed this before in a few places, but just incase we forgot! Act now or forever lose your Microsoft Certification discount!, Getting Microsoft Certified in the United Arab Emirates! and Certification and MeasureUp Discounts 20% off Certs!

Well, in these past posts, I discussed that there were a finite number of countries whereby the 20% off discount would apply.  I did have a spreadsheet I generated and kept on hand.. but instead of sharing the entire spreadsheet I’m only going to include the countries which *today* offer the 20% off discount before they all fall into 10% only discounts.  The important lesson here is: If you live in one of these countries where 20% is available, let me know and I’ll be sure to get you the 20% off voucher before we all lose it forever!

That’s right! If you live, test and certify in one of these countries above, let me know and I’ll be sure to get you some vouchers! You must let me know before August 27th though, or else I’ll only be able generate 10% vouchers after that point!   And yes I will be generating SOME vouchers to keep on hand for these countries just incase, but it’s better to be safe than sorry and ensure you’re all taken care of!

Good news! Especially for those of you who have checked out these two posts:

Certification and MeasureUp Discounts 20% off Certs! 

Getting Microsoft Certified in the United Arab Emirates!

Unfortunately, there will be some change on the horizon! That 20% will soon become 10% for all vouchers generated after August 27th, 2009!  Fortunately, all vouchers generated BEFORE August 27th, 2009 will still be eligible for their original discount (Which is great for England, US and other 20% off countries! :))

I’ll generate a number of vouchers to have on hand as applicable, which I’ll definitely take care of for England and the US, and if you have any other countries you want vouchers for… let me know and I’ll be sure to keep them on hand! :)

Thanks to Mike Mulcare for announcing this on born to learn!

So, what exactly is SnackBox?

Welcome to SnackBox

Learning Snacks are short, interactive learning presentations about Microsoft technologies and include various media, such as animations and recorded demos. Are you an expert? Be part of this growing and vibrant community – create your own Learning Snack and share it with the world here!

Well, that’s a verbatim explanation taken from the site, but what does that really mean?

SnackBox Highlights

• Provides an easy way to browse and find Microsoft Learning and community- created snacks. 
• Enables the Microsoft Learning Community to easily create snacks using the LCDS and Snack Converter tool.
• Distinguishes between community produced and Microsoft produced Snacks
• Allows users to rate snacks
• Allows us to highlight top community contributors

Alright, enough copy and paste.  Are you seriously telling me that Microsoft has created a simple way to not only create content using LCDS to share with the Learning and Education community, but respectively they have also created a venue for sharing this information with the world, including featured content? If that is the case, woohoo! :)

Though seriously, I highly encourage you to check this out, whether you’re a creator, learner or looking to be a creator/learner/educator/trainer and beyond :)