Brian Nelson
Brian Nelson (MCSE, CNA) is a professional freelance writer and small business owner with the freelance writing business ArcticLlama, LLC. Brian’s experience includes network and systems administration, financial planning and advising, and he even has a degree in Biochemistry. Brian specializes in several areas of highly technical writing for ArcticLlama including technology, science and medical. He is also a freelance financial writer specialist. He lives in Colorado with his wife and daughter. Brian contributes articles on Windows Server 2008 and other related topics.
- Website: http://www.arcticllama.com/
Brian Nelson has written 95 posts for TrainSignal Training
Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 New Features: Dynamic Memory and RemoteFX
By Brian Nelson ⋅ May 4, 2010 ⋅ 3 comments
Dynamic Memory and RemoteFX are two new features in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, both of which are functions for Microsoft virtualization. Dynamic Memory is a new feature in Hyper-V, while RemoteFX works with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services on thin clients.
Microsoft Word 2010 Updated Features and Benefits
By Brian Nelson ⋅ April 30, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments
Microsoft Word is the workhorse of the Microsoft Office Suite. While some users make extensive use of Excel, Access, PowerPoint, and other Office apps, virtually every computer user makes use of a word processor, and the most ubiquitous word processing application in the world is Microsoft Word. That is why when Microsoft releases a new [...]
Windows Server 2008 R2 Green Features
By Brian Nelson ⋅ March 17, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment
To the uninitiated, the so-called green features installed with Windows Server 2008 R2 might seem like nothing more than corporate charity aimed at environmentalists. While companies are all too eager to bask in the good guy status generated by incorporating energy saving measures and processes into their products, there is actually a significant business reason [...]
Microsoft Office 2010 Full Release Details
By Brian Nelson ⋅ March 11, 2010 ⋅ 4 comments
Microsoft’s recent success with large-scale betas, most famously with Windows 7, has led the company to continue the practice with its best-selling cash cow software, Microsoft Office. Millions of users have already downloaded Office 2010. Recent news suggests that the retail release of Microsoft Office 2010 is coming soon, with a release candidate already having [...]
Server 2008 R2 Update Review
By Brian Nelson ⋅ December 2, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
The release of Server 2008 R2 was largely overshadowed by the more consumer friendly release of Microsoft’s next desktop operating system, Windows 7. However, Windows Server 2008 R2 provides many new features and upgrades, including several that go hand in hand with new features found in Windows 7. That means there are more new reasons [...]
Windows 7 Features That Require Server 2008 R2
By Brian Nelson ⋅ November 19, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
Windows 7 has been released to considerable acclaim. Most reviewers claim to see not only improvements in speed and functionality, but better usability as well. Some reviewers are going so far as to proclaim that Windows 7 is as user friendly as the latest Mac OS Snow Leopard. Even more important for business users and [...]
Backstage Office 2010 File View Evolution
By Brian Nelson ⋅ November 10, 2009 ⋅ 3 comments
Microsoft takes plenty of grief for its user interface design. The complaints are well deserved about as often as not, meaning that some things just ARE complicated, and no interface can make them simple, and sometimes, it seems as if no one in Redmond actually uses the product before it ships. Then, of course, there [...]
Windows Mobile 6.5 for Office Web and Beyond
By Brian Nelson ⋅ November 3, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
Windows Mobile 6.5 Updated Features, Better Experience and Office Web App Integration Microsoft’s updated Windows Mobile 6.5 release became widely available worldwide on October 6th. What was once a non-event because users and manufacturers alike were planning on waiting for Windows Mobile 7, has taken on new importance with news that Mobile 7 will be [...]
Hated Vista? Will You Love Windows 7?
By Brian Nelson ⋅ October 27, 2009 ⋅ 6 comments
Windows Vista may have been the least well received operating system since Microsoft Bob. While there were many common elements among the reasons people hated Vista, at times it seemed like no matter what the feature, and no matter how it was implemented, someone hated it with the fire of a thousand suns. So far, [...]
What’s The Next Step for MCSEs?
By Brian Nelson ⋅ October 27, 2009 ⋅ 5 comments
I’ve been eating out on my MCSE certification since I first earned it in 1995. Back then, I got an unsolicited phone call from a major computer company that was adding a new arm to its consulting division. They found my resume on the Internet, doubled my salary, sent me on consulting gigs across the [...]
Is Bing Making Microsoft More Competitive Online?
By Brian Nelson ⋅ October 12, 2009 ⋅ One comment
Over the course of Microsoft’s history, the company got one, and only one, thing right about the Internet on the first try. It figured Netscape would grow to be big enough to challenge Microsoft. Ever since then, Microsoft has been bungling the Internet. Their attempts at creating a web browser have been largely derided. Internet [...]
Why Getting Your MCSE Now Is Still A Good Idea
By Brian Nelson ⋅ October 7, 2009 ⋅ 14 comments
For over a decade, an MCSE certification was the golden ticket in the world of IT. An MCSE meant that, not only had you demonstrated an understanding of systems administration and the skills necessary to run a Windows-based enterprise, but also that you were willing to take the extra necessary steps to achieve a long-term [...]
Is Microsoft’s New Search Engine Bing Good Enough?
By Brian Nelson ⋅ October 1, 2009 ⋅ One comment
Microsoft has spent the last several years running around in circles when it comes to competing with the Google juggernaut in the search space. However, recent moves may have finally given the giant from Redmond a shot at earning some of that search market share it so desperately craves. Are Bing Results As Good [...]
Upgrading from XP To Windows 7? Here’s How to Do it Right
By Brian Nelson ⋅ September 24, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments
The upcoming Windows 7 release is fast approaching. If you are one of the millions of users who skipped upgrading your Windows XP to Vista, it is time to start planning for your upgrade from XP to Windows 7. No In-Place Upgrade from XP to Windows 7 Microsoft has already announced that there will be [...]
Office 2010 Technical Preview With Windows 7
By Brian Nelson ⋅ September 16, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
Windows 7 rolls out to the public in October, but thousands of users have already gotten their hands on an early copy, whether via the free Release Candidate download that Microsoft offered to all comers, or via a Technet subscription, or maybe by getting sticky fingers on a RTM copy. Whatever the method, whether it [...]
How to Deploy Windows 7 In The Enterprise
By Brian Nelson ⋅ August 19, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments
Windows 7 is coming to the enterprise at full speed. If you are like most companies, you skipped Vista at your business. Maybe it was installed on a handful of computers, mostly on test systems. Or, maybe, a plan was implemented to integrate new computers that came pre-installed with Windows Vista into the enterprise. Either [...]
Install Windows 7 RC, Keep Windows XP
By Brian Nelson ⋅ August 10, 2009 ⋅ 3 comments
Microsoft has shipped the RTM (Release to Manufacturing) version of Windows 7 and since last Friday (August 6th) computer makers, TechNet subscribers and other Microsoft partners are now able to get it. However the full consumer version still won’t be on store shelves until October 22nd. Since a lot of computer power-users and IT professionals [...]
Windows 7 Migration Strategy and The Death of Windows XP
By Brian Nelson ⋅ August 4, 2009 ⋅ 2 comments
Microsoft recently has announced that Windows 7 code has been finalized. The so-called, Release to Manufacturing, or RTM version of Windows 7 will be officially available to computer makers, TechNet subscribers and other partners on August 6th with a retail release date of October 22nd. This is big news, but those aren’t the only important [...]
Speed Up Your Windows Easily with Disk Defragmenting
By Brian Nelson ⋅ July 28, 2009 ⋅ One comment
Recently we talked about the Top 8 Must Have Windows Utilities. On that list was a good real-time disk defragmenter. When it comes to making Windows faster, few things have as good of return on investment as disk defragmenting. Yet, disk defrag utilities are often the least likely to be run on the average user’s [...]
Faster Windows File Management with Free Xplorer2 Lite
By Brian Nelson ⋅ July 22, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
Windows Explorer was designed as a way to navigate and manage computer files more easily. However, as the number of files and directories (or folders, if you prefer) on the average user’s computer disk has blown up so fast that it’s insulting to call it "exponentially", Windows Explorer has fallen way behind. Microsoft’s original strategy [...]