As I was preparing my post from earlier this morning about the TechNet Simulcast I came across an interesting link for the top 10 webcasts on the Microsoft Events and Webcasts homepage.
These are ranked as the top 10 based on the people who watched them and gave feedback on the event.
- TechNet Webcast: How Microsoft Does IT: Deploying Microsoft Windows 7 (Level 300)
- MSDN Webcast: Security Talk: Using Windows Azure Storage Securely (Level 200)
- TechNet Webcast: Using the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report v8 in an Evolving Threat Landscape (Level 200)
- MSDN Webcast: Visual Studio 2010 Ecosystem Series: Oracle Development in Visual Studio with Toad Extension for Visual Studio (Level 200)
- MSDN Webcast: MSDN Radio: Shazzam and Windows Phone 7 with Walt Ritscher (Level 100)
- MSDN Webcast: geekSpeak: Local Messaging and Silverlight with Brian Lagunas (Level 200)
- TechNet Webcast: Project Server 2010 and SharePoint Server 2010: Focus on Project Management (Level 200)
- TechNet Webcast: SQL Server 2008 R2: Upgrading SQL Server Business Intelligence Components (Level 300)
- MSDN Webcast: geekSpeak: PowerShell for .NET Developers with Doug Finke (Level 200)
- MSDN Webcast: geekSpeak: WCF Extensibility with Scott Reed (Level 200)
Beyond this top 10 list there is some great content at the Microsoft Events and Webcasts homepage that you should check out.
Presentations are broken down into categories such as In-Person events, Live Webcasts, On-Demand Webcasts, Podcasts and Virtual labs. They target a broad range of people including IT Professionals, Developers, Business professionals, IT Executives and Business Executives.
I even think a tech enthusiast and general geek can get a lot from watching these events and webcasts so don’t shy away because of the list of people it targets.
If you would like to get an idea of the level of detail then pay attention to the levels they assign to each event. Here is the summary of those from the FAQ:
Level 100 (Introductory)
Through technical webcasts, you will be introduced to product and technology features, functions, and benefits. Business webcasts will introduce you to product functionality and include demonstrations of end-user tips. You may also learn how and why to invest in a certain product or technology.
Level 200 (Intermediate)
Attendees should have Level 100 knowledge of the product or technology because these webcasts drill down further into a topic than introductory webcasts. These webcasts often include product demonstrations, code samples, best practices, and high-level troubleshooting techniques.
Level 300 (Experienced)
These webcasts cover advanced material and assume Level 200 knowledge, an in-depth understanding of features in a real-world environment, and strong coding skills. These webcasts provide you with a detailed technical overview of a subset of product or technology features, covering architecture, performance, migration, deployment, and development.
Level 400 (Advanced/Expert)
These webcasts assume a deep level of technical knowledge and experience and a detailed, thorough understanding of the topic. They offer expert-to-expert interaction and coverage of such specialized topics as custom code, scripts, application solution development, and architect infrastructure designs and solutions.
Sometimes there can be no harm in watching an event that is of a higher level than you think you’re at because that is a great way to learn and challenge ourselves.
