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• Don Jones
Scripting Games

Scripting Games Winter 2014 Notice

Due to some vagaries in the system, we have some users who “belong” to multiple teams. I think I’ve corrected the problem so it won’t crop up again. A couple of players’ team memberships were manually reduced to 1. If it was you, and you’re suddenly on the wrong team, post in the forum and I’ll fix it for you. For everyone else, when you go to the event list you may be redirected to a “You’re on multiple teams” page, and asked to click the team you wish to remain on.

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• Don Jones
Scripting Games

Scripting Games Winter 2014 – Practice Event Rules

On Monday, our practice event should be open at http://ScriptingGames.org. **If you formed a team but only have one player on Monday morning, you will not be able to submit entries. **I’ve noticed several folks who have only a single player but who have set their team membership to “private,” meaning nobody can join you unless you provide them with your invitation code. **Your team must have 2-6 players to participate in the Games.

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• Mike F Robbins
Scripting Games

PowerShell Tip #1 from the Winner of the Advanced Category in the 2013 Scripting Games

In case you haven’t heard, the 2014 Winter Scripting Games are just now getting started. Regardless of your skill level with PowerShell, it couldn’t be a better time to participate since this is the first time in the history of the scripting games that you’ll be able to work as part of a team and receive proactive feedback (before your code is judged) from a team of expert coaches who use PowerShell in the real world on a daily basis.

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• Don Jones
Scripting Games

Winter Scripting Games Team Formation in Full Swing

It looks like Team Formation is in full swing, with more than a dozen teams already registered for The Scripting Games: Winter 2014. Some team tips: If you create a new team, we’re assigning it a default team name. You can immediately change that. Teams start as public, but we’re allowing you to make them private. This removed the team from the “join up” list, and gives you an invite code.

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• Don Jones
PowerShell for Admins

Using Install-WindowsFeature with Offline Source

As you probably know, the Install-WindowsFeature (used to be Add-WindowsFeature; that’s now an alias to Install-) can add Windows roles and features from PowerShell. If your server doesn’t have the installer source on the local disk, then the cmdlet will default to grabbing it from Windows Update - a pain for disconnected servers. Install-WindowsFeature does offer a means of using an alternate local source (like a DVD or file server location), but using it can be a bit hinky.

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• Don Jones
Announcements

State of the Org, ending 2013

I wanted to take a moment and wish everyone a very happy new year, and to do a sort of wrap-up of 2013 from PowerShell.org’s perspective. We started 2013 with a bang, including our first-ever PowerShell Summit North America, held on-campus at Microsoft in Redmond. We’ll be returning to the Seattle area in April 2014 for PowerShell Summit North America 2014, and are planning the first PowerShell Summit Europe 2014 in Amsterdam in September.

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• Richard Siddaway
Scripting Games

Introducing the Judges for Winter 2014 Scripting Games

In the last few years there has been a long list of people judging the Scripting Games. Those people were expected to view as many entries as possible, preferably all, and score the entries as well as providing feedback on the individual entries. That is a ton of work especially when you consider that the judges were all volunteers. This time round we’re attempting to spread the load somewhat. Mike Robbins has done a superb job recruiting coaches for the Its their job to look at the entries and make suggestions and hints to the teams - if the teams wish to take advantage of this option.

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• Terri Donahue

January Charlotte PowerShell User Group Meeting

Our monthly meeting will be held on January 2nd, 2014. This years Scripting Games is a team based event. What better place to find/join a team than a User Group meeting? We look forward to seeing you there. Here is some additional information about the Winter Scripting Games: Teams can consist of between 2 to 6 Scripters and official registration opens on Jan 2nd. There will be a total of 4 official events for the Winter Scripting Games:

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• Mike F Robbins
Scripting Games

Introducing the Coaches of the 2014 Winter Scripting Games

A few weeks ago, just before the announcement to start recruiting your team for the 2014 Winter Scripting Games, I was contacted by Don Jones and Richard Siddaway about an opportunity to become the Head Coach for the Winter Scripting Games. I was honored to have been contacted and I’m a firm believer of taking advantage of opportunities when they emerge, especially when they’re PowerShell related, so I graciously accepted.

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• Don Jones
Training

My outline for accelerated PowerShell training

When I teach PowerShell, either at a private client or in a public class, I tend to use my own outlines. I’m comfortable with them, and they work really well. They formed the basis for the Microsoft 10961 and 55039 courses, although I had to make some changes to accommodate Microsoft standards and varying MCT delivery styles. But I’m often asked if there’s a “MOC-equivalent” outline that combines the entry-level 10961 with the scripting-focused 55039.

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