Archive for April, 2009
Project Server 2007: Actual work in My Tasks changes after adding non-work time in My Timesheet
30 April 2009This is an issue you may come across depending on your specific workflow for time reporting and statusing. The scenario is that you enter time for a project task through My Tasks and save, and then in My Timesheet you add some time to a non-work category of Administrative time such as Sick – or any non-work item - for the same day. The issue shows up instantly if the category does not need approval and results in a change to the actual work value entered. There will be a KB article coming shortly and I’ll update this posting once it is available.
The reason this happens is that the non-working time entered in the timesheet is entered into the resources calendar as a calendar exception – making them unavailable for work for a period of the day, resulting in a change in the entered actual work for the same day. If the admin time is entered first, or the timesheet data is imported into my tasks then this behavior can be avoided. The problem is that the data goes in just for the day and not in a specific time-span, meaning you may get an overlap of your time entered and your non-working time – even if the total is still within the number of hours you normally work. You can also see this in Project Professional if you add a calendar exception where there is already actual work entered, but in Pro it is a little more obvious what is going on and easier to correct.
Sorry if this unusual behavior causes you some issues – but hopefully the workarounds and understanding of why it does what it does will make things easier for you.
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Project Server 2007: Service Pack 2 (SP2) is now available!
30 April 2009Rather than repeat everything – Christophe has a great posting with all the links! http://blogs.msdn.com/chrisfie/archive/2009/04/28/announcing-service-pack-2-sp2-for-microsoft-project-2007-and-microsoft-project-server-2007.aspx.
I will just remind you of the Webcasts tomorrow (29th) and Thursday (30th) - I encourage everyone to attend the Project 2007 Service Pack 2 Overview webcast scheduled for April 29 at 8 am Pacific Time, and April 30 at 5 pm Pacific Time (webcast details are posted on EPMConnect). Adrian Jenkins and Christophe Fiessinger will cover the following topics during the webcast: SP2 Overview, April Cumulative Update Overview, Deployment Best Practices, Next Steps, Questions and Answers.
Another part of the SP2 announcement to highlight is around requirements for the next release of SharePoint and Project Server: Windows Server 2008 and 64 bit. We will be publishing guidance on how to upgrade your existing Project Server 2007 farm to Windows Server 2008 64 bit in the coming weeks on TechNet. Expect full system requirements for Project Server 2010 at a latter date.
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MSBlogs – Directory covering all different Microsoft technologies
30 April 2009As Project uses an extensive range of Microsoft technologies many of you will often need information on SQL Server, SharePoint, Windows Server and beyond. A great source of blog sites covering virtually all Microsoft technologies is http://blogs.technet.com/blogms/pages/directory-of-microsoft-team-blogs.aspx. I’ve also added a link to my site – so if you read this and forget the URL, then go to the links rather than searching for this posting. Another great resource on this same site is a directory of free downloads and free online services from Microsoft - http://blogs.technet.com/blogms/pages/microsoft-free-software.aspx. I left the word “free” out of my title to avoid spam filtering of my RSS feed, but have probably used the word too often and this might end up there anyway.
Thanks to Daniel Good for this really excellent resource!
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Project Server 2007: Service pack 2 (SP2) Webcasts
30 April 2009*** Update *** Now available - http://blogs.msdn.com/brismith/archive/2009/04/28/project-server-2007-service-pack-2-sp2-is-now-available.aspx
Next week, on April 28th, Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Microsoft Office System – including Project and Project Server 2007 will be released, along with SP2 for all the other office applications, including Office SharePoint Server and also WSS. We have a couple of webcasts organized on the morning of the 29th and the evening of the 30th which hopefully allow us to cover most time zones. Join Adrian Jenkins and Christophe Fiessinger as they give an overview of this important release, best practices for deployment and also time for questions and answers. As a reminder the key fixes in this release will be:
Project (desktop)
- The scheduling engine, Active Cache, and Gantt charts all have improvements.
- There is additional reliability with earlier versions of the .mpp format.
Project Server
- Better memory management in the queue service.
- Performance to certain database table indexes is improved.
- Resource plans, build team, cost resources, and the server scheduling engine have improved.
Details of the webcasts follow:
Please note we will deliver the same webcast twice to accommodate different time zones, we will also record these webcast and will make them available on EPMConnect:
- Wednesday April 29, from 8-9 am Pacific Time
- Thursday April 30, from 5-6 pm Pacific Time
Webcast Details
April 29 – 8-9am Pacific Time
April 30 – 5-6pm Pacific Time
Meeting URL
https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/lmevents/join?id=OEM042AM&role=attend&pw=ATT5678
https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/lmevents/join?id=OEM042PM&role=attend&pw=ATT6789
Event Info
Meeting ID: OEM042AM
Entry Code: ATT5678
Meeting ID: OEM042PM
Entry Code: ATT6789
Back-up Audio
(If you are unable to connect to the audio through the Computer Audio, you can dial in to the audio over a traditional telephony line)
US/Canada: (1) (877) 241-9971
International: (1) (503) 295-8000
Pin: 3616
US/Canada: (1) (877) 241-9971
International: (1) (503) 295-8000
Pin: 3616
Requirements for Attending this Event
We strongly suggest you test your computer’s configuration: https://events.livemeeting.com/LM2007test.htm to ensure you are running the most current version of Microsoft Office Live Meeting.
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Project Developer Center Portal redesigned!
30 April 2009Take a look at the new Project Developer Center portal - your one stop shop for all things development around Project and Project Server. Great work Jim, Verna and the crew! The Office Developer Center, SharePoint Server have already had the makeover and other office applications will be following.
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How to Share Settings in one Project Plan with Another
30 April 2009 If you are a Microsoft Project user, you will find there are many great features to create your own custom fields, views and the like. If you like the idea of always having these custom elements available to your new projects, they can be saved as defaults. You can also share those custom elements with […]
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Service Pack 2 for Project Server and SharePoint Released
30 April 2009Microsoft formally released Service Pack updates for Project, Project Server and SharePoint. Portfolio Server is just a few weeks behind. This Service Pack contains bug fixes and some enhancements to the products. You will also notice there will soon be guidance on upgrading to Windows Server 2008. Below is a summary of the e-mail sent […]
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Microsoft Project for the Intermediate User
30 April 2009 Last week, I worked with MPUG to deliver a 1-hour training session on how to use MS Project with a focus on the Intermediate user. The Agenda included the following:
Shortcuts for updating your project plan.
Creating calculated fields and indicators to easily find areas for improvement on your plan.
Create views and tables that will […]
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Interesting site called PM PODCAST
30 April 2009
I was flying around the Twitter world an noticed a lot of interest in a particular POCAST ,
“The Strategic Project Leader” a podcast by Jack Ferraro. http://bit.ly/VrRhD
This lead me to the PM POCAST site. http://www.thepmpodcast.com/
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New Standish Report on projects is out
30 April 2009Boston, Massachusetts, April 23, 2009 - New Standish Group report shows more project failing and less successful projects.
See http://www.standishgroup.com/newsroom/chaos_2009.php for full article
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