A great milestone has happened for those of us selling SBS as it has now entered the home stretch. RC1 has been signed off and we are inching ever so close to release later this fall. The team that builds this product is a great bunch I have been blessed to know and work with for a lot of years. They really want to get it right for us as partners, and want to build a product that is able to shed the cloud that the name "Small" carries with it. So it has to be better than it's big brother Windows and after a little bumpy start with 4.0, they have achieved that. The 2008 release will blow that wide open as SBS comes to the table with what I think are superior features and value to the channel.

As good as the product is, the celebration of the signoff is what I want to highlight. Sean Daniels captured a great moment in the product development cycle. This is the important stuff - not those code breakthroughs that solve world issues - it is the team interaction that makes SBS what it is. I have come to really appreciate Kevin Kean who leads the team in building this product. He is a great guy and has been able to deal with his NY roots pretty well. :-) Check out this video where the team enjoyed a little fun at Kevin's expense. This is a sign of a great manager - to be willing to take one for the team. Next time you guys should use a little food coloring in the mix, or some chocolate on top, but way to dip him deep. I only wish I could have been there to see it in person. How come Chris Phillips didn't have to take a dive too? Maybe I can help make that happen....take one for the partners Chris?

http://sbs.seandaniel.com/2008/07/sbs-signs-off-on-rc1.html

Thanks for all the hard work to date and know the partner base is really looking forward to getting our hands on a fantastic product for our joint clients this fall. Keep after it!