Microsoft Copilot is all around...

  As the debut of Microsoft 365 Copilot approaches, there are a lot of Copilot features set to be introduced across the Microsoft 365 ecosystem. Here are a few noteworthy additions: Microsoft has unveiled a series of innovative features in the upcoming releases of Windows 11, some of them are already released, and some are currently available in preview builds. The Windows 11 Copilot, conveniently located in the taskbar, eliminates the need to open your Edge browser. It is seamlessly integrated with Bing Enterprise Chat (BEC) and ChatGPT, making it really easy to get started on your creative journey. Included in Windows 11 is the new co-creator feature in Paint. This feature, also in preview, is integrated with DALL-E and provides a swift and straightforward method for creating illustrations and images. If you possess a knack for crafting descriptions, you can generate quite impressive imagery. Another AI-powered feature is image creation directly from BEC. This feature, also integrate

A thought or two on the upcoming 74-322 exam

I made the "mistake" of registring for the 74-322 Microsoft Lync Server 2010 – Advanced Design and Deployment exam this week. And I probably have to retake it when it is released. Yes, you heard me, I probably have to retake it. I am a bit disappointed in my test center, because I asked if it was in release code or still beta. The told me it was released, so I wasn't ready for the beta setting at all.

It was a very good exam, and I was under the impression it will measure the right kind of knowledge (which I thought I had) for Gold competency partnership with Microsoft unified communication.

So why did I fail, was it too hard? Was I not prepared? Well, to be honest, The latter might be the answer. The reason I think I failed was the sheer time pressure I was under during the test. The test is still under Beta, and it has obviously not been adjusted for the amount of questions, nor was I given the extra 30 minutes we usually get when the exam is not in our native language.

The exam is supposed to test your advanced understanding of a Lync deployment, and I was given a lot of questions with a lot to read. I just didn't have enough time to read absolutely everything thorough enough to get the proper understanding of the questions. Non of the questions were too hard, and in a real life scenario it would be easy to find the answers to the customers questions just by going through the Technet Library on Lync.

I am not going to break any NDA's so I won't go into any details, but be prepared to be tested in advanced and detailed understanding of your Lync deployments. Take a good look on the advanced configuration scenarios on Technet and understand them. Then you will be on your way to passing this exam as well.

There is a lesson or two I learned in this though: I will obviously think twice about taking a Beta exam again, and I also know which gaps to fill to pass the exam once it is released.

Comments

Rune said…
I had the same experience when I made my attempt back in February. 120 minutes on 80 mostly information rich questions were simply not enough. I doubt MS get valuable results from this test. I haven't got the results yet, but I will fail.
Johann said…
Hmmm - I had almost 50 minutes left after finishing; of course had to do some guessing. The exam was all about enterprise voice which is may daily work :-)
Good for you Johann. That's less than a minute for each question, and I am a bit impressed.
I simply felt I could not read it all in such a short time. And I hate guessing on these exams, I like answering as correctly as I could. There were a few "traps" as far as I could tell. One answer might seem the obvious one, but another might be the more correct one.

I did not find any of the questions I read thoroughly too hard, as EV is my primary line of work. Which is why i said it was a good exam, because I felt I was tested on the knowledge you should have when taking this exam.

All in could tradition to filter out those who really know the technology :)

Let us know if you passed or not, I sure will :)
Mark Craddock said…
I agree. The time pressure of the beta made the exam difficult and unrealistic.

Still waiting for my results too.

Mark Craddock.