Microsoft MVPs gathering; Microsoft in Second Life and Microsoft NASCAR won't go

From the random stuff file ... Microsoft is hosting a shindig for 1,800 of its Most Valuable Professionals in Seattle this week. Microsoft has awarded the MVP designation to 4,000 professionals worldwide.

MVPs are individuals that do not work for Microsoft but who answer questions and otherwise support Microsoft technology. MVPs also tend to get first looks at Microsoft products and to influence feature sets of upcoming products.

Several Microsoft Subnet bloggers have earned their MVP designations in 2008 including MOM MVP Kerrie Meyler. (Her new book is also our April book giveaway.)

Meanwhile, back at the ranch in Second Life -- Microsoft must have gotten jealous of IBM's announcement earlier this month about its plans to build Second Life business centers for customers, starting with its own center. While Microsoft's announcement isn't so extreme, today, Chris Avis posted a notice on his blog that Microsoft will hold a Windows Server 2008 launch event in Second Life on April 26. Avis is a Microsoft trainer (oops, sorry, in Redmond-speak that should be Microsoft IT Evangelist), and you can look him up at the event by locating his SL avatar, Loper Markova, he says

Finally, the random file will close with a note that the NASCAR car Microsoft has sponsored for the 2008 season will not race. About a month ago, Microsoft's Small Business division said it will sponsor Ken Schrader's No. 49 Toyota Camry. But apparently Schrader couldn't get another big sponsor and so the team did not raise enough funds to race a full season. The car is currently sitting out -- maybe all the way into the fall.

Go to the Microsoft Subnet home page for more news, blogs, podcasts.

More Microsoft Subnet blog posts:

The making of Wine, a talk with Jeremy White
Three versions of Xen desktop virtualization arrive
The future of software
Execs worry that Windows is collapsing
Google: Actively looking for ways to spoil Yahoo/Microsoft
AOL, News Corp. jump into Microsoft/Yahoo deal
All Microsoft Subnet blog posts

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