Training

What has been, what is now, and what is coming!

Heather Solomon — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 04:13:36 GMT

Wow, it has been awhile since I posted on my blog. This is an update on the past, the present and the future. Thanks to everyone for your support, comments and care.

2009 was a challenging year for me and I went through several personal changes and challenges. I stayed super busy between being a Mom and helping to run a business. Any leftover time I came across I generally used to catch up on sleep! Many people reached out to me to see if I was OK and sent me very caring sentiments and just really nice comments. I appreciate that and it means a great deal to me. Thanks for being such a cool and tight-knit community!

Moving forward I will be posting about SharePoint 2010, and I am excited to do so in a completely new space! This blog has served me well, but honestly, it’s dated. My blog is also running on an older version of SubText and I don’t have the time and resources to properly upgrade and maintain the blog itself.   Very soon I will be moving to Word Press (don’t get me wrong, SubText is great!) AND changing URLs.   Fresh year, fresh product, fresh blog! All of my existing posts will stay intact and I will definitely keep my CSS chart and base master pages posted for your use. In addition to SharePoint, I am going to focus on CSS as well. Now more than ever it is important to know CSS to successfully brand SharePoint.

I am currently writing a new SharePoint Branding Bootcamp for 2010 course and the first delivery will be in Anaheim, March 29 – April 2nd. A lot of people ask me about writing a book. My class is my book. The cool and different thing about it though is that my course is living and continually growing. Every new thing I come across, every trick I create and new even brand new content is constantly being added to my course materials. And as Bootcamp alumi, you will get all of those updates moving forward. Paperback books can’t deliver new materials to your inbox ;-).

This year I am also going to be supporting the new Virtual SharePoint User Group. I have kids. I work. I have a house to keep up. I don’t have the energy to go to a user group meeting every month, especially in the evenings when my kiddos are home. How many of you feel like me?

Matt Passannante is heading up a new solution that will provide presentations, forums and a lot of great resources to our growing virtual community. The Virtual SharePoint User Group will function a lot like user groups located in cities, except it will offer more resources and doesn’t require chugging through rush hour traffic! Plus it is available to anyone, regardless of geographic location.

One last thing… you gotta check out our new site! Dustin Miller and I collaborated on creating a new SharePoint Bootcamp site that uses WordPress as a content management solution (what, no SharePoint? Yes… we don’t use SharePoint for the sake of using it. I believe in honest assessment of which tool is the best for your needs). The design and CMS system is one thing, but the bigger thing is the ease of access to information.  Subscribe to our RSS feed or iCal for the course schedule, and check out our courses by track, product and audience.

One last, last thing… I am on Twitter now.   @speheather Thanks to everyone out there who bugged me about it. ;-)

Brand it baby! Buy tickets by Wednesday for my next branding class...

Heather Solomon — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:27:58 GMT

Themes? Master pages? CSS? Page layouts? Content customization? All covered next week in my SharePoint Branding Bootcamp in Anaheim, CA. You will get a lot of one on one time with me to work on your plans, designs and issues with your SharePoint sites. Check out more info in this post, or online at: http://www.sharepointbootcamp.com/sharepoint_branding_bootcamp.htm

Thanks!

Learn how to brand SharePoint

Heather Solomon — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 19:23:52 GMT

In two weeks I am headed to sunny Anaheim California to teach my SharePoint Branding Bootcamp. There are still seats available and I would love to have you join me for a week (April 27 - May 1st) learning how to effectively brand the SharePoint interface.

A lot of my materials have been updated to include the latest tips and tricks I have discovered. This class covers more than just where SharePoint CSS files are or how to create a theme, we delve into master pages, WCM page layouts, customizing the content display and how to brand all the various components of SharePoint that are not otherwise caught by a master page change. We also go outside technical aspects and discuss how to start your branding process and gotchas for SharePoint design.

This class is for designers, developers, business managers with technical skills and anyone who needs to understand how to change the SharePoint interface. We use SharePoint Designer (SPD) to complete all tasks so you will additionally get a lot of time and experience with SPD.

Also in Anaheim will be Dustin Miller teaching the Original SharePoint Bootcamp and Matt Passannante teaching the SharePoint Administration Bootcamp. You will have access to both of these great guys to ask random SharePoint questions or just about anything in general. :-) We have a great time together, and hey we are staying inside of Disneyland!

To learn more about our classes, check out the web site: http://www.sharepointbootcamp.com/

New SharePoint Training Available

Heather Solomon — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 02:16:34 GMT

At SharePoint Experts we are expanding our training offerings! I am excited about the new sessions we are hosting, the unique learning environment we are creating, and the innovative classes we are in the process of authoring. Starting the week of February 9th, we are hosting five Three Hour Tours highlighting popular SharePoint topics such as...

The Data View Web Part: Deep Dive! - Find out more
February 9, 2009, 1:00 PM - 4:00PM CST

SharePoint Features: What's the Big Deal? - Find out more
February 10, 2009, 1:00 PM - 4:00PM CST

InfoPath and SharePoint: A Primer - Find out more
February 12, 2009, 1:00 PM - 4:00PM CST

SharePoint Planning: The Business Comes First - Find out more
February 13, 2009 - 1:00 PM - 4:00PM CST

And then my personal favorite (gee, wonder why ;-)...

Brand It!: SharePoint Branding, from Start to Finish - Find out more
February 11, 2009, 1:00 PM - 4:00PM CST

During this session, Heather Solomon will show you how to brand your SharePoint sites, from start to finish. Combining master pages, page layouts, CSS and content types, you'll see how to take a design comp and basic taxonomy information and apply it to a MOSS 2007 site.
•    Critically examine design wireframes to determine if there are any SharePoint "gotchas"
•    Create custom master pages from a base master page definition
•    Create a custom theme
•    Design CSS variations so that your web site's departments/sections can have their own color scheme
•    Use publishing workflow features to avoid publishing unfinished pages, and allow non-designers to create new content on your sites

In this 3-hour session I cover key branding concepts and brand a site from start to finish. It is a whirlwind of branding activity that is a both great intro to or refresher for how to brand a SharePoint publishing site.

Also, be sure to sign up for our mailing list. We will soon be announcing new classes exclusively taught online, and I am cooking up a class that you won't find at any other SharePoint training house. :-)

Cheers everyone!

SharePoint Bootcamp Tickets on Sale!

Heather Solomon — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 01:45:53 GMT

Want to go to Disneyland and learn about SharePoint? Our next public SharePoint Bootcamp just went on sale for May 12-16, 2008 at the Hyatt Regency Orange County Hotel in Anaheim, CA.

Say Heather, what is SharePoint Bootcamp? Several times a year SharePoint Experts hosts public classes in several different flavors for SharePoint. In Anaheim we will be hosting the Original SharePoint Bootcamp (taught by Dustin Miller), the SharePoint Development Bootcamp (taught by Todd Baginski) and the SharePoint Branding Bootcamp (hey, taught by me!). We have a laid back atmosphere, we feed you like crazy, and we give away cool stuff. :-)

If you sign up by March 1st, you can get the discounted rate of $2,500. After 3/1, the rate is $2,800. Don't delay! Classes fill up FAST. And it is a great time of year to visit the area and plenty of things to do after you max out on SharePoint during the day.

Learn more and buy tickets

SharePoint Branding Bootcamp Tickets on Sale NOW!

Heather Solomon — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 21:49:25 GMT

Ticket sales have opened for the next public offering of SharePoint Branding Bootcamp (taught by me) and the SharePoint Administration Bootcamp (Matt Passannante is the Admin instructor and he is fabulous!!). Get info and tickets here: http://www.sharepointbootcamp.com/schedule.htm.

SharePoint Bootcamp Schedule Posted!

Heather Solomon — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 21:00:04 GMT

Thanks to everyone who has patiently waited for dates for upcoming SharePoint Bootcamps. A schedule for the rest of 2007 and all of 2008 is now posted on the SharePoint Bootcamp site: Full Bootcamp Schedule.

The SharePoint Branding Bootcamp will be offered in Houston (whoo-hoo, my home town) in December 2007, and again in these lovely cities in 2008:

Anaheim, CA - April
Las Vegas, NV - July
Washington D.C. - September
Chicago, IL - November

Tickets for the Houston Bootcamp in December go on sale VERY soon! Please sign up for the SharePoint Bootcamp mailing list (we promise, no spam) at http://www.sharepointbootcamp.com/mailing_list.htm to be notified when tickets go on sale, and I will also post that info here on my blog.

Houston is not always on everyone's list of top places to visit, but trust me, we got a lot of cool stuff! Between shopping, stellar restaurants, NASA, the beach, and fantastic museum and theater districts, you will find plenty of great things to do. And did I mention the food? Seriously folks, we know how to cook here. And despite some beliefs, we are not brown and dusty with tumbleweeds, that is another part of the state. Houston is near the coast and is very green. In fact we are a lot like Orlando. Class will be held in a trendy spot in town with plenty of choices for local entertainment, live music and a great place to eat every night of the week. The weather is nice here in December, escape chillier temperatures up north and enjoy balmy 60's in the south.

Stay tuned for more info to come.

Want to go to Vegas? Upcoming SharePoint Experts training!

Heather Solomon — Mon, 21 May 2007 19:12:00 GMT

Wow, for a week this summer the Sin City will be converted into the SharePoint City! SharePoint Experts is going to the Las Vegas Hilton July 30th - August 3rd, and for the first time three SharePoint Bootcamps will be hosted in the same week:

SharePoint Branding Bootcamp taught by Heather Solomon
SharePoint Administration and Planning Bootcamp taught by Matt Passannante
SharePoint Development Bootcamp taught by Todd Baginski

You may not be familiar with Matt Passannante, but I have had the pleasure of spending a week with Matt and he is bursting with SharePoint knowledge, energy and enthusiasm. He is an absolute whiz at SharePoint administration. Todd Baginski is very well known, a SharePoint MVP, and an incredibly talented developer. In addition to Matt, Todd and I, Dustin Miller will be in and out of each class all week.

Why does all of this matter? How often can you attend a class specifically targeted to a discipline within SharePoint, but get access to experts in the other main areas of SharePoint? Each day of class will include a general session for all three Bootcamps where you can ask questions and discuss SharePoint topics with Dustin, Todd, Matt and myself. It is like attending your own private conference.

Monday through Thursday we will have daily round table sessions with set topics that all of us will attend. These are great sessions with lots of discussion, brainstorming and strategizing about how you can tackle various SharePoint pain points or challenges.

Friday's session takes a turn in format and we will be doing a Stump the Instructor session. You can ask any SharePoint question you like and between our combined knowledge (and sometimes a little web searching ) we usually come up with an answer. If you do manage to stump us, well you never know what may get handed to you for your success .

Check out Bootcamp registration, and join us in Vegas!

SharePoint Branding Class: Registration is Open!

Heather Solomon — Thu, 17 May 2007 20:29:00 GMT

Thanks to all of you who sent me feedback and comments when I announced I was going to be teaching a SharePoint Branding Bootcamp with SharePoint Experts. I am thrilled to say that starting today you can register for the first Branding Bootcamp class for SharePoint 2007!

View Information and Register

This is a full 5 days of branding and user customization for SharePoint 2007 that covers topics and techniques for both MOSS and WSS! While master pages, themes and CSS will be the main event, we are going way beyond the lipstick of a site and will also focus on customizing the Content Query Web Part (great for data query display and sub navigation systems), My Sites, accessibility, and discuss what do do about branding your application (_layouts) screens. Are you running WSSv3, and on a hosted server? No problem, we cover how to brand WSS sites hosted internally, and through a provider. Check out the full list of modules here.

If you come with your site design in hand, you can walk out at the end of the week with finished branding files ready to deploy on your servers! No worries though, bringing designs is optional. I will be providing design resources for your use so you can learn first hand how to make SharePoint look like anything but SharePoint. Our environment is fun, energetic and creative. Sign up now for this unique class!