Some exciting news lately in the Dynamics CRM world, and all are related to lucky numero seven!

First off, the latest Update Rollup 7 was released to the world.  The most noteworthy changes were made to the CRM Outlook Client, and by itself would make this update HIGHLY recommended.  After starting up [...]]]>

My favorite number

Some exciting news lately in the Dynamics CRM world, and all are related to lucky numero seven!

First off, the latest Update Rollup 7 was released to the world.  The most noteworthy changes were made to the CRM Outlook Client, and by itself would make this update HIGHLY recommended.  After starting up Outlook, the CRM functionality now loads quietly in the background, allowing you to immediately access your e-mails without any slow down. There are other additional improvements that make this update a must-have, all outlined in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Team Blog.  Get your Update Rollup 7 links below!

• Download: KB Article #971782: Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]
• Change Log: KB Article #971782: Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 [microsoft.com]
• Update Rollup 7 [Microsoft Dynamics CRM Team Blog]

Last, but certainly not least: Microsoft announced that Dynamics CRM 4.0 is now supported on the new Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.  There’s no excuse now not to upgrade to Windows 7; this latest OS has been shown to be quite an improvement over previous releases.

Be sure to relate your experiences with CRM and this latest update in the comments section below.

Twitter [...]]]> It’s difficult to escape the Twitter hype nowadays, but in all honesty this “micro-blogging” tool is indeed a great source to be mined.  Twitterers can have informed opinions and news regarding some of your top clients, and having access to that information can be very valuable.  Disregard this resource at its own risk.

Twitter Search feed in a Microsoft CRM account record form

If your company is interested in learning about what the Twitterscape is chattering about your dearest customers, check out this easy-to-implement iFrame addition to your Microsoft CRM.  It’s basically a iFrame coupled with JavaScript that takes your customer’s Account Name and queries it on the Twitter Search page, all within a tab in CRM. You’ll be up and running in 10 minutes or less.  You will need at least System Customizer security permissions to implement.

See all the steps to adding this functionality after the jump.

1. Navigate to: Settings >> Customization >> Customize Entities >> Account.  The Account entity window will open.
2. Click on “Forms and Views”, then double-click “Form”.  The “Form: Account” window will open.
3. Click “Add a Tab” and create a new tab called “Twitter”. Click OK.
4. Click “Add a Section” and call it “Twitter”.  Click OK.
5. Click “Add an IFRAME”.
   • In the Name section, call it IFRAME_TwitterSearch.
   • Put about:blank as the URL.  The JavaScript that we will add later will populate the Twitter Search string.
   • Make sure “Pass record object-type code and unique indentifier as parameters” is checked.
   • Uncheck “Restrict cross-frame scripting.”
   • Click on the Formatting tab, and set it to automaticall expand to use available space.
   • Click OK.
6. Back at the “Form: Account” window, click on Form Properties.
7. Select OnLoad, then click on Edit.
8. Check the “Event is Enabled” box, then add the below JavaScript code.  Click OK when finished.

var CRM_FORM_TYPE_CREATE = 1;
var CRM_FORM_TYPE_UPDATE = 2;
switch (crmForm.FormType)
{
case CRM_FORM_TYPE_UPDATE:
crmForm.all.IFRAME_TwitterSearch.src="http://search.twitter.com/search?q=" + crmForm.all.name.DataValue;
break;
}


9. Save all changes to your Account form.
10. Don’t forget to publish your changes!  At the “Entity: Account” window, click on Actions at the top and select Publish.
11. Enjoy!

Do you have another idea on incorporating Twitter with Microsoft CRM?  Let me know in the comments.

There’s a unique wallpaper for both Standard and Widescreen resolutions.  These are of course free to download for your desktops and future demos.  I hope you enjoy them!

Standard Format - 1024x768

Thanks to ‘Second Shot’, I was able to try my luck again without consequences. I was [...]]]> Huzzah! I passed my CRM 4.0 Applications exam today with flying colors this time!  I’m feeling as elated as Spain winning the Euro 2008 Cup yesterday… minus the jubilation of the whole country, but I’m working on it.

Thanks to ‘Second Shot’, I was able to try my luck again without consequences. I was glad to have had the opportunity to take it at least once before, to get familiar with the exam questions and get a feel for what the test writers were looking for.

So to assist you in your quest for certification, I’ve outlined five tips that will help narrow down your choices when taking the Applications exam.

5 tips to help pass some questions on the CRM 4.0 MB2-632 exam

• There is no drag-and-drop functionality in CRM 4.0.  That would be a nice feature to add to the future CRM 5.0, though!
• Each single Marketing List can only contain one type of record/entity.  So if you’re planning a Marketing Campaign that will include Accounts, Contacts and Leads, you will need to add at least three separate Marketing Lists to the Marketing Campaign.
• Relationship Roles in CRM 4.0 are very useful for defining relationships that are not so cut-and-dried.  You’ll probably see Relationship Roles come up a few times in the exam.
• Ask yourself what types of CRM records are synchronized with the Outlook Client, and how to create new records from there.
  Also figure out what records are related and available to each entity.  An example: you wouldn’t go to an Opportunity record to find related Cases.
• Find out how the Service Scheduler shows or does not show conflicts in the Service Calendar.

Hopefully with these tips, you’ll share the glory too… at least in the Dynamics world. 

Good luck!

This is perfect for data migration planning, when you’ll need to see the list of attributes (aka fields) per each entity, along with their existing [...]]]> This ICU MSCRM blog article reminded me of the little known SDK website called the CRM Metadata Browser, where you can access a nicely summarized view of your CRM metadata.

This is perfect for data migration planning, when you’ll need to see the list of attributes (aka fields) per each entity, along with their existing relationships. All of this data is neatly formatted per entity page. Hope it turns out useful for you!

Whether for CRM 3.0 or 4.0, browse out to…

• http://YourCRMWebsite/sdk/list.aspx
• Example: http://crm/sdk/list.aspx

CRM Metadata Browser: screenshot of the Contact entity

I took Exam MB2-632 last Friday and got an unfortunate 60% grade. I [...]]]> The CRM 4.0 certification exams are now available! I admit, I was a bit overconfident before I took the CRM 4.0 Applications exam. I’ve been working with Microsoft CRM for many years now, so I wondered: “Really, how hard could it be?”

I took Exam MB2-632 last Friday and got an unfortunate 60% grade. I needed a minimum of 70% to pass. This new Applications exam, along with the other two CRM exams (Installation and Deployment & Customization and Configuration), can be surprisingly tricky, from what I’ve seen and heard. There are many “gotcha” questions which at first glance seem to have multiple correct answers, but you’ll have to use your best judgment to pick what is deemed as the most efficient answer.

This does make the exam feel incredibly tough, and apparently I’m not the only one. In the comments section of Larry’s MSDN CRM Blog and at Phil’s CRM Blog, some test takers posted negative feedback regarding some exam questions.

So to wrap this up, make sure you revise the Exam Topics, which I’ve included below. For the Applications exam you will need to focus primarily on the newest features in CRM 4.0. You can also safely disregard CRM 3.0 study materials, as most of the questions deal with newer concepts. And you will need to log some practice time with the application, so download the VPC image if you don’t already have it.

Finally, don’t forget to register for a “Second Shot” voucher number, which lets you take the exam again for free in case you have trouble on the first round. Register as soon as you can, this program is valid only until June 30, 2008.

Good luck! Let me know how it went for you.

Exam Details:

• 50 total questions with a 70% passing grade (you’ll need at least 35 correct to pass)
• 100 minutes to complete the exam
• Multiple Choice and Multiple Answer Questions

Exam Topics for all three Dynamics CRM 4.0 exams are found in the below link.

Microsoft CRM 4.0 Applications: Exam Topics
Prometric Exam # MB2-632

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Concepts – 34%

• Understanding Microsoft Dynamics Software
• Multi-lingual User Interface and Multi-currency
• Customer-centered view
• Using Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Office Outlook

Sales – 18%

• Microsoft Dynamics CRM Sales Concepts
• Opportunity Management
• Managing Leads
• Sales Order Processing

Marketing – 16%

• Planning and Creating Marketing Campaigns
• Managing Marketing Campaigns

Service Management – 18%

• Managing Contracts
• Managing Cases
• Creating a Knowledge base
• Managing Service Queues

Service Scheduling – 14%

• Understanding the Service Scheduling Life Cycle
• Scheduling Services
• Maintaining Users and Resources

Microsoft CRM 4.0 Customization and Configuration: Exam Topics
Prometric Exam # MB2-631

Configuring Your Deployment – 28%

• Configuring Business Units
• Configuring Security
• Configuring Users and Teams
• Configuring Organizational Settings
• Configuring Multi-User Interface Language Packs
• Configuring Currency Exchange Rates

Customizing Forms and Views – 12%

• Customizing Forms
• Customizing Views
• Publishing Forms and View Changes

Customizing Entities and Attributes – 32%

• Maintaining Custom Attributes
• Maintaining Custom Entities
• Maintaining Custom Entity Icons
• Renaming Entities
• Translating Customized Entity Labels

Customizing Relationships and Mappings– 20%

• Relationship Concepts
• 1:N Relationship Behavior
• Creating 1:N Relationships
• Creating N:N Relationships
• Entity Mappings

Maintaining Organizations– 8%

• Core Concepts – Multi-tenancy and the Configuration DB
• Managing Additional Organizations
• Importing Organizations
• Maintaining Servers and Licenses

Microsoft CRM 4.0 Installation and Deployment: Exam Topics
Prometric Exam # MB2-633

Planning a Microsoft Dynamics CRM Implementation – 18%

• Planning for Business Needs
• Planning for Hardware
• Planning for Software

Microsoft Dynamics CRM Installation – 24%

• Understanding Installation Concepts
• Understanding Server Roles
• Understanding Security
• Understanding the Software Installation Process

Microsoft Dynamics CRM E-mail Router – 12%

• Microsoft Dynamics CRM E-mail Router Configuration Concepts
• Configuring the E-mail Router

Microsoft Dynamics CRM for Microsoft Office Outlook – 20%

• Installing the Outlook Client
• Supporting the Outlook Client

Redeployment and Upgrading – 16%

• Understanding the Redeployment Process
• Understanding the Upgrade Process

Uninstalling and Repairing – 10%

• Uninstalling Microsoft Dynamics CRM
• Repairing Microsoft Dynamics CRM

Just to list a few:

Then along comes Notepad++, a free lightweight open source text editor I now can’t do without (links below). This app can neatly display and organize pretty much [...]]]> There’s no doubt about it: the Notepad application on Windows that you use to view the odd TXT or XML files is sorely lacking in features and usability.

Then along comes Notepad++, a free lightweight open source text editor I now can’t do without (links below). This app can neatly display and organize pretty much any source code you throw at it. Perfect when you have to manually edit Dynamics CRM customization XML files, like the isv_config.xml sitemap.

Need more convincing? Check out the latest poll results from like-minded Lifehacker.com readers here.

Notepad++

• Homepage: http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net
• Download: http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/download.php
• Screenshot Gallery: http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/screenshots.php

Sample screenshots from the website below.

Editing HTML files

Editing XML files