Getting to Know Exchange 2003
One thousand pages of pure modern messaging insight
- By Doug Barney
- June 01, 2004
Thank goodness for tech book publishers and their authors. They don't
make immensely complex products simple; they do make immensely complex
products understandable.
Sure, a thousand page book is plenty intimidating — you'd have to
be a pretty serious hobbyist to commit to such a project. But chances
are you're no hobbyist, but a serious Microsoft IT professional. And for
Microsoft IT pros, Exchange 2003 is either already in place, and needs
tending and tuning, or is on its way (or at least should be).
Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Unleashed fulfills two different
missions. It lays a terrific foundation of knowledge of the intricacies
of the latest Exchange. At the same time, it is packed with solid hands-on
information; you know, configuration, set up, customization, that sort
of thing.
There is no messing around in this book, no humor, no real light moments
at all. But the writing is clear, and not overly complex. And besides,
humor in technology can often miss the mark, and can be far worse than
no humor at all.
Migration, how and when, is always a key concern, and Microsoft Exchange
Server 2003 Unleashed doesn't disappoint. It is not purely focused on
migration like a recent Windows 2003 book by Danielle and Nelson Ruest,
but it does offer the basics of why one might want to make the move, and
the essence of how to move.
While I slogged my way through the entire tome (I was working on our
exclusive PDF Special Report at the time), you don't
have to — although the massive effort could make you a total expert.
If you need to bone up on certain items, the book is organized to help
you find exactly what you need. In fact, Microsoft Exchange Server
2003 Unleashed includes a 40-page table of contents! No wonder it
took four writers to crank this book out.
Meanwhile the index weighs in at 87 pages! Oh my. For less than sixty
bucks, Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Unleashed offers an awful
lot. And first published in December 2003, Microsoft Exchange Server
2003 Unleashed feels up to date, and could be easily updated to accommodate
new service packs.
About the Author
Doug Barney is editorial director of Redmond Channel Partner.