Sliding Windows

Ronald Beekelaar is a man of many talents. A qualified computer scientist, he has been involved in training and certification within the Microsoft ecosystem since the 1990s. Following the introduction of virtualisation in the early 2000s, he swiftly became one of the foremost experts in this area. Initially, he focused on VMware products, but with the release of Hyper-V — Microsoft's first in-house hypervisor development — Microsoft's solution became the centre of his work. He founded Virsoft , developing it into one of the leading lab hosting providers. During the 2026 MCT Summit in Sarajevo, I spoke to Ronald about his education in the Netherlands and the USA, learning and teaching in the 1990s, and his views on cultural differences in learning between continents. We also discussed the future of teaching and learning in the age of artificial intelligence, learning with disabilities and his unique experiences with the Dutch royal family.

Ich sprach mit Jan-Hendrik Peters über eine Vielzahl von Themen, von denen sich viele Aspekte in der "DevOps"-Bewegung wiederfinden. Jan-Hendriks berufliche Stationen führten ihn von einem Lebensmittelhändler zu Microsoft, und von dort zu einem regionalen Energievorsorger. Jan-Hendrik berichtet von seiner Ausbildungszeit als Fachinformatiker, seiner Freude am Programmieren und den Vorteilen, Konfigurationen als Code zu schreiben und . Am Ende zeigt sich, dass die Abkehr von den Silos, in der sich IT-Abteilungen heute oftmals befinden, eine der zentralen Aufgaben für die Zukunft sein wird.

Michael Niehaus, an IT and software development veteran with quite a long history at Microsoft, talks about his career from his early days as a mainframe system programmer to his deep involvement with Microsoft products. He describes how he moved from programming in assembly language to IT roles involving client-server models in the early days of personal computing in the 1990s. This ultimately led to his work with Microsoft's Systems Management Server (SMS) and the Business Desktop Deployment Solution Accelerator, the latter of which evolved into the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT). A significant focus of this episode is the development and evolution of deployment tools and the underlying techniques, from Kickstart to VBScript to PowerShell. Michael recalls encountering PowerShell and emphasises its potential as a powerful backend for various Microsoft products in the very early days. As strange as it may sound today, the release of Vista retrospectively represented a 'giant leap' in terms of new tools, techniques and enhancements, especially for OS deployment. Michael discusses the introduction of WIM files, WinPE and AutoUnattend.xml, among other things. He reflects on the challenges and innovations involved in shifting to WIM files, and on the effectiveness of Windows PE. He highlights their significance in Microsoft's operating system deployment strategies. Turning to contemporary issues, Michael and Thorsten discuss concerns about Microsoft's Windows Update Service (WSUS) and the impending discontinuation of related technologies. Finally, Michael talks about his role at the new company 2Pint, where he works on products such as DeployR, a successor to MDT.

In this special episode of the Sliding Windows podcast we broadcast live from the annual PowerShell conference PSConfEU that took place in Antwerp in 2024. My guest today is one of the best known celebreties of the PowerShell Universe: Chrissy LeMaire, inventor of the DBATools, Manning book author and Github star - to just give a few examples of her highly acclaimed work. Chrissy comes from a Cajun family in Louisiana (USA), whose French-speaking ancestors still have a special influence on the culture of this region today. Chrissy has lived and worked for many years in Europe now, embracing the the richness of cultures and influences in different countries and regions. A little different from a regular episode, we talk less about a specific area of expertise. Our main topic is Chrissy's career from database expert to book author and social media star and her very special view on the future of IT. Of course, we talk about "artificial" and "human intelligence". Chrissy shares a pivotal moment in her academic journey inspired by a quote from Paul Dressel, catalyzing a transformation in her approach to learning and paving the way for academic excellence. Transitioning to Chrissy's professional narrative, the dialogue navigates towards her engagement with PowerShell projects like DBA tools underscore her ardor for technology and perpetual learning. Steering towards technology's cutting edge, the dialogue unfolds the speaker's exploits with PowerShell and SQL Server migrations, elucidating the journey of crafting modules and scripts to streamline migration processes. Discussions on Microsoft's support for DBA tools, GitHub collaboration, AI integration with PowerShell, and the exploitation of AI engines like GitHub Copilot, underscore the transformative potential of AI in ameliorating workflows and augmenting productivity. Alongside nuanced reflections on Cajun heritage and language intricacies from Louisiana, theepisode culminates in a jovial French language quiz and a toast with craft beer, emblematic of shared ardor for technology, culture, and the enriching exchange encapsulated throughout the conversation. Thanks to Geoffroy Dubreuil and James Ruskin for their support with the Monad Manifesto quiz.