Join me as I share my experience presenting on SharePoint 2016 architectures at my first international conference in Dubai, along with the joy of exploring the city’s warm weather and desert dunes. Reflecting on this successful trip, I look forward to reconnecting with the community at future events once I’m back in Helsinki.

As I update my virtual machines with the newly released SharePoint Server 2016 and Project Server 2016 Release Candidates, I reflect on the evolution of the platform and its continued relevance for on-premises needs. I also share my thoughts on the retirement of legacy tools like InfoPath Designer and SharePoint Designer, noting how their removal marks a significant shift in the SharePoint ecosystem.

If you are curious about how we successfully organized the first Helsinki Hackathon, I invite you to read about our collaboration with Blue Meteorite and the community-driven development focused on Office 365 APIs. I share details on the event’s logistics, the impressive solutions built by attendees like the winning Team Smartwatch, and why fostering a local tech community is both rewarding and fun.

Join me as I reflect on my recent trip to the European SharePoint Conference in Stockholm, highlighting both the logistical convenience of the event and my candid take on the keynote presentations. I share my observations on the renewed focus on SharePoint and the anticipation for the upcoming SharePoint 2016 Beta 2, while also noting the surprising lack of significant news regarding Yammer.

As a multi-technology expert who previously felt constrained by the MVP program's single-discipline focus, I explore how the new, broader award categories align better with my diverse work across the Microsoft stack. This change allows me to continue engaging with various technologies like Azure and Office 365 without fearing that my contributions to SharePoint will be overlooked.

I want to help you understand the implications of Microsoft ending mainstream support for SharePoint 2010 this October, clarifying that while your farm won’t crash, complimentary support and new features will cease. In this post, I break down what this means for your security updates and migration strategy, particularly regarding the upcoming release of SharePoint 2016.