<font color="maroon">by Larry Richman </font>
<font color="gray" size="1">January 9, 2007 2:57 PM</font>
Featured Communities Lunch with Jim Allchin --
The keynote was the official kickoff of the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show) CES, which means that Monday was the day they flung the doors open to the 150,000 attendees. My day began a bit differently.
Some of the Featured Communities and MS MVPs were invited to lunch with Jim Allchin, Microsoft Co-President of the Platforms and Services Division, and PROnetworks was honored to be included in this group. The event was to celebrate the development of Windows Vista and to recognize the website's contribution, particularly as part of the beta testing community that made Windows Vista possible. The idea that Jim Allchin would want to thank us personally was humbling.
The location was BOA Steakhouse at Caesar's Palace. I was surprised to find that the seats had actually been assigned, and I was lucky to have been seated next to Mr. Allchin. The food was amazing, of course. But the real treat was the opportunity to engage in one-on-one conversation with him. Lunch with Jim Allchin would have been an honor alone. But to have lunch with him and have a "somewhat private" conversation with him and a few of the most knowledgeable of our colleagues was something I never imagined.
I'll just say this. Rarely have I ever met someone so down to earth, unassuming, and humble at such a high level in the business world. He is candid and easy to talk to, and even a bit shy. His manner is very endearing and I can now understand why so many of his colleagues have been sad about the fact that he is leaving. We wish him nothing but the best.
We also had the chance to speak at length with Michael Burke, Marketing Manager for Vista. It's his job to "sell" the world on it, and to some extent he has the same challenges we have here on the forums. We are constantly asked if upgrading to Vista is worth it, so he was able to provide some invaluable information for us to pass on to you.
Much thanks to everyone at Microsoft who set up and invited us to this event, and most of all to Jim Allchin, who took a good deal of time out of his day to engage in a friendly couple of hours of conversation with some of the most active and professional Windows Vista beta testers and the communities they represent.
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