About the Author

Dan Balter is the Chief Technology Officer for InfoTechnology Partners, Inc., a Microsoft Certified Partner company. He works as an independent consultant and trainer for both corporate and government clients and has worked with several different network operating systems throughout his 20-year career. Dan takes pride in turning complex, technical topics into easy-to-understand concepts. Dan is a Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) and a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE). He specializes in Microsoft networking technologies, firewalls, VPNs, and other security solutions in addition to designing and implementing messaging and business solutions for large and small organizations.

Dan is a coauthor for the best-selling books Exam Cram 2: Windows XP Professional and Exam Cram 2: Windows 2000 Professional published by Que Publishing. Dan frequently speaks at conferences across North America, including Advisor DevCon conferences and Windows & .NET Magazine Connections conferences. A graduate of USC's School of Business in 1983, Dan has authored more than 300 video– and CD-ROM–based computer training courses, including instructional titles on installing, configuring, and administering Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003. He is also a featured video trainer for courses on Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Outlook, and Intuit's QuickBooks small business accounting software. Dan is the video trainer for ExamBlast—Windows Server 2003, ExamBlast—Windows XP Professional, and the QuickBooks Pro training series on video and CD-ROM from http://www.BlastThroughLearning.com.

Dan and his family live in the Santa Rosa Valley area in Southern California, near the city of Camarillo. Dan lives with his lovely wife, Alison; their 7-year-old daughter, Alexis; their 4-year-old son, Brendan; and their golden retriever, Brandy. When he's not writing, researching, or consulting, Dan enjoys traveling with his family, swimming, playing basketball, rooting for the L.A. Lakers, going for long walks, listening to music, and exploring new age spirituality. Dan can be contacted via email at Dan@InfoTechnologyPartners.com.