As discussed in earlier posts, Microsoft Press had some concern about the size of my Exchange 2010 SP1 book as the submitted manuscript amounted to some 1,600 pages. They asked me to reduce the size to 1,100 pages and I started on the task of cutting complete chapters, sections, and screen shots to reach the magic figure. I never quite achieved the necessary reduction but the good news is that Microsoft Press has now agreed to publish a 1,300 page book (this figure includes all the front and back matter such as table of contents and index).
Clearly I am very happy about this development. To a certain degree the pressure is off to cut material and I can concentrate on maximizing the use of the available pages rather than worrying about the next cut. I say “certain degree” because I’ll have to keep a close eye on edits that occur as a result of the technical editor’s review plus any changes that the development group makes to the software before they finalize SP1. However, this is a much better place to be than the previous situation!
Formatted chapters are apparently just about to flow to the technical editor and I will see their comments shortly. It will be interesting to see what the technical editor makes of the content, the suggestions they offer for improvement, and the inevitable small errors and unfortunate wording that have crept in during writing. All in all, the next few weeks should be very interesting.
– Tony
Thoughtsofanidlemind's Blog 
Glad to hear that a compromise was made on both parts. I am really looking forward to your book as the current selection of Exchange 2010 titles seem to have been rushed out the door. I am expecting this version to be superb as 2010 is very exciting as a whole.
Also, I noticed you went with MS press this time. Seems like a first for your titles.
A couple of reasons forced the change. First, Elsevier (Digital Press), my previous publisher, got out of the business of technology books. Second, it was time for a change anyway. Third, Microsoft and O’Reilly Books have done a deal to publish books together and it seemed that this was a great combination.
Cheers.
Tony