InstantForum.NET v2.9.0SQLServerCentralhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/notifications@sqlservercentral.comWed, 22 May 2013 08:06:28 GMT20http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxAccidental post deleted.Fri, 08 Mar 2013 20:13:53 GMTJeff Modenhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI suppose that the simple response would be to say that it is an issue of time. Like other commentors, I have more customers/projects beating at the doors of my self discipline than I have the will to focus on. A deeper more realistic answer, though, is that while I "write" dozens of things in my head from day to day, few ever make it to document form because I question everything so much. I've started an 'article' for SSC a number of times because I'm pleased with a particular solution I came up with. I also remember the rush of having an article published by Pinnacle in Smart Access many years ago.I don't get far these days, however, because from what I've read from others, I tend to be unconventional in my approaches. Instead of accepting that something shouldn't be done, I do it to find out the consequences and evaluate from there. A couple of times I've posted questions on the SSC forums seeking thoughtful input and while most responses have been in like kind, I've have received responses that expressed that I was incompetent and I should just get a real professional. Well, I've taught classes on and worked with SQL Server since v.6.5 and if that doesn't somehow warrant professional status I'm not sure what would. I know what I know and I want to know even more, but I've never been the rock in the storm type who just takes on whatever people have to say. I like to teach the teachable and learn from the creative. So more discipline, a thicker skin, and I suppose a better commitment to my community would be the factors that would push me beyond my reticence. In the mean time, hope survives because I actually stopped long enough to respond to this question. :-)Fri, 08 Mar 2013 11:42:41 GMTrobr-793239http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI have no clue why I do not write, except I write code, strategy, and business documentation all day every day. And yes I contribute here, and love this group. I would love to write fiction and have started two books which I dabble with every now and again. I have been asked directly to write three books, two technical and one a history text, and have done none of them. And there is a small group of people encouraging me to write even now. Maybe I should listen, or could be it is good I have not. Time will tell.M. Fri, 08 Mar 2013 10:06:53 GMTMiles Nealehttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxOh dear, this reminds me of the lawyer and the angry hen. One clucks defiance....Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:49:42 GMTsing4youhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote]The more I know, the more I know nothing. More specifically, there are three levels of knowledge: Things you know, things you know you don't know, and things you don't know that you don't know. The more I learn about SQL Server for instance, I increase that which is in the first bucket. The problem is I keep putting more in the second bucket. I have no idea how much is still in the third.Writing helps you move things from the third buck to the second and the second to the first.[/quote]...so were just mucking about with buckets, eh? Depressing, no?Reminded me of a joke about the difference between a goldfish and a mountain goat. One mucks about in fountains...Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:45:02 GMTDavid McKinneyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]PhilM99 (3/8/2013)[/b][hr]So why don't I write: My experiences constantly teach me: YOU KNOW NOTHING![/quote]I agree. Constantly learning. I write anyway because someone has to do it. And yeah, the old stuff is embarrassing, but what can you do? I'm constantly reminded of how little I know.Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:32:18 GMTGrant Fritcheyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]PhilM99 (3/8/2013)[/b][hr]I'm a developer and an 'Accidental DBA'. These forums have saved my a%$ more times than I can count. I am always struck by the accuracy and helpfulness seen here. So I don't write because it's forever, and it's embarassing to have your inexperienced posts stuck up there forever. The competition from some of the main contributors is awesome, I mean they're not really competing, but the bar is set really high. And being a one-man-shop, I just really want to know how to make it work, with some degree of efficiency.Like Backup. I just want my databases to be reasonably well protected. But there are so many options one can barely read the documentation. I'm like many others, when I Google for something and see one of the links is MSDN documentation, I shy away from it, knowing it will present EVERYTHING about the subject, leaving me nowhere except to muddle through it all.Some of my experiences are hilarious, I wish I would keep notes. One time I was Googling for a solution to a db problem and hit an entry that sounded exactly like the problem I was having. The more I read, the more it sounded the same. And there it was, I had posted almost the exact same thing three years earlier, totally forgetting.So why don't I write: My experiences constantly teach me: YOU KNOW NOTHING![/quote]The more I know, the more I know nothing. More specifically, there are three levels of knowledge: Things you know, things you know you don't know, and things you don't know that you don't know. The more I learn about SQL Server for instance, I increase that which is in the first bucket. The problem is I keep putting more in the second bucket. I have no idea how much is still in the third.Writing helps you move things from the third buck to the second and the second to the first.Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:28:14 GMTLynn Pettishttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI'm a developer and an 'Accidental DBA'. These forums have saved my a%$ more times than I can count. I am always struck by the accuracy and helpfulness seen here. So I don't write because it's forever, and it's embarassing to have your inexperienced posts stuck up there forever. The competition from some of the main contributors is awesome, I mean they're not really competing, but the bar is set really high. And being a one-man-shop, I just really want to know how to make it work, with some degree of efficiency.Like Backup. I just want my databases to be reasonably well protected. But there are so many options one can barely read the documentation. I'm like many others, when I Google for something and see one of the links is MSDN documentation, I shy away from it, knowing it will present EVERYTHING about the subject, leaving me nowhere except to muddle through it all.Some of my experiences are hilarious, I wish I would keep notes. One time I was Googling for a solution to a db problem and hit an entry that sounded exactly like the problem I was having. The more I read, the more it sounded the same. And there it was, I had posted almost the exact same thing three years earlier, totally forgetting.So why don't I write: My experiences constantly teach me: YOU KNOW NOTHING!Fri, 08 Mar 2013 08:18:15 GMTPhilM99http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxWhat I've learned is that you don't have to be [u]the[/u] authority on a subject to write about it. Sure, you should check the veracity of what you've written, and should read other stuff that's been written on the subject to ensure you haven't missed something obvious, but most of the time the subject matter isn't actually 'new'.For me, an article is like teaching something on paper rather than orally. Think of the best teacher you ever had. He / She still had to follow a syllabus; what sets apart an exceptional teacher is their capacity to present the material in such away that it interests you, and that you can understand.Don't let your peceived lack of knowledge on a subject get in the way. Do the research, and share your findings. It can be an extremely rewarding experience. David McKinney.Fri, 08 Mar 2013 07:29:46 GMTDavid McKinneyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxThis is a great question. I like to write, but the older I get the more I doubt the value of any information or opinion I have, let alone my ability to communicate it effectively.Given the amount of bad information and general emotive comments on the internet, which I believe is devaluing it as a resource, I think we should all think about when it is appropriate to write.Fri, 08 Mar 2013 02:33:20 GMTn.hadleyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxAgreed. When I was writing all the time on security, my later articles started including a section called references. My point for including those links was to give folks more sources to use to better understand what I was writing about. Some times I was pulling things together from multiple sources. I knew it took me some time to do that to find a solution to a problem I was working on, and I knew I wished someone had already done it. So I wrote the article and cited the references. Because there are some out there who want the immediate solution but they are curious and want to read more. Fri, 23 May 2008 20:16:28 GMTK. Brian Kelleyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]Grant Fritchey (5/22/2008)[/b][hr]Also, while lots of people may have one piece of knowledge or another, maybe a full set of the knowledge has never been put in one place before...[/quote]Following up on what Grant said, I think our Google-search dominated world, we expect to find answers to all of our questions via a simple search. Well, if the answer is fragmented on the web (which it often is), Google can help us find all the pieces. But it is still up to us to assemble them into a solution. Therefore, there is always a need for someone to put the pieces all together into a single, concise and meaningful form, so that no one else needs to repeat the process. This is how we make the greatest progress.Thu, 22 May 2008 07:32:43 GMTTed Manasahttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxAlso, while lots of people may have one piece of knowledge or another, maybe a full set of the knowledge has never been put in one place before. I wrote up an article for Steve on how to collect data into SCOM from a TSQL query. Nothing in the article isn't available elsewhere. As a matter of fact, throughout the article I point to all the places to get the individual pieces that I was working from. However, this is the first place that all these things will be brought together in one place. It's not that I'm inventing something new or special. I'm just publishing my research so that the next guy has a slightly easier time of it.Thu, 22 May 2008 07:18:43 GMTGrant Fritcheyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]Jeff Moden (5/21/2008)[/b][hr][quote][b]David Burrows (5/21/2008)[/b][hr]Keep think about submitting something but can't think of anything that ain't already been done :( [/quote]...I saw one article by a fellow recently. He wrote about a handful of (I thought) very well known undocumented stored procedures like sp_MSForEachTable. Some folks made some pretty nasty comments about writting about something so obvious. But, to those that don't know, it's no so obvious. Sure, people can search for such things, but like all such research, most folks need to know that such a thing even exists before they can do a search....[/quote]I worked with SQL Server for almost 9 years and while I had "heard" about the sp_MSForEach stored procedures I had never used them and still have not, but the article did provide some ideas on how to use them. There are also some instances where I may use sp_MSForEachTable in the near future and I would have done it by hand if not for this article on "well known" undocumented stored procedures.As this demonstrates any article published will likely find someone who needed to know what was in it. I look at as, if I provide help to 1 person the time and effort it took to write the article is worth it. Granted I have only written 1, but I did find it quite rewarding.Thu, 22 May 2008 07:00:09 GMT Jack Corbetthttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]David Burrows (5/21/2008)[/b][hr][quote]Actually, the real reason why I write is because...[/quote][quote]I can't remember stuff no mo'.[/quote]And you are ? :blink:lol only kidding Jeff ;)Keep think about submitting something but can't think of anything that ain't already been done :(Maybe one day ......... :D:ermm: wonder if I could plagiarize Jeff's workAll hail Jeff !!! :cool:[/quote]You can submit old in a new bottle :)Wed, 21 May 2008 22:12:07 GMTAnipaulhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]David Burrows (5/21/2008)[/b][hr]Keep think about submitting something but can't think of anything that ain't already been done :( [/quote]Actually.... everything I've written about is NOT new... Tally table is old hat... has been for a long time. I didn't even invent it. But there are a lot of folks out there that knew nothing of it and, it never hurts to see how other people explain the same thing. I saw one article by a fellow recently. He wrote about a handful of (I thought) very well known undocumented stored procedures like sp_MSForEachTable. Some folks made some pretty nasty comments about writting about something so obvious. But, to those that don't know, it's no so obvious. Sure, people can search for such things, but like all such research, most folks need to know that such a thing even exists before they can do a search.I've been following your posts for years, David... you'd write a great article even if it was on something "obvious"... you have the "knack".Wed, 21 May 2008 18:50:42 GMTJeff Modenhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote]Actually, the real reason why I write is because...[/quote][quote]I can't remember stuff no mo'.[/quote]And you are ? :blink:lol only kidding Jeff ;)Keep think about submitting something but can't think of anything that ain't already been done :(Maybe one day ......... :D:ermm: wonder if I could plagiarize Jeff's workAll hail Jeff !!! :cool:Wed, 21 May 2008 07:06:09 GMTDavid Burrowshttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxBrian, we'd love to have more, and we miss your great information, but we completely understand you working on other projects.You do what you can, and what your passion is. If it's writing somewhere else, enjoy it. If you want to try it here, let me know.Thu, 15 May 2008 21:35:12 GMTSteve Jones - SSC Editorhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI know I'm very late to the conversation, but a few things...People learn in different ways. Just because there's an article out there describing RAID configurations doesn't mean Joe SysAdmin is going to get it because of that article. Your article, which may come at it in a slightly different direction or just your choice of words, or the fact that Joe SysAdmin is processing multiple articles may lead to Joe "getting it." So just because you see an article out there on something doesn't mean you have to stop from writing about it, too.You don't have to be an expert to write. One of my first articles on the old swynk.com garnered a reply from none other than Steve Jones who offered a different perspective on the same topic. It gave me a lot of things to think about and I went ahead and amended my article with some of Steve's points because they made a lot of sense. The majority of us aren't in the Kalen Delaney or Itzik Ben-Gan stratosphere of SQL Server knowledge. We don't have to be. Which is a good thing, or I'd have never written anything...Time is always an issue. It's why I bounce in and out of the forums and the blogs where I'm posting like a madman for a few days and then disappear for weeks at a time. I keep telling Steve I'm going to start writing again and then I get busy between work, family, and ministry. I do know that when I was writing all the time, it was easier to write (as Phil Factor indicated). I do a lot of writing now, but it's for ministry, and I know that's something I'm called to do. Here's the thing, when I was churning out SQL Server articles once or twice a month, I found writing about 15-20 minutes a day was enough to get that kind of output and more. Since I'm writing daily for ministry and since I'm doing a lot of checking, cross-referencing, researching, exegetical analysis, that kind of writing takes a lot longer. But the technical writing is finding a particular topic you have an interest in, spending probably 2-3 hours over the course of a week or two and it's out there. Which I guess incriminates me for not writing on here more. *shrug* Thu, 15 May 2008 15:33:51 GMTK. Brian Kelleyhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxImagine when someone is looking for a solution for a coding problem , its a happy moment when you find what you look for online , more writing means more happy moments for others who are looking for information .Wed, 14 May 2008 09:02:39 GMTAmr Salahhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI write because I like to communicate in all its myriad forms. (I talk too much, write too much, heck, since I spent a summer with some Italians, I even gesticulate too much!)I've submitted my first attempt at an article to Steve. Do I expect that it will revolutionize anything important? No. But I did find that I was having to write the same posts over and over again to different people all asking about the same subject, and decided to take all my posts on that subject and turn them into an article. Hopefully, that will be more efficient than continuing to write the same posts over and over again.Basically, by noticing what gets asked a lot, I deduced there is a "market" for that article. It's really nothing more than an expansion, clarification, and consolidation, of multiple posts on one subject.Hopefully someone will find it helpful. Even if not, writing it helped me focus my own thoughts on the subject.I keep trying to write fiction, but I find that I have a lot of great ideas for settings and scenes, but nothing that ties together into a narrative story. I'll keep weaving some of the threads, on the hopes that one of them, one day, will be a garment. Till then (if), I do enjoy putting words together.For those who worry about writing something and having others (perceived to be more expert) tear it apart and point out all the wrongnesses in it: Actually, that might be a good way to learn, wouldn't it? Might be bruising if you've put too much of your ego on the line with it, but having others review and critique really is a good way to learn.What if you post an article about concatenating and splitting strings, and three people write better solutions in the comments on the article? Well, you risked being "wrong", and you found three better ways to do something that might actually be useful. You learned! That's my take on it. Just don't tie up your ego in the thing, don't be crushed by criticism.(And now it's time for me to wander off into the sunset, pontificating about meaningless things, convinced that my compulsive pedantry may have served a noble cause....... (trust me on this one, now that I'm started, if I don't forcibly restrain myself, I'll never stop).) :)Mon, 12 May 2008 11:57:12 GMTGSquaredhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI'd love to write more (on numerous sites such as this one), but I cannot for 2 main reasons: (1) no free time; and (2) limited exposure to high level SQL stuff.(1) My primary role at the place where I work is to code in Microsoft Dynamics NAV. At this point, my "backup" left to join another company and I have 2 rookies that I am trying to get trained. My backup didn't provide much assistance, but he could at least help get the 2 new people trained and relieve some of the workload from me.(2) I have my MSCE and MCDBA, so I get pulled into IT projects from time to time, but I don't get to play around with the inner workings of SQL Server like I used to. I just don't think that the areas I am still very familiar with would be relevant here since there are people that get to spend much more time on the topics than I do.Mon, 12 May 2008 11:45:30 GMTDavid Hiblerhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI wrote an article on CodeProject about a C# .Net windows application that I developed using Microsoft Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) to read a schedule that is published in Excel and add the events as calendar entries in Microsoft Outlook. The Excel file is published by NASA for each Space Shuttle mission and it contains the schedule of events for the mission.I published key portions of the code with an explanation of what the functions did, some cool stuff using regular expressions, and about some of the problems I encountered during the development of the program. Converting between time zones was challenging; .Net 2.0 could convert from local time to UTC and back, but not between Central Time and Eastern Time. I had to solve the problem of the transition period, when Daylight Saving Time ends in one time zone.The CodeProject Article:[url]http://www.codeproject.com/KB/office/NasaTvSchedule.aspx[/url]The Project Page for NASA Space Shuttle TV Schedule Transfer to Outlook Calendar[url]http://www.codeplex.com/NasaStsTvSchedule[/url]Ralph HightowerMon, 12 May 2008 08:50:57 GMTRalph Hightowerhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxActually, the real reason why I write is because... I can't remember stuff no mo'. :PSat, 10 May 2008 17:05:32 GMTJeff Modenhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxWow - lots of good stuff!For me, I write because of a passion for sharing knowledge (Phil Factor said this much more eloquently on page 1...).I'm not good at writing but I'm getting better the more I do it. It's a skill that I struggle with, an art for which I lack the knack. And errors? Goodness. If I didn't write for fear of errors I wouldn't ever write. Like others, I write because I learned so much from reading the good work of others - I want to contribute to the knowledge of those behind me on this path. Also like others, I regularly pop my name and some topic into a search engine to find an article / post I wrote some time ago... because I need it now!:{> AndySat, 10 May 2008 09:07:04 GMTAndy Leonardhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]Michael Earl (5/9/2008)[/b][hr]I'm basically just lazy.I even have a good idea today - I wish I were a bit more motivated.[/quote]I'll take any ideas you aren't motivated enough to use!Fri, 09 May 2008 13:21:41 GMT Jack Corbetthttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI'm basically just lazy.I even have a good idea today - I wish I were a bit more motivated.Fri, 09 May 2008 13:18:14 GMTMichael Earl-395764http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxThe first comment of the first article I submitted for SSC was complaining my grammar !!!Actually that was not it, one time I had to write a report and when the tester tested it, the first thing she wrote was that my title of my report was grammatically wrong. She said the first alphabetic of each word of the title had to be capital letter except 'of', 'the' . I appreciated her help but I also felt it was humiliated. I forward her email to her boss, the project leader and my manager and said I needed to take an English writing class before I could do the project!!!For all the documentations, I write it as simple as possible, most of the time I write it liked I write a program and as long as people understands and no one complains, I don't care. Chances are the one who read the documentation are programmers too, so they don't really care about the grammar.I always say, if I am good at English, I would be a writer, a lawyer not a programmer.Fri, 09 May 2008 13:11:19 GMTLonerhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI agree with the others that I don't have anything great to add. But all of the articles you do submit have been very helpful. I appreciate the time you take to write an article that will help all of us get better at what we do.As someone who has also written documentation, you are writing. To write something that another user can pick up and follow along and duplicate is a real feat. I always feel good when someone thanks me for explaining something very simply. I also write the documentation to help me. Things come up, I do them, but then I move onto something else and I forget what I did. The documentation helps me recreate what I did previously. If it hasn't been said lately, thanks Steve for all you do on this site and helping all of us be better in our professionFri, 09 May 2008 12:54:42 GMTKatie Walkerhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxFor all those who have posted that they don't write due to fear of being wrong. The one article I have written did not have anything "wrong", but after submitting the article I found some things that I wish I had done differently in the code that went with the article. No one else mentioned it, and all the responses to the article were positive. I was actually disappointed that someone didn't post that there was a better way to do it! The article came out of something interesting I had learned and implemented at work using SSIS and I thought it might point some people in the right direction.My point is on a site like SSC most people are true professionals and are more likely to add to your article than pick it apart. That, in itself, is reason enough to write an article, you may learn a better way to do what you are writing about.Fri, 09 May 2008 12:00:33 GMT Jack Corbetthttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI thought I will write... I thought I will write ........... :)But who will give me time ........... :)Still I thought I will write .................. :w00t:Then I started to write .............. :Whistling:Then ...............I could match the quality of authors like Jeff, Jacob, Steve and many more....... ;)So I DROP THAT IDEA.......................... :hehe:Again read from line 1. (Endless loop) :w00t::P:):hehe::cool:Fri, 09 May 2008 11:59:10 GMTAnipaulhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspx[quote][b]Phil Factor (5/9/2008)[/b][hr]A while back, I decided to try writing a blog posting every week. It wasn't for a SQL Server site, but for an unrelated interest. Heaven only knows how Steve manages to write a newsletter editorial every day, but this is the technique I used for the easier regime of a weekly blog.. I took a notebook with me everywhere and immediately noted down every idea that came to me. I began to seek out ideas and spot them where I normally didn't bother. It was strange how it soon changed my attitude. When I hit a misfortune, instead of moping, I felt pleased at the thought that I could relate the experience in my blog. When bored, out came the notebook. I found myself reading more, and passively watching telly not at all. I gradually worked all the ideas out, more in parallel than in series, using a very simple framework for turning ideas into articles, until a blog was good enough to be posted, gradually building up a stockpile, and snatching odd half-hours here and there to do the work. Suddenly journeys, waits, and queues were fun, as I could spend the time writing.To cut a long story short, once I got into the swing of it and the brain had adjusted, it became easy to do, and didn't cut into my working day. I still blog there, but less frequently, but as a direct consequence of the Blog, I've appeared on national television in the UK five times. The Blog gets read a lot more than my SQL Server stuff!I just approached the whole thing methodically just like learning SMS, C#, or SSIS. I got hold of a brilliant manual on how to write, and worked at it doggedly until it looked good and people read it. Anyone can do it as long as they have the interesting ideas, and SSC is the perfect place to develop the craft. Steve will help![/quote]Heady comments from one who managed to destabilize a small South American country with a copy-protection scheme...:) There might still be hope for some of us yet...:)Fri, 09 May 2008 11:45:43 GMTMatt Miller (#4)http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxA while back, I decided to try writing a blog posting every week. It wasn't for a SQL Server site, but for an unrelated interest. Heaven only knows how Steve manages to write a newsletter editorial every day, but this is the technique I used for the easier regime of a weekly blog.. I took a notebook with me everywhere and immediately noted down every idea that came to me. I began to seek out ideas and spot them where I normally didn't bother. It was strange how it soon changed my attitude. When I hit a misfortune, instead of moping, I felt pleased at the thought that I could relate the experience in my blog. When bored, out came the notebook. I found myself reading more, and passively watching telly not at all. I gradually worked all the ideas out, more in parallel than in series, using a very simple framework for turning ideas into articles, until a blog was good enough to be posted, gradually building up a stockpile, and snatching odd half-hours here and there to do the work. Suddenly journeys, waits, and queues were fun, as I could spend the time writing.To cut a long story short, once I got into the swing of it and the brain had adjusted, it became easy to do, and didn't cut into my working day. I still blog there, but less frequently, but as a direct consequence of the Blog, I've appeared on national television in the UK five times. The Blog gets read a lot more than my SQL Server stuff!I just approached the whole thing methodically just like learning SMS, C#, or SSIS. I got hold of a brilliant manual on how to write, and worked at it doggedly until it looked good and people read it. Anyone can do it as long as they have the interesting ideas, and SSC is the perfect place to develop the craft. Steve will help!Fri, 09 May 2008 11:40:38 GMTPhil Factorhttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxIt is easy to blame my lack of writing on not having time or more to the point, not making the time to write. But then I wouldn't be answering truthfully, I would just be giving a socially acceptable response so I don't have to put myself out there and be vulnerable.With that said, I don't write because I suffer from little-ol-meism. I allow my F.E.A.R. (False Evidence Appearing Real) of looking like an arse, in a community of peers, from sharing my thoughts. I am a newbie so I'm more of a student than a teacher at this point, but I might have some fresh perspective on certain topics. You may never read them because my confidence would keep me from making the post. Even now as I'm typing a response to this week's poll, I'm thinking of abandoning the post. I'm not going to though because I'm using this opportunity for growth.SQLServerCentral.com is successful because of member participation and I'm challenging myself to be more proactive in my participation, first for myself and second for a community that is a major part of my career development. I know some of you share my thoughts and I encourage you to put yourself out there and do the same.Fri, 09 May 2008 11:34:04 GMTPatrick Kinsellahttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI don't write due to my extream ignorance. I don't know enoough to ask you fine folks a good question! When I do you'll be getting them! :PFri, 09 May 2008 11:23:36 GMTemartin1http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxIn re: to the two most common "excuses" not to write:1) "I am not a good writer," and2) "I don't have anything original."Firstly, we IT people don't get paid to write. We get paid to solve. Therefore, no one really expects us to be very good. We just need to be good enough to get the solution across, which we normally do via code anyway!Secondly, how many songs do you think have been written about love? How many cops-and-robber movies? Variations on Hamlet? Poems about cats? Only once in a lifetime might a person come up with something truly new. And only maybe. But that doesn't stop forward progress.My point is, we all do the same things. But we experience them differently. Experience and perspective are the only real ingredients of originality.We want YOUR (yes, you in the swivel chair that is bad for your back) experience and YOUR perspective!Fri, 09 May 2008 11:20:16 GMTTed Manasahttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxHa. "The spel cheker is brok..." Really though. Writing is something that I find others are able to do better than I. I am always ready and willing to talk about something I'm doing with work but are people really that interested that they will read it? I guess the challenge really is, as said before, finding something that hasn't been said before and finding the audience to consume my ideas, provide feedback (constructively) and generally complain that what I wrote was recently written by some guy in Australia with the last name of Performance (it is best to read about in fighting from a distance). There are others who may have questions and if I can help I do. To write is for those who are savvy enough (Steve) to make a living out of correctly describing something creatively enough that the masses will a) pick up on it, b) forward it on to the rest of the masses, and/or c) pay you for it. I contribute to the net when the net calls and I can answer. Fri, 09 May 2008 10:16:20 GMTJim Jesskahttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI dont right bekause my speel cheker is brok.Fri, 09 May 2008 10:05:21 GMTBob Hoffman-209065http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI enjoy writing and my managers have always complimented my ability to write to a technical and non-technical audience. However, like Lian indicated (comments on page 1), I don't feel my skills are up to par enough to write an article on this forum. I'm just a web developer who has had to be my own DBD for much of my career and picked up some great tricks from an awesome DBA as well as this site. However, even if I were a skilled DBA, I'd still fear an article of mine getting pummeled by people who are truly stellar in this field. I enjoy writing technical documentation for my systems and have actually considered pursuing that in my "later years" when I want to slow down a bit! :DFri, 09 May 2008 10:04:04 GMTLSAdvantagehttp://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic497557-263-1.aspxI don't right 'cause I cant do a good job at riteing. I no my stuff thoe.Fri, 09 May 2008 09:45:39 GMTJim Jesska