Archives: September 2009
Referral Contest for PASS Summit
Hopefully you saw it in the special mailing that went out yesterday, but the marketing team just released a new contest for referring registrations to the 2009 Summit – see all the details here. If you’re able to convince a friend or colleague to go might as well have… Read more
0 comments, 1,164 reads
Posted in SQLAndy on 30 September 2009
SQLSaturday #21 Update
We’re closing in on our October 17th SQLSaturday #21 in Orlando and I thought I’d share a few things about the event this year:
- 54 hour sessions plus 5 five mini (15 min) sessions – our biggest schedule ever
- Fund raising has been much more difficult than in previous years.…
0 comments, 1,189 reads
Posted in SQLAndy on 30 September 2009
Winding Down
I'm trying to finish up the last few things here at work before taking the weekend off. I scheduled off the next two days and plan on tiling my bathroom. Tia says it's not really time off, but it's a good project, it's mindless (relatively), I've been wanting to do… Read more
0 comments, 1,259 reads
Posted in The Voice of the DBA on 30 September 2009
Pre-Compiled Stored Procedures: Fact or Myth
There’s a very common belief among DBA’s: Stored procedures are pre-compiled. I had someone tell me all about it just last week. There are lots of sources that say what I’m getting ready to say, so this really shouldn’t come as news to anyone,but it will. No, they’re not. Stored…
0 comments, 1,629 reads
Posted in The Scary DBA on 30 September 2009
Minor Celebration
A little cheap thrill for me. I passed 50,000 views on the blog yesterday. Thanks to everyone who has stopped by to read my fumbling attempts to understand SQL Server better. I hope some of the posts have proved useful to you. I learn a lot from putting them together.
0 comments, 1,185 reads
Posted in The Scary DBA on 30 September 2009
The old INNER JOIN syntax vs. the new INNER JOIN syntax
I was in a presentation last week where the presenter was talking about the ANSI/ISO SQL standards. For the most part the information was correct, but one of the things that was left ambiguous was whether or not the old INNER JOIN syntax was valid (and thus, the audience would be left to assume… Read more
70 comments, 34,457 reads
Posted in K. Brian Kelley - Databases, Infrastructure, and Security on 30 September 2009
Heading Down to the Basement
I'm taking the next two days off, heading down into the basement for a four day weekend. Nothing particular going on, just a little stressed with life. Between work here and a busy life with kids, I realized a few weeks ago that I was feeling stressed. So I decided… Read more
0 comments, 1,284 reads
Posted in The Voice of the DBA on 30 September 2009
Idea for PASS Summit 2010 – Share Your Other Passions
I’ve had the glimmer of this idea since I posted about the idea of bringing my chair to the 2009 PASS Summit. I’ve got a few other interests besides SQL Server, and so does everyone else. Probably more than a few of the attendees have a hobby that includes… Read more
1 comments, 1,188 reads
Posted in SQLAndy on 30 September 2009
TechEd Online Interview
Back in August at TechEd Africa I did a TechEd Online interview with Frikkie Bosch. Frikkie’s the marketing manager for the Server products down here in South Africa. We discussed some common mistakes that I’ve seen regarding SQL Server performance. I’m not talking specifics of query/table design here, but rather… Read more
0 comments, 1,256 reads
Posted in SQL In The Wild on 30 September 2009
On vs. Where
Does it matter if you put your criteria in the ON clause or the WHERE clause? Well, as with most things SQL the answer is, “It depends”. If you are dealing with INNER JOIN’s then it really doesn’t matter because the query optimizer is smart enough to come up with… Read more
0 comments, 1,531 reads
Posted in Wise Man or Wise Guy on 30 September 2009
Eliminating Empty Output Files in SSIS
So you’ve got some packages that regularly extract data to one or more text files, but you know that from time to time some of the queries will not return any data. However, you find in SSIS that, in a flat file export package, the output file is created regardless… Read more
19 comments, 12,443 reads
Posted in Tim Mitchell on 30 September 2009
Jack Corbett Now Co-President of oPASS
I’m late announcing this here, but I’m pleased to announce my friend Jack Corbett is joining me in leading oPASS (the Orlando SQL Group). Part of that is Jack being kind enough to pitch in knowing that I’m spread thin, but a bigger part is that he’s been steadily getting… Read more
3 comments, 1,353 reads
Posted in SQLAndy on 29 September 2009
More on the MVP SQL Server book
If you buy from Manning directly today or tomorrow, there’s a 50% discount . Use the code pop0928 at the checkout. Hurry, hurry, hurry….
For those who want a copy and are going to the PASS Summit in November, why not pick up your copy of the book there?… Read more
0 comments, 1,143 reads
Posted in SQL In The Wild on 29 September 2009
Impact of uninstall instance on replication.
0 comments, 1,438 reads
Posted in Vinay Thakur on 29 September 2009
Vote for Mr. LaRock
It is rapidly coming up on election time at the Professional Association of SQL Server users (PASS). Once more, a person I respect and admire is running for office. Tom LaRock has been a volunteer with the organization longer than I have (I’m approaching four years) and for the entire…
0 comments, 1,331 reads
Posted in The Scary DBA on 29 September 2009
Off-Hours Work: A Guide For Managers
If you work in software development or IT long enough eventually you're going to find yourself in a situation where you have to work during off-hours; it's just the nature of the job and can happen for a variety of reasons like: hardware failure, a new client is brought on… Read more
13 comments, 1,614 reads
Posted in Kendal Van Dyke on 29 September 2009
Reporting Services resources
Thanks to everyone who attended my SQL Server Reporting Services class in Nashville over the last couple of weeks. As promised, here is a list of online resources that may prove useful to you as you continue to work with Reporting Services.
0 comments, 1,366 reads
Posted in Joe Webb on 29 September 2009
SQL Server MVP Deep Dives
I’ve been reading through this book and it really does have something for everyone at any level.
I think it is truly awesome that this many people have stepped up and donated not only their time but their knowledge to help http://www.WarChild.org!
I’ll have a more in-depth review later… Read more
1 comments, 1,206 reads
Posted in SQL Man of Mystery on 29 September 2009
Midlands PASS Chapter October Meeting
Next Meeting - October 6, 2009
Speaker - SQL Server MVP Brian Kelley
Trigger Happy Database Security
In this presentation we'll look at the use of triggers for added database security. We'll start with the typical DML triggers used to audit changes to data and best and worst practices with… Read more
0 comments, 1,617 reads
Posted in K. Brian Kelley - Databases, Infrastructure, and Security on 29 September 2009
Space Sensitivity in SSIS Lookups
It's been well-documented through myriad blogs and forum posts about the case sensitivity of the comparisons in the SSIS lookup transformation (a good review can be found here). In a nutshell, a comparison using the lookup transformation is case sensitive when using the default setting of Full Cache, even… Read more
2 comments, 2,469 reads
Posted in Tim Mitchell on 29 September 2009