For the second year in a row, SQLServerCentral.Com and Red Gate Software have sponsored the Exceptional DBA of the Year awards. DBAs are nominated by the SQL Server community, and the top five finalists are selected by a panel of judges. These five finalists are then voted on by the SQL Server community, and a winner selected.
This year, the top five finalists included Stuart Cianos, Chuck Lathrope, Raymond Laubert, Josef Richberg, and Alex Rosa.
The winner of the 2009 Exceptional DBA award, selected by popular vote was Josef Richberg. As the winner, Josef will receive a trophy, a license for Red Gate Software’s SQL Toolbelt, a full conference pass for the 2009 PASS Community Summit, and travel expenses to attend the summit.
To read an interview with Joseph, and to find out about his perspective of what it means to be an Exceptional DBA, visit this link.
About a year ago, the first edition of my book, How to Become an Exceptional DBA, was published. It was short, about 85 pages, and was written for people who were interested in becoming DBAs, and for current DBAs who wanted to become better DBAs. The focus of the book was on career guidance.
Through out this past year I have gotten a lot of feedback. Here are some short excerpts:
“Your Exceptional DBA book is excellent in terms of guidance and inspiration. Thanks a lot for coming up with such a useful information.” “At the moment, I am reading your book How to Become an Exceptional DBA. I just can't thank you enough for this book. This is something I was looking for and I am glad I have found it now.” “I just finished reading his book a few days ago and am planning on reading it back through, page by page, over again. This book is SO AMAZING and I just don’t want to miss or overlook any details in it. I have been waiting, what seems a lifetime, for someone who is willing to share this much information. Today, many people are not so willing to share their experiences like Brad; so refreshing!” “Thanks for your well written document about being an Exceptional DBA. I myself have about 15 years of experience, 10 of which as consultant, and I recognize just about all the points you mention. Your eBook was a pleasure to read.” “I’m just 25 years old and starting to enjoy the possibilities of this field. Everyday I’m becoming more interested in the science of information administration. Your book is inspiring, priceless, and has helped me redefine my professional inner vision.”
“Your Exceptional DBA book is excellent in terms of guidance and inspiration. Thanks a lot for coming up with such a useful information.”
“At the moment, I am reading your book How to Become an Exceptional DBA. I just can't thank you enough for this book. This is something I was looking for and I am glad I have found it now.”
“I just finished reading his book a few days ago and am planning on reading it back through, page by page, over again. This book is SO AMAZING and I just don’t want to miss or overlook any details in it. I have been waiting, what seems a lifetime, for someone who is willing to share this much information. Today, many people are not so willing to share their experiences like Brad; so refreshing!”
“Thanks for your well written document about being an Exceptional DBA. I myself have about 15 years of experience, 10 of which as consultant, and I recognize just about all the points you mention. Your eBook was a pleasure to read.”
“I’m just 25 years old and starting to enjoy the possibilities of this field. Everyday I’m becoming more interested in the science of information administration. Your book is inspiring, priceless, and has helped me redefine my professional inner vision.”
Because of the positive reception of the first edition of the book, I have written an updated, second edition. I have updated it to include feedback I have received from the first edition, and I added a lot of new content, including two new chapters. The new edition is now 172 pages long (part of that is because the book was reformatted using slightly larger type), but there is a lot of new content that has been added to all the chapters.
If you would like a free PDF copy of this book, you can visit this link and download it. You will need to click on the red button named “Download Your Free DBA Resources Now”.
Within the next 60 days, the book will be available for purchase, as a paperback, at Amazon.com. I will also be handing out a limited number of free paperback copies of the book when I attend devLINK in Nashville in August.
I hope you find this book worth reading, and please e-mail if you have any feedback.
