Community – What is it?

Community is something that is improperly defined with words alone.  Community is best defined through first person experience.  Community is a feeling and a sense more than it is a definition in “pick your dictionary here.”

So how do you experience this thing we call the SQL Community (or SQLFamily as we have dubbed it)?

Let’s examine that question next…

Experience the SQLFamily

The SQLFamily has been really good about putting itself out there and helping others.  If you use twitter you may have become acquainted with the #sqlhelp hashtag.  If you use twitter and participate in some of the discussions streaming nonstop from various corners of the family, you can see how quickly you might have been adopted into the family.

Still with the twitter theme, you might also see on frequent occasion something posted to the #sqlfamily hashtag.  Personal news might be posted to this hashtag from time to time.  In times of personal duress, the family comes together to show some strength.  Though not as tough as what others may have posted, I saw this first hand last year when away from the family on business and my daughter had an almond experience of the third kind.  You can read about that here.

Outside of twitter, the SQLFamily has been very progressive in getting more training out to the masses.  This training comes in the form of SQL Saturday and PASS Summit.  PASS Summit just wrapped up on November 9 and was a rather large family gathering.

At Summit, you may run into some princesses, some kilts, and maybe even some red lights along with all of those really big names that you see on twitter, the intertubes and so forth.  Here is a bit of what I mean (all pictures used with permission by Pat Wright (twitter) and can also be found on his flickr stream here).

From the Princess (Rumor has it she will be starting a blog soon.  This Princess has a name and it is Andrea Allred (twitter) ).

To a PASS Tradition – yes those are kilts.

Maybe even some flashing red lights (this might have been after SQL Karaoke)

And rounding it out with the Community Zone (I blogged about that here).  You might recognize some of the SQLFamily here (Tim Ford (twitter), Sarah Strate (twitter), Allen Kinsel (twitter), Louis Davidson (twitter) in far background to name some of them).

And this was all from the Emerald City of Seattle.  We will miss you next year Seattle as we visit Charlotte.

Community in the SQL world is not always about straight laced SQL and nerdery about the product we dearly love.  But it is about relaxing and having a good time with your friends too.  And when you are in this family – there are many friends.  The family is very open and accepting.  When they greet you, don’t be surprised if they attempt to hug you – it’s family.

Conclusion

Thanks to Chris Yates for hosting the TSQL Tuesday party this month.  You can read the original invitation here.  The rules for participation are in the invite.  Check it out along with anybody else that may have submitted an entry this month.