Good editorial Tony, but one line you have in there jumped out at me...

"...few DBAs and Database Developers have the required .NET skills..."

I would really love to know just how true this statement is - just out of curiosity - because in our work you must have both and though we have not posted for openings in a year or more, when we did, .NET skills were one of the top requirements for any DBA who is going to work in any of our companies. In fact (and it may just be our organization), any DBA who did not have some .NET familiarity, to me, is not a DBA. I mean, thats is kind of like hiring a carpenter who knows it all, except how to use a hammer and nails.

What good is it to tune SQL and then find someone setup a data connection in .NET incorrectly? I mean, isn't SQL the backend for ASP.NET and Winforms .NET projects - as it is in our organization? So, tuning SQL and not knowing the proper methods and best practices in .NET sounds about as useful as tuning up a car that has no wheels. Engine runs great, but cant go anywhere.

I don't know whether I am just old and therefore old-fashioned, but what good is any database knowledge when you don't have a clue about the "presentation layer" and how it operates - whether its Web ASP work, or good old Winforms work.

Our DBAs work with our developers and we test in our QA departments - but all those people have knowledge of both SQL and .NET. I don't see how you can separate those two things. Sounds kind of like my cooking ability - I am great at cutting up vegetables, boiling water, opening packages - but I cant produce even a good toaster waffle! :w00t: