Rambling about Data on Wheels – origins, branding, expansion

I have been asked many times about how the name “Data on Wheels” came to be. I decided that is a good topic to ramble about, so here goes....

EightKB 2026: Registration is Open!

It’s that time of year again! EightKB is back on August 20th at 13:00 UTC, and registration is open right now. It’s completely free. No catch, just a full...

Microsoft Fabric OneLake Shortcuts: When to Use Them and When Not To

An architecture scenario Imagine separate Sales, Finance, Shared Data, and Executive Analytics workspaces. Sales owns sales transactions, Finance owns budgets, and Shared Data owns common tables such as Customer,...

SQL Server Security Hardening Guide Using the DoD STIG Checklist

Security on your SQL Server is important. That doesn’t need any explaining. But where do you start when evaluating the security of your SQL Server? If you are like...

Getting the SQL Server MCP Server Running

If you’ve wanted a SQL Server MCP server for your databases, it’s available. The SQL MCP Server is a part of the Data API Builder (DAB). DAB is a...

Match the Model to the Task, Not the App: An Orchestrator-Worker Pattern in Python

Most apps that call an LLM send every request to the same model. That works until the bill arrives.

A classification job that returns one word costs...

T-SQL Tuesday #201 Invitation: Temp Tables, Friend or Foe?

My T-SQL Tuesday #201 invitation. Do temp tables help performance or hurt it? I argue moving data into a #temp table is usually the wrong reflex, and invite you...

Getting Started with Azure SQL Developer on Macbook

The idea behind Azure SQL Developer is for anyone to build, iterate, and test locally at no cost. This means NO Azure subscription to deal with and NO credit...

Power BI Performance in 2026: A Practical Guide to Faster Semantic Models and Reports

Originally published April 2022; substantially updated July 2026. This post is a complete replacement for and update to my April 2022 post, Power BI Performance Features. That post focused...

A New Word: Mauerbauertraurigkeit

mauerbauertraurigkeit – n. inexplicable urge to push people away, even close friends whose company you generally enjoy, like a poker player who keeps folding a promising hand in order...