Avoiding Logging
It seems that some people think that you can perform actions in SQL Server without logging them in the transaction log. Steve Jones talks about this myth and says it's not even an option he'd like to have.
2011-03-08
650 reads
Editorials
Is Microsoft neglecting SMO?
Phil Fator, the self-confessed wild man of T-SQL, finally comes clean: he's a secret PowerShell user. But for the DBA, what is PowerShell without SMO? Is Microsoft giving the latter the care and attention it needs?
2011-03-07
516 reads
The Wisdom Department
Steve Jones talks about the way business ought to run, with more long term goals and objectives taking precedence over short term revenue. One idea that might help us is having a wisdom department that looks forward and tries to grow the business for the long term.
2011-03-07
407 reads
SLA Contracts
This Friday Steve Jones talks about the commitments and contracts that you may have with your customers. Do you know what they are? Is the contract explicitly spelled out? Take this Friday's poll and share your answer with everyone else.
2011-03-04
588 reads
Slow Fixes
Today we have an editorial reprinted from Jan 15, 2006 as Steve is on vacation. This one talks about the patching process at Microsoft, and why it sometimes is slower than we might like.
2011-03-03
384 reads
MVP Summit 2011
Steve Jones talks a little about the 2011 MVP Summit and what the annual event means to the average DBA.
2011-03-01
180 reads
Professional Development Week
Last week was Professional Development Week at SQL University. Steve Jones talks about the importance of having a professional development plan and the types of things that you could learn this week.
2011-02-28
219 reads
Will You Become a Master?
Today we have a guest editorial from Andy Warren. There are changes in the Microsoft Certified Master of SQL Server program and many people are considering trying to earn this certification. Today Andy Warren asks if you want to go down that path.
2011-02-28
347 reads
Odd Questions
Interviews can be strange for many reasons, often because interviewers are not well prepared to evaluate candidates. This Friday Steve Jones asks you what weird things you might have encountered in an interview when someone is asking you questions.
2011-02-25
621 reads
Drive
What motivates people? What makes them happy at their jobs? Steve Jones talks about Drive, the book by Dan Pink, and the possibility that people actually like doing their jobs and are willing to work.
2011-02-24
219 reads
Blogs
Automated SQL Server Benchmarking with HammerDB and Docker: A Complete Testing Framework
I’m excited to announce the release of a new open-source project that fully automates...
T-SQL Snapshot Backups on Availability Group Secondary Replicas
One of my favourite features of SQL Server 2022 was the T-SQL Snapshot Backups....
The Book of Redgate: Hours
By Steve Jones
I have said and written this many times: Redgate Software is the type of...
Forums
Optional Parameter Plan Optimization in SQL Server 2025: Fixing the Kitchen-Sink Search Procedure
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Optional Parameter Plan Optimization in...
AI Experience Gap that we keep talking about
Comments posted to this topic are about the item AI Experience Gap that we...
Question of the Day
ORDER BY alias
There is a table tmp_tab:
CREATE TABLE tmp_tab ( id int, val int );
INSERT INTO tmp_tab VALUES (1, 1), (2, NULL), (3, 3), (4, 4), (5, 5);You want to order the rows ids by the following expression:
ISNULL(val, id) + 1Which of the following queries produces the expected ordering and why? (Select all correct) See possible answers