SQL Server 2008 Installation Issues - Issues and Workarounds
MVP Robert Pearl explains how to get around some common issues that might occur when installing SQL Server 2008 on Windows 7.
When To Hire a DBA
When should you hire a DBA? Always, of course! Actually Steve Jones doesn't have an answer, but he does talk about why a DBA can help you.
Check your Digits
The most persistent struggle in data processing has been to ensure clean data. There are many ways that data can be incorrect and a database must check, as best it can, that the data is correct. The CHECK constraint is ideally suited for this sort of work, and the checking routine can become quite complex when dealing with check digits in data.
Showing Its Age
Computer Systems are aging and as companies try to save money by extending their lifetimes, are we going to see more issues?
When a SQL file will not open in SSMS
What happens when double clicking a .SQL file doesn't open the file in SSMS? This article provides the solution to fixing that annoying SSMS issue.
Adding Column to a SQL Server Table
This article examines the difference between adding a nullable column to a table or a column with a default value.
Less Pay, More Convenience
Steve Jones talks telecommuting today as a recent survey shows that a third of IT professionals would take less pay to work away from the office.
Performance Troubleshooting with Windows Resource Monitor - Part 2
In the second part of the Resource Monitor series we conclude with a look using the Memory tab and Disk tab to diagnose performance issues.
Cam-Graph
A new project from Microsoft Research has Steve Jones interested. It deals with large data sets to perform graphical modeling. The storage mechanism has Steve Jones interested.
How to Setup Report Parameters to Default Based On User Credentials
This article explains how to setup Reporting Services (SSRS) parameters default values using user credentials.
Blogs
AI Helps Me with My Sloppiness
By Steve Jones
I type fairly well. Well, I type fast, but I do wear out a...
WITH clause gets a 26ai boost!
By way of background, a while back I did video called “My New Favourite...
Automatic Index Compaction
By ReviewMyDB
Index maintenance has always meant nightly jobs and a window you have to defend....
Forums
SQL Art, Part 4: Happy 4th of July — A British DBA's Guide to Celebrating a War We Don't Talk About
Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Art, Part 4: Happy...
How We Handled a Vendor Retry That Loaded Twice in Snowflake
Comments posted to this topic are about the item How We Handled a Vendor...
Cognitive Coverage
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Cognitive Coverage
Question of the Day
Getting the Average
I have this data in the dbo.Commission table in a SQL Server 2022 database.
salesperson commission Brian 12 Brian 16 Andy 7 Andy 14 Andy 21 Steve 20 Steve NULLAll the data is a varchar, and I decide to run this query to get the totals for each salesperson.
SELECT SalesPerson
, AVG(TRY_PARSE(Commission AS int)) AS TotalCommission
FROM commission
GROUP BY SalesPerson
GO
What average commission is calculated for Steve? See possible answers