SQL Server 2005 Beta 2 Is Out!!!
The highly anticipated Beta 2 of SQL Server 2005 aka Yukon, was released today (Monday, July 26).
Review: SQLCentric
Monitoring your SQL Servers is something every DBA must do. Checking job status, disk space, etc. is a frequent question seen in our forums. Pearl Knowledge Solutions has developed a product to help you easily setup monitoring on your servers from a web interface. SQLCentric gets 4 stars from author Bruce Szabo; read his detailed review on this fine product.
The Bowling Challenge
Know anything about bowling? Or writing hard core TSQL? Or test driven development? Even if you don't, this might be a good way to build those skills. Write a stored procedure that can score a bowling game and you might win one of our books and a shirt!
Comparison of Oracle Drivers
Oracle is usually a dirty word in the SQL Server community, but like it or not, lots of data resides in Oracle databases. And SQL Server is often used to gather this data together in a warehouse of some sort for spinning cubes, generating reports, etc. Haidong Ji looks at the various methods that you can connect to an Oracle driver and compares the speed of each. If you need to get data from Oracle, or may need to, this is the place you want to start.
Tutorial: Changing the Visibility Objects in Reporting Services
In the last tutorial in this series of Reporting Services tutorials we added conditional formatting to the report. Now that we have created our first report and have added a bit of flare to it, we will go ahead and make it even cleaner. In this very quick demonstration, we will go ahead and change the visibility of rows or columns based on given conditions.
New Beta Search
We've been working on it over the years, trying to get some search engine that works. Well, we're trying a new one from Surfinity. Give it a try and let us know how it works. Read on for a few details about what we're using.
The Best of SQLServerCentral.com - Vol. 2
Once again it's taken longer than expected, but it's out! The second version in print and PDF of the best articles from 2003. Read about it and pick up a copy to support the site.
Freeware: Tablesizer
How many times do you need to estimate space for a new application? Or estimate growth for an existing one? We've had a new contribution to the freeware section of the site. Tablesizer will allow you to guesstimate how much disk space you'll need. Take a peek if you need it, rate the product and give the author any feedback you have.
Books on line update
Books on line has been updated since the release of SQL2000.
If you check the documentation for the sp_addlogin stored procedure and example E says
SELECT CONVERT(VARBINARY(32), password) then you should update your installation.
Seven Showplan Red Flags
SQL Server showplan is a great tool for analyzing queries and determining whether or not more performance tuning needs to be done. However working with showplan can be confusing and it takes some practice to learn the ins and outs of what is occurring. Joseph Sack looks at showplan and seven of the main things that he is aware of when looking at the results. If you've rarely or never used showplan, this is a great article to get started in learning how an experienced DBA views the output.
Blogs
Webinar: Navigating the Database Landscape in 2026
By Steve Jones
For a number of years, we’ve produced the State of the Database Landscape report,...
Claude AI Convinced Me Not to Build an iPad App
By Steve Jones
I coach volleyball and I do a lot of stat stuff on paper. I...
A New Word: Dolorblindness
By Steve Jones
dolorblindness – n. the frustration that you’ll never be able to understand another person’s...
Forums
Data Warehouse Toolkit meets Star Schema: The Complete Reference
Is there a good syllabus for reading these two together? (Yes, it's called the...
GPX distance and time analysis in SQL Server
Comments posted to this topic are about the item GPX distance and time analysis...
The DBA is Dead; Long Live the DBA
Comments posted to this topic are about the item The DBA is Dead; Long...
Question of the Day
Changing the AG Listener
In SQL Server 2025, if I want to remove an IP from a listener, what do I do?
See possible answers