New JDBC Driver for SQL
This is one of the vendors we met at PASS 2003. Their new driver is supposed to be faster than the driver provided by Microsoft AND supports NT authentication. Link takes you to a comparision chart of features. (Not Reviewed)
Indexed Views
Most of us know what it is, or do we? Chris works on a good definition and along with that, gets into a good look at the problems denormalization creates and talks about a pretty common form of it - the indexed view.
Notes about PASS 2003 and Other Stuff
Andy wrote up some notes about the recent PASS Community Summit, plans for next year, people we met, and much more.
Parameterizing Views
Views dont parameters, but sometimes you need them to act as if they do. Andy discusses views and how they encapsulate code and then offers an idea about how to alter the behavior of views on the fly. Controversial? Probably!
What is Denormalization?
Chris Kempster brings us a basic look at the database design topic of denormalization.
Lockwood Tech is now ApexSQL!
The name has changed, but the owner and the upgrade policies remain the same! Follow the link to see the press release that explains the name change.
Introduction to ADO Part 2 - Recordsets
Part two in the Introduction to ADO series, this beginner level article shows how to open a recordset, how to add and edit records, and touches lightly on how to select the best cursor type and locking mode. Good code samples help you get started fast!
Custom Log Shipping
One of our favorite authors is back with a great how-to on log shipping. This isn't the baked in log shipping, this is a code your own solution that gives you a starting point for your situation. Even if you don't need it now, it's worth looking at to gain a better understanding of how shipping works.
Bypassing Triggers
This articles covers a variety of techniques to let you bypass or conditionally execute code in a trigger based on criteria outside of the inserted/deleted tables. It also includes a contest that gives you a chance to win a copy of our book The Best of SQLServerCentral.com 2002!
Find Min/Max Values in a Set
New Author! The author tries to port a solution from Oracle and runs into a problem. Agree with the solution?
Blogs
The Book of Redgate: Spread across the world
By Steve Jones
This was Redgate in 2010, spread across the globe. First the EU/US Here’s Asia...
Merry Christmas
By John
Today is Christmas and while I do not expect anybody to actual be reading...
Self-Hosting a Photo Server the Whole Family Can Use
By Bert Wagner
Until recently, my family's 90,000+ photos have been hidden away in the depths of...
Forums
UNISTR Escape
Comments posted to this topic are about the item UNISTR Escape
Celebrating Tomorrow
Comments posted to this topic are about the item Celebrating Tomorrow
SQL Art: I Made a Christmas Card In SSMS
Comments posted to this topic are about the item SQL Art: I Made a...
Question of the Day
UNISTR Escape
In SQL Server 2025, I run this command:
SELECT UNISTR('*3041*308A*304C\3068 and good night', '*') as "A Classic";
What is returned? (assume the database has an appropriate collation)
A: 
B: 
C: 
See possible answers