A client called me once to look at a performance problem on their data warehouse. The query was slow, the tables were large, and the indexes were wrong. I fixed the indexes. But while I was in there, I noticed something else: every table in the warehouse had a different
microsoft sql
In my SQL Saturday #80 Session I spoke about how to get started as a DBA. One of the greatest advantages you can have as a DBA is setting up a fully featured
For twenty years, I wrote code that assumed the network was fast, reliable, and effectively free. Not because I was naive — it was actually true. When your application and its database both live on the LAN, a query round-trip is measured in fractions of a millisecond. Connections are stable because
microsoft sql
Starting with SQL 2005 SQL introduced a new clause for your INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, and MERGE statements...the OUTPUT clause. If you're not using it yet, it
sql
It's been a while since I've added to my SQL 201 series, so I thought I'd pick up with table variables. In an earlier post, I covered temp tables. Temp tables
career development
I've had two more articles go live over at Salary.com. The first is The Job Hunter's Guide to Social Media I compare the big four social media sites: Facebook,
sqlpass
That's right! I'll be speaking at this weekend's SQL Saturday event in Wheeling, WV. I'm the last speaker in track #3. I'm looking forward to Ed Wilson's
microsoft sql
It's been a while since I've covered a SQL 201 topic! I want to jump back into it with ranking functions. These are functions that let you represent orders in
Every client environment I walked into in 2011 had a version of the same problem: a SQL Server instance that had grown organically over years, with naming conventions that reflected whoever set it up in 2004, backup policies that made sense when the server had 20 GB of storage, and
microsoft sql
Some Blogging Changes 2011 July 8 by Shannon Lowder You may have noticed there are fewer posts on here than there have been in several months. Well, I’ve been sitting on some news. I’m working with several new sites to publish articles. I’ve made the decision to make this site...
personal
Earlier this morning Tom LaRock (@SQLRockstar) reminded us all the year was half over. He also suggested we take a look at our new year's resolutions. So I
product reviews
My latest article has been published over at Salary.com! Check it out. Going Paperless: Is it time to buy a tablet? Think about how much paper you use at your