Idera PowerShell Plus
I'll have to come up with a detailed review of this eventually, but I just have to say this, right up front.... oooooohhhhh, aaaahhhhhhhh, Special... How special? WICKED Special!
Call for Speakers Extension Explanation
It's not nearly as fun as my own speculations were, but it's still interesting. Andy Warren explains that the because Microsoft cancelled the 2009 BI Conference and recommended the PASS Summit as an alternative, PASS wisely decided to extend the time to try to get those people to submit abstracts.
MVP
I hate that these things come out on April Fool's Day, but it's true. I was awarded MVP. I've logged into the site & everything so it must be true.
Connect Works
Microsoft Connect works. I've said it before and I'll say it again, but it really does work. You will get the attention of MS developers and they will respond. It's not always fast, but it gets there. Of course, I was trying to create samples for the book, which came out almost two weeks ago, so this is a bit late for me personally... HA! But it really does work.
Execution Plan Estimated Operator Cost
I've said it over and over again, the costs on operators in execution plans, even in actual execution plans are estimates. You need to understand that when looking at your execution plans. It's vital because you need to be able to distinguish between the truly costly parts of a plan and the less costly parts of a plan. Don't believe me? Take a look at this picture and see if you can spot the discrepancy: Spot it yet? Add up the costs for the operators visible in the part of the plan... Yep 125%. And there's more to the plan that I'm not showing. I think this one must total near 200%. The statistics are up to date and there's no consistency errors in the database. These estimates are just off sometimes.…
Technical Editor
Joseph Sack was the technical editor for my book. He also happens to be a great guy. I learned a lot from him as we went through the book. Where I didn't learn from him, he kept me focused, always pointing out where I was slipping off the 2008 track. Whatever worth the book holds, a lot of it comes from him. Oh, and he writes, all on his own. So it's not like he needs me at all.
It’s a book!
I just received my copies of the book. "SQL Server 2008 Query Performance Tuning Distilled" is an honest to gosh, in print, available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble BOOK! Sorry, just need a little time for a victory dance on the table. Huzzah!
SQL Server 2008 Management and Administration
I finally wrote up my review of the book SQL Server 2008 Management and Administration. Todd Robinson, the technical editor, sent me a copy a while back. It's a good book. I've already found it useful several times. Worth a read. Go pick up a copy.
SQL Server 2008 Management and Administration
I just got a book in the mail from a friend, Todd Robinson, who was the technical editor. The name of the book is Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Management and Administration. The book was written by Ross Mistry and Hilary Cotter. I don't know Ross Mistry and I think I met Hilary Cotter once, although I know who he is. However, since Todd was involved, I'm pretty sure this is going to be a high-end, must read. I just started and the initial chapter's discussion on using Windows Server 2008 sparked a few questions for my local admin team. I'm looking forward to more. Thanks Todd.
Apress Alpha Program
Apress has a new program called Alpha where they make available books in progress. You can download, for a price, an e-copy of some of the chapters of the book for early review. It allows you to get in on the action a bit and you can post comments to the author to influence the final work. My new book, SQL Server 2008 Query Performance Tuning Distilled, just got added to the Alpha program. They have 10 of the 16 chapters posted. Additionally, they've got a publication date set for March. I've only seen the production copy of three of the chapters and I'm on the second draft of chapter 16, so I think that seems tight, but they're the pros.