SQL Server Magazine UPDATE, July 14, 2005--SQL Server Contests

Subscribe to SQL Server Magazine:
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80E:7B3DB

To ensure that future email messages you receive from SQL Server Magazine UPDATE aren't mistakenly blocked by antispam software, be sure to add [email protected] to your list of allowed senders and contacts.

This Issue Sponsored By
This email newsletter comes to you free and is supported by the following advertisers, who offer products and services that might interest you. Please take a moment to visit these advertisers' Web sites and show your support for SQL Server Magazine UPDATE.

SQL Server Magazine Monthly Pass = Quick Answers!
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80F:7B3DB

FREE SQL Server 2000 Training CD!
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E812:7B3DB

July 14, 2005

1. Perspectives

2. News & Views

3. Reader Challenge

4. Events and Resources

5. Featured White Paper

6. Peer to Peer

7. Announcements

8. New & Improved

Sponsor: SQL Server Magazine Monthly Pass = Quick Answers!
Sign up today for your SQL Server Magazine Monthly Pass and get 24/7 online access to every article on the SQL Server Magazine Web site, including exclusive subscriberonly content. That's a database of over 2,300 SQL Server articles to help you get all the answers you need, when you need themloads SQL Server 2005 articles included! Sign up now:
     http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80F:7B3DB

1. Perspectives

    by Brian Moran, [email protected]

Competition pushes us to excel, and two SQL Serverrelated contests might be just what you need to stretch your SQL Server skills. SQL Server Magazine is currently soliciting entries for the 4th Annual Innovator Awards. Entries are due by August 1. As one of the judges, I can offer you a tip: The secret is in the name of the awardInnovator. The biggest and fastest SQL Server doesn't necessarily win the prize. Several past winners have beat out the competition with SQL Server solutions that are relatively small in terms of the actual number of users they serve. We're looking for SQL Server professionals who've done something unique with SQL Server. In addition to the award, the Grand Prize winner receives an allexpensespaid trip to the SQL Server Magazine Connections conference in Las Vegas this November. SQL Server Magazine is hosting the conference the same week that Microsoft is launching SQL Server 2005. I'm the conference chair and selected the sessions, so I know the conference will be jam packed with really cool SQL Server 2005 content! You can find more information about the SQL Server Magazine Innovator Awards and submit your entry at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E808:7B3DB and you can learn more about the Connections conference at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80A:7B3DB .

You might also be interested in Microsoft's "Cost Chopper Competition". Microsoft is giving away a custom Chopper valued at approximately $50,000 to the contestant with the "highest value" OracletoSQL Server migration story. Entries must be received by September 30. Here's a summary of the judging criteria directly from the Microsoft Web site:

Technical Excellence (100 points)

Impact (100 points)

Scale (100 points)

You can find a complete set of rules at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E811:7B3DB . That's one sweet bike, as Napoleon Dynamite might say! Other great prizes include American Express gift reward cards and a HewlettPackard Tablet PC. Visit http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E815:7B3DB to learn more and enter the contest. The winner will be chosen at the SQL Server 2005 launch event in San Francisco this November.

FREE SQL Server 2000 Training CD!
See why AppDev was voted THE BEST by readers of SQL Server Magazine...get a FREE SQL Server 2000 Training CDROMa $95 value! Click the link below for your free SQL Server training CD.
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E812:7B3DB

2. News & Views

Results of Previous Instant Poll: SQL Server 2005 Migration
"When do you plan to migrate to SQL Server 2005?" Here are the results from the 94 votes (deviations from 100 are due to a rounding error):

New Instant Poll: SQL Server Contests
"Do you participate in SQL Server contests?" Go to the SQL Server Magazine home page ( http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E819:7B3DB ) and submit your vote for

3. Reader Challenge

July Reader Challenge Solution: Case Sensitive Settings
    by Umachandar Jayachandran, [email protected]

Congratulations to Dimitar Dimitrov and Marcos Kirchner. Dimitar won first prize of $100 for the best solution to the July Reader Challenge, "Case Sensitive Settings." Marcos won second prize of $50. You can read a recap of the problem and the solution to the July Reader Challenge at
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E802:7B3DB

August Reader Challenge: Partitioning Tables
Now, test your SQL Server savvy in the August Reader Challenge, "Partitioning Tables" (below). Submit your solution in an email message to [email protected] by July 21. Umachandar Jayachandran, a SQL Server Magazine technical editor, will evaluate the responses. We'll announce the winner in an upcoming SQL Server Magazine UPDATE. The firstplace winner will receive $100, and the secondplace winner will receive $50.

Here's the challenge: Dan is a software consultant who works with SQL Server 2000. One of his clients has a table that uses a uniqueidentifier column as a primary key. The volume of data in the table is increasing considerably, resulting in performance and management problems. One of the solutions Dan is considering is to partition the existing table based on the primary key column values. The script below creates a sample table with a uniqueidentifier column:

SELECT TOP 10000 newid() AS guid   INTO SalesDet   FROM master.dbo.sysobjects AS o1 CROSS JOIN master.dbo.sysobjects       AS o2 CROSS JOIN master.dbo.sysobjects as o3   ALTER TABLE SalesDet ALTER COLUMN guid uniqueidentifier NOT NULL   ALTER TABLE SalesDet ADD CONSTRAINT pk_SalesDet PRIMARY KEY( guid )

Help Dan write a query that he can use to partition the table into a specified number of buckets. For example, Dan wants to divide the table into 13 different partitions based on the guid column and have the rows evenly distributed between the partitions.

4. Events and Resources

New Cities AddedSQL Server 2005 Roadshow in a City Near You
Get the facts about migrating to SQL Server 2005. SQL Server experts will present realworld information about administration, development, and business intelligence to help you implement a bestpractices migration to SQL Server 2005 and improve your databasecomputing environment. Attend and receive a 1year membership to PASS and 1year subscription to SQL Server Magazine. Register now!
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E805:7B3DB

You Could Win An iPod Mini!
Your expert opinion makes a differencetell us what you think about industry conferences and events. Your feedback is very valuable to us. Take this short survey today!
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E807:7B3DB

Learn to Sort Through SarbanesOxley, HIPPA, and More Legislation Quicker and Easier!
In this free Web seminar, get the tips you've been looking for to save time and money in achieving IT security and regulatory compliance. Find out how you can simplify these manually intensive, compliancerelated tasks that reduce IT efficiency. Turn these mandates into automated and costeffective solutions. Register now!
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FF:7B3DB

Integrate Your Compliance System With Backup and Recovery
Discover the issues involved with integrating your compliance system with backup and recovery, including backup schedules, pros and cons of outsourcing backup media storage and management, the DR implications of backing up compliance data, the possibility of using alternative backup methods to provide backup and compliance in a single system, and more. You'll learn what to watch out for when combining the two functions and how to assess whether your backup/restore mechanisms are equal to the challenge.
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E800:7B3DB

See the complete Windows IT Pro Network guide to Web and live events. http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E814:7B3DB

5. Featured White Paper

Is Your Company Legally Required to Have an Email Compliance and Retention Policy?
Gain an understanding of general retention and compliance issues and Microsoft Exchange Server's builtin archiving and compliance features, and get guidance on the first steps to take when starting an archiving regime. Plusdiscover how to analyze trends and usage across your messaging store.
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FE:7B3DB

6. Peer to Peer

Hot Tip: Returning Informational Messages Quickly
     by Brian Moran, [email protected]

I have a slowexecuting stored procedure that includes debugging and informational messages that I afterward print using the PRINT command. The messages show only after the procedure has finished running. Is there a quick way to print or flush this data before the procedure is done?

Read the answer to this question today at
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E804:7B3DB

Hot Article: Querying Partitions
Native partitioning is one of SQL Server 2005's most important enhancements for DBAs. This feature improves manageability, scalability, and performance of large tables and indexes. In Itzik BenGan's fourpart series, he's covered creating and maintaining partitions, as well as obtaining metadata information. In his TSQL 2005 column "Querying Partitions," Itzik BenGan finishes his partitioning series by covering querying partitioned tables and indexes. He discusses how querying partitions has improved compared to SQL Server 2000specifically, the improved partition elimination process and efficient collocated joins. Read this article today and post your comments at
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E803:7B3DB

In a Nutshell: An Addendum to BareMetal Tuning
Many readers have enjoyed Kevin Kline's July SQL Server Magazine article "BareMetal Tuning" ( http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E801:7B3DB . Kevin has been enjoying answering the many questions that readers are sending in. The most common question he's been getting is "What configuration would you recommend for a basic low, medium, and highend SQL Server?" In this week's blog, "An Addendum to BareMetal Tuning," Kevin offers some recommendations for reusable server configurations. Check out his recommendations and let Kevin know what you think today at
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E806:7B3DB

Hot Threads: Check out the following hot threads, and see other discussions in our 30 SQL Server forums.
     http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80C:7B3DB

Administration: DeadlockX and IX Are Allowed On the Same Object
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7F9:7B3DB
TSQL: Determining a Primary Key
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FC:7B3DB
Performance: Managing Large Tables Using Partitioned Views
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FA:7B3DB
Security: Securing Database Integrity
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FB:7B3DB
Replication: DMZ Replication Help
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7FD:7B3DB
DTS: DTS vs. Stored Procedure
http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E7F8:7B3DB

7. Announcements

July SpecialGet SQL Server Magazine at 44% Off!
Get SQL Server Magazine and get answers! Act now to get an entire year for just $39.95that's 44% off the cover price! You'll also gain exclusive access to the entire SQL Server Magazine article database (over 2300 articles). Bonus: The Top SQL Tips handbook (over 60 helpful tips). This is a limitedtime, riskfree offer, so click here now:
     http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E810:7B3DB

The 2005 Innovator Awards are coming!
This year's competition is calling for a cuttingedge SQL Server solution that solves a realworld problem or improves performance. One grandprize winner will win a free trip to the 2005 SQL Server Magazine Connections Conference in Las Vegas. Fill out an entry form today and get the recognition you deserve! Click here for more information:
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E817:7B3DB

8. New & Improved

    by Raquel Harper, [email protected]

Have you used a product that saved you time or made your job easier? Tell us how your favorite product solved a SQL Server problem for you, and if we print your submission in the magazine's Hands On department we'll send you a SQL Server Magazine tshirt. Send your email today to [email protected]!

ITWorkplace announced Intelligencia 2005.0.2, reporting software that lets end users create and distribute business reports. Designed to work with your Analysis Services OLAP data, the software provides authoring tools for creating complex multisection reports, and new audit controls in the latest release aid Sarbanes-Oxley compliance. Users can quickly and efficiently combine data from multiple data sources with narrative text. The product's infrastructure resides in SQL Server, which stores reports in a virtual folder system. Users can access reports by using the software's Report Library Web service. Administration options are available to ensure document authors comply with development standards. And users can print the report documents directly from the Web. Pricing for Intelligencia 2005.0.2 starts at $23,940 for a 50-user implementation. For more information, contact iTWorkplace at 44(0)1158524711.
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E818:7B3DB

Create Advanced XML Data Integration Applications
DataDirect Technologies announced Stylus Studio 6 XML Enterprise Edition, a tool for advanced XML dataintegration projects. The software includes tools for XML mapping, XML data modeling, Web services development, and legacy data integration. The new release includes tools for Java code generation for XQuery and XSLT stylesheets, new XML Schema tools including EDI/EDIFACT document conversion, a new File Explorer window for managing complex files, a new XML text view that lets you view two documents side by side, and a canonical XML converter. Pricing for Stylus Studio 6 XML Enterprise Edition starts at $995 for a singleuser license, with volume discounts available. For a limited time, customers who purchased the Professional Edition on or before June 1, 2005 are eligible for a free upgrade to Stylus Studio 6 XML Enterprise Edition. For more information, contact Stylus Studio at 7812804488.
    http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=E80B:7B3DB

Contact Us

Developer .NET UPDATE is brought to you by SQL Server Magazine, the only magazine devoted to helping developers and DBAs master new and emerging SQL Server technologies and issues. Subscribe today.
http://www.sqlmag.com/rd.cfm?code=00ep214xeb

View the SQL Server Magazine Privacy Policy
http://www.winnetmag.com/aboutus/index.cfm?action=privacy

SQL Server Magazine is a division of Penton Media, Inc. 221 East 29th Street, Loveland, CO 80538, Attention: Customer Service Department

Copyright 2005, Penton Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.