What’s Hot Online: PASS 2007 Roundup, Reader-Inspired Content

Qué Pasó at PASS 2007
The PASS 2007 Summit is over, but if you missed this year’s annual gathering for the Professional Association for SQL Server, you can get a recap of the conference online—including a look at a giant blue bear—at sqlmag.com. SQL Server Magazine editors Diana May, Jeff James, and Megan Bearly blogged about the conference; you can read their posts in the Industry Bytes blog at www.sqlmag.com/blog/index.cfm?action=blogindex&departmentid=1061.

Among the highlights of our PASS coverage is Technical Editor Diana May’s interview with Kevin Kline, PASS’s current president. If you’ve been following the “is it too soon for SQL Server 2008?” debate on sqlmag .com and in the magazine, you’ll be interested in Kevin’s take on the upgrade, which he discusses in the interview. Kevin says that many user group members he’s spoken to have only recently migrated to SQL Server 2005, and a sizable percentage haven’t even made the move to 2005 yet. “User group attendees are really questioning what to do about 2008,” Kevin says. “If I were a Microsoft sales rep, I’d be wondering who is going to buy 2005 between now and 2008 RTM. And why should I upgrade to 2005 if I don’t have a pressing need?” You can read more of Kevin’s take on PASS 2007 and other SQL Server topics at www.sqlmag.com/blog/index.cfm?blogdate=09/10/07&departmentid=1061&action=blogindex.

SQL Server Magazine contributor Douglas McDowell also reported on PASS with an eye on Microsoft business intelligence (BI) happenings at the conference. Douglas spoke with Dell’s Andrew Hargett and Paul Rubin and Microsoft’s Manish Kedia and Paul Simpson about Dell and Microsoft’s new Business Intelligence Data Warehouse, a quasi “BI in a box” solution that combines SQLServer 2005 with Dell servers and DAS. Read Doug’s full report on PASS and the BI announcements at www.sqlmag.com/articles/articleid/97157/97157.html.

Coming in January: It’s Your Issue
SQL Server Magazine editors have been hearing from more readers than ever—you’re telling us about your SQL Server problems, submitting your tips and solutions for our Reader to Reader section, and suggesting topics you’d like to see covered in articles. A lot of your feedback comes to us on the Web, through reader comments on articles and forum and blog posts. As a result of some of these discussions, readers are interacting with authors and editors to generate article ideas and even some of the content for those articles.

For example, reader and active SQL Server Magazine forum member Kalman Toth saw my post on the SQL Server General Discussion forum soliciting real-life SQL Server admin stories for our upcoming SQL Server Hero section (see sqlforums.windowsitpro.com/web/forum/messageview.aspx?catid=74&threadid=86415&enterthread=y). He responded by emailing me an article describing a way to overcome a limitation of the SQL Server 2005 PIVOT operator, which we’re currently considering for publication.

Encouraged by readers like Kalman, we’re pulling together a special “reader solutions” issue for January 2008. In this issue, you’ll find our annual SQL Server Magazine Innovators feature, spotlighting four SQL Server pros and their award-winning solutions. You’ll also find the issue packed with Reader to Reader articles, showing off our readers’ ingenious tips and tricks for solving tough SQL Server problems.

Integration Services, Round 2
And finally, back by popular demand, Rodney Landrum is writing a sequel (no pun intended) to his May 2007 article, “SQL Server Integration Services,” InstantDoc ID 95385. Reader feedback inspired Rodney to write an SSIS part 2 article, and the feedback is still coming. Rodney says his follow-up article “has many enhancements to this original SSIS package,” based on feedback from dozens of readers. Check out the latest comments at www.sqlmag.com/articles/articleid/95385/95385.html.

—Anne Grubb, Web Lead Editor, SQL Server Magazine