Getting Ready For the PASS Summit

There are a lot of in-person training opportunities just around the corner.

Of course, at the top of my list is the PASS Summit, detailed at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=14701:7B5CC.  As the President of PASS (The Professional Association For SQL Server), I spend a lot of my time throughout the year preparing for the conference.  I can assure you that this year’s PASS event will be the biggest and best ever! 

If you’re a person who works with SQL Server every day, then this event is the one for you.  There will be more top-quality speakers, more Microsoft SQL Server dev team members, more SQL Server MVPs, and more of your fellow users to share experiences with than ever before.  And if you’re the sort of person who enjoys giving back to the community, please consider volunteering with PASS.  Check out http://www.sqlpass.org for more details.

There are two other events waiting in the wings that I’m excited about.  The biggest one, is the triple launch of SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio 2005, and BizTalk 2006. The Microsoft Launch Tour 2005 starts November 7 in San Francisco and finishes on January 11, 2006, in Washington, DC.  Check http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=146FA:7B5CC for more information.  I’ll be at the launch event and, frankly, I can’t wait! 

If I weren’t already going to PASS and the SQL Server 2005 launch, I’d definitely be at the SQL Server Magazine Connections conference in Las Vegas, November 7-10 described at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=14705:7B5CC.  I always enjoy the scope of this conference with lots of opportunity to interact with the speakers and SQL Server experts presenting there.

On the other hand, I know that many of you have tight training budgets that prevent you from traveling.  If that’s the case, don’t forget that there are lots of on-demand webcasts at Windows IT Pro Magazine (http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=146F7:7B5CC) and Microsoft (http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=146FF:7B5CC).  Many of these webcasts are recorded versions of sessions presented at TechEd and other top conferences.

The SQL Server Launch tour will touch cities all over the world.  But if you’re interested in SQL Server 2005 today and you live in Europe, then don’t forget the “Get Ready for the SQL Server 2005 Roadshow”.  Get all the details at http://lists.sqlmag.com/t?ctl=146E4:7B5CC.

I hope to get to meet some of you while I’m out on the road this year.  Please don’t be shy – introduce yourself!

Many thanks,

-Kevin