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Free SQL Sticker from Paul Nielsen

A little while ago Paul Nielsen tweeted about having free Euro-style SQL stickers. All one had to do was email him with your snail mail address and he'd send him your way. He's still offering to send out free stickers. If you are interested, you can see what one looks like at his web site: SQL...

Posted to K. Brian Kelley - Databases, Infrastructure, and Security (Weblog) by bkelley on 08-04-2008
Why SELECT Queries Are Not DML

I had a recent conversation with someone about SELECT statements, and where they fit into the grand scheme of things. There's a common misconception that SELECT is a data manipulation language (DML) statement. I think this idea has been perpetuated somewhat by Books Online with entries that group...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 03-08-2008
Bye Bye FIPS... We Hardly Knew Ye...

SQL Server has an option called SET FIPS_FLAGGER that many developers don't even know about. This option warns you if your code does not comply with the SQL-92 levels of compliance specified by FIPS 127-2. This used to be a requirement if you wanted to sell your DBMS to the government. Effective...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 02-18-2008
Stop Using OPENXML (Please...)

As we all know by now, the xml data type is one of the new features introduced in SQL Server 2005. The xml data type has a handy feature for shredding XML data, the nodes() method; but based on newsgroup postings and various articles on SQL Server 2005 XML it seems that developers are still stuck in...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 01-20-2008
Stoopid Tech Interviewer Tricks

OK, so you’ve got your suit fresh from the drycleaners. Your shirt is pressed and your shoes are shined. You’ve gone over the job requirements a dozen times, and even took the time to scan BOL for obscure tips the interviewer might try to turn into trick questions. All that hard work and now you find...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 01-15-2008
"Exact Numerics" Re-visited

Wow, seems like I have a lot to write about today. I just noticed a blog by SQL Server guru Hugo Kornelis about the difference between "exact" and "approximate" numeric data types. (Hugo's blog entry is here: http://sqlblog.com/blogs/hugo_kornelis/archive/2007/10/17/so-called...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 10-20-2007
The Problem With Joins

I recently came up against a pretty big problem with outer joins on SQL Server, and thought I'd talk about it a bit. First let me give you a little background on the problem. <Begin Background> It's common in data warehousing and datamarts to "band" data. By "banding"...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 10-20-2007
SQL Basics: Part 2, Nonclustered Indexes

Nonclustered Indexes If you caught the first article in the series, you know that clustered indexes are pretty handy. But sometimes you need to rapidly retrieve data without physically re-ordering your table. Going back to the clustered index analogy, some books (phone books, dictionaries, etc.) benefit...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 05-14-2006
SQL Basics: Part 1, Clustered Indexes

I've found that many article writers (myself included) make a lot of assumptions about basic concepts. I've also discovered that many times these assumptions leave some readers (especially newly minted DBA's, developers and others just learning the trade) with a lot of unanswered questions...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 05-07-2006
Oracle Express

Oracle released an "Oracle Express 10g" Beta on October 28. Like Microsoft SQL Express, it's being released free of charge. I have to say welcome to the party, Oracle. For more information, see: http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/database/xe/index.html . The downloads are available...

Posted to Pseudo-Random (Weblog) by Mike C on 11-01-2005

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