27 October 2020
27 October 2020

Why database folks should care about User Research

I attended a training session at Redgate this week by Chris Spalton. Chris’ session topic was “An Introduction into Planning User Research.” Chris pointed out that there’s much more to User Research, but that planning the research is particularly important as it is the foundation for everything you do later. If you’re a database administrator … Read more
20 October 2020
20 October 2020

Is communication always important?

Conventional wisdom says that communication is the critical for success in just about any aspect of life, be that personal relationships or within teams or corporations. Of course, miscommunication can cause all sorts of problems. Communication has changed drastically over the past few centuries due to technology. We’ve gone from the ability to speak mostly … Read more
06 October 2020
06 October 2020

Spreadsheet blamed for UK Covid-19 testing debacle

Whenever I teach database topics to a class of beginners, someone inevitably says that  Microsoft Excel is a database. Excel is an amazing tool with built-in functionality for financial calculations, statistics, and more, but it’s not a database. It’s great for keeping track and organizing small amounts of data, but it doesn’t meet the requirements … Read more
28 September 2020
28 September 2020

Why choose Oracle?

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Oracle has been established as one of the top database systems used in enterprises throughout the world. In this article, Cynthia Dzikiti describes her career as an Oracle application developer and covers some of the benefits of Oracle.… Read more
09 September 2020
09 September 2020

How to make classifying SQL Server data easier

Classifying the data within an organization is not just something nice to do. It’s critical for complying with regulations such as The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), The Australian Privacy Act, and a host of other privacy laws enacted throughout the world. … Read more
06 August 2020
06 August 2020

Eliminating the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)

Many are finding the quarantine a net gain for mental health. Here’s why… The FOMO has been eliminated. There is no longer a “fear of missing out”. For the first time in memory, that type of FEAR is gone. There are no events, no places to be, nowhere to go…everyone is in the same boat. Our worlds are … Read more
25 July 2020
25 July 2020

Keeping up with SQL Server

I gave a session for the recent PASS Marathon entitled “Modern T-SQL for Better Performance.” During the session, I talked mostly about windowing functions. These functions introduced in 2005 and 2012 not only make writing T-SQL code easier, but often it’s better performing as well. In many cases, they can help you avoid self-joins and … Read more
14 July 2020
14 July 2020

Reading Books

Books are usually meant to be read in an analogue fashion. Start at page one and keep on going until the book is done. Some people take an early peek at the end of mysteries to see how they turn out, but isn’t that cheating? In today’s digital world, it isn’t easy – at least … Read more
26 June 2020
26 June 2020

Will We Still be Talking About DevOps in Two Years?

While individual buzzwords will come in and out of fashion, the ideas at the heart of DevOps aren’t going anywhere.  Like any good buzzword, DevOps may mean different things to different people. There are several good definitions of DevOps out there. My favorite definition comes from @IanColdwater, who defined DevOps in terms a teenager would understand: Devops … Read more