So You Want to Work at Microsoft?

I love SQL Server. ^[1]

I love working for Microsoft. ^[2]

For me, these two loves are two things that go well together.

I also love competition.

If you love SQL Server as much as I do (and if you don’t mind competition) you could have the opportunity to see if you love working for Microsoft as well, and have a fun experience while making it happen, by participating in the “Be the Next Microsoft Employee” show. I won’t go into the details – you can click on the link for that – but these are the highlights that leap out at me as being particularly cool:

• The show is focused on real-world SQL Server professionals
• Finalists get to attend TechEd North America in Orlando (to get introduced to the public audience as a finalist) and to Microsoft campus in Redmond (for job interviews) with Microsoft picking up the tab
• The winner has a shot^[3] at a Service Engineer position with Microsoft’s internal IT organization, MSIT^[4]
• There are many foodie tie-ins to the show: Not only does the theme remind me of one of my family’s favorite TV shows – The Next Iron Chef^[5] – but finalists will get to eat at Elemental while they’re in town for their interviews^[6]

Are you interested yet?

If so, follow the instructions to enter, and post a comment to let me know.

 

[1] This should surprise no one.

[2] Hopefully this won’t surprise too many people either.

[3] Since this is a real job for the real Microsoft, there’s no guarantee that anyone will get a job offer, just like with any interview.

[4] MSIT is one of biggest IT organizations in the world, and they work on some of the coolest projects I’ve seen. They’re often early adopters of Microsoft products and technologies, participating in TAP/”dogfood” programs and regularly deploy pre-release versions of products like SQL Server into production environments. Speaking of a member of the SQL Server team this is super valuable, because it provides us with real-world feedback that makes the RTM versions of the product better. Speaking as an ex-BI consultant this is super exciting, because how many clients or projects let you stay at the cutting edge of technology and make a real difference in the products you use and love.

[5] Not unlike the Iron Architect competition from way back in 2007, for those who remember back that far.

[6] They should feel free to invite me along, especially if the show organizers are paying for dinner ;-)

Your Window Improvements May Vary

I love my new job. This morning I’m sitting in a training session organized by the SQL Server team to bring Microsoft team members up to speed on new Business Intelligence capabilities in SQL Server “Denali”. The session is about to begin, and I’m reviewing the SSIS slides so I can be prepared for questions as they arise. (Did I mention I love my new job?)

I also love ambiguity.[1]

One of the features listed in the presentation is “Variable Window Improvements”. Reading this, all I could think is “we’ve really improved the windows, but they’re different all the time, so we can’t tell you what they are.”[2]

Of course, that’s not what the slide was about. The topic was the specific improvements made to the Variables Window for the SSIS package designer in SQL Server “Denali” Business Intelligence Development Studio. This may sound less than exciting[3] and even in the context of a two-day training event it only rates one slide bullet. But despite this, these tool improvements address a significant real-world need, and are certainly worthy of a blog post or two.

Before we look at the new “Denali” goodness, let’s look at a scenario in pre-“Denali” SSIS today[4]:

1. You’re editing an Execute SQL task in your package, and realize that you need a variable in which to store the results of the query you’re running.
2. You exit the task editor, and in the Variables window you create a new variable.
3. Later on, you’re looking for the variable, and you can’t find it. You frown, scratch your head, and re-create the variable.
4. When you run your package, you find that although the package (and the Execute SQL task) runs successfully, the variable is never populated with the value from the query.
5. You get yourself another coffee and settle down for a long troubleshooting session…

Experienced SSIS developers will probably be saying something along the lines of “well, of course, you needed to click on the package Control Flow design surface between steps 1 and 2. Duh!”

Those who are newer to SSIS may be missing the key point in this scenario: When you create a new variable in SSIS, the variable is created at the scope of whatever container or task was selected in the designer. Although this behavior is consistent and documented, it often comes as a surprise, because nobody actually reads the documentation.[5] It also often comes as a frustration, because most of the time variables should be created at the package level in order to be useful.[6]

In SQL Server “Denali” SSIS, all new variables are created at the package scope. This change ensures that the “what the heck” moments we experienced in previous versions of SSIS will no longer occur, and that all new variables will be defined at the most frequently used scope.

What about those situations when you actually do want a variable at a different scope? In previous versions of SSIS, variable scope could not be changed – you needed to delete the old variable and create a new one at the new scope.[7]

In SQL Server “Denali” SSIS, you can move or copy variables between scopes. Odds are you will need this functionality less than you needed it in earlier versions of SSIS (you know, when it wasn’t there) but when you need it, you’ll love it.

And that’s that. As per usual, I wrote two pages when I could have written two sentences (the ones I highlighted in red) but there you have it. The facts are always more meaningful when presented in the context of a story, and hopefully the story helped turn these two bullets into something more than a”yawn” moment. I’m sure you’ll let me know…

---

[1] In case you’re interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syntactic_ambiguity.

[2] Yes, I crack myself up.

[3] And less funny that my ambiguity joke, at least a little.

[4] This is true with SSIS in SQL Server 2005, 2008 and 2008 R2.

[5] Except you. I know you do, I meant everybody else. You know those guys…

[6] One of the “lightweight best practices” I have included in my SSIS presentations over the years is “always right-click on the package design surface and choose Variables from the context menu” because it ensures that the new variable is at the package scope regardless of what task you were working on beforehand.

[7] This functionality does exist in the amazing BIDS Helper add-in, but it was not included in SSIS.

Spatial Demo Goodness

If you’re someone who presents on SQL Server topics, you have probably run into something of a wall when it comes to getting interesting spatial data sets to demonstrate. The spatial data included with the SQL Server 2008 sample databases is functional, but not particularly complex or interesting. There is free spatial data available for many different sources online, but it tends to be difficult to find, in different formats, and annoyingly difficult to load into SQL Server.[1] And of course, the not-free spatial content out there tends to be really, really not-free, and while it may make sense to pay a premium price if you are developing premium software, but for demo purposes this is generally a non-starter.

Enter GeoNames.

GeoNames is an open source provider of spatial data. Essentially they have many disparate sources of free spatial content and have aggregated them into a single location, with many different access methods. They support web service access (and publish a nice set of client libraries too) which is nice for direct application integration, but to me the cool factor comes from the ability to download text dumps of the whole database or just the countries you want. Because then you can load the data into SQL Server 2008 and let the demo goodness begin.

And Ed Katibah, PM for the SQL Server spatial team, has posted instructions for loading GeoNames data into SQL Server 2008. It’s great to have these steps documented because there are quite a few of them, but hopefully you’ll only need to perform them once.

So if you have been waiting for great spatial data that’s available for free, wait no longer.

I should also point out that I became aware of this cool resource not based on my own hard work and research, but instead because of the excellent Simple Talk newsletter that Red Gate Software produces. And I should probably mention that the primary reason I blogged about it is that my friend and colleague, senior SQL Server trainer and all-around good guy Chris Randall has been working on building better spatial demo sets, and I’ve heard rumors that  he occasionally reads this blog. Hopefully this will save him (and you, and me) some work…

 

[1] Please keep in mind that I don’t claim to be a SQL Server spatial expert, so what is “annoyingly difficult” for me may be “exceptionally simple” for someone with more experience, but it likely to be “annoyingly difficult” for many people.

Hey, That Was Fun!

As you probably know, I’m a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT). As you may not know, MCTs are required to renew their certification each year, and the 2009 renewal period is currently underway. I got my MT 2009 welcome kit a week or so ago.

And with that welcome kit came a nice surprise – a voucher for one free Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (MCAS) exam.

Now, if you’re like me, you probably like to think of yourself as being a geek. Someone who builds software that has never existed before, and who dominates the poor software that is unlucky enough to cross your path. (Or something like that anyway.) So although I had been aware of the MCAS certification for some time, I had never really considered trying to achieve it. But hey – free is free, right?

So last Friday I scheduled my exam (77-601: Using Microsoft Office Word 2007) for this morning. I was going to be out of the office for a dentist appointment anyway, and the test center is on the way home, so why not, right?

Well, to make a long story short, I passed the exam and had a great time doing it. The exam was delivered in Word 2007 – each question gave me a list of things to accomplish and I then used Word 2007 to achieve the required goals. It didn’t matter what steps you used (I’m a big keyboard shortcut user and don’t use the Ribbon too often) so long as you achieve the requirements as written.

The thing that struck me here was that this exam really tested my ability to use Word 2007 as a “power user.” Not just someone who typed documents, but someone who knows what features are there and who knows how to use them. I doubt that I’ll stop taking my technical certification exams any time soon, but I think that I may just need to try my hand at the Excel 2007 and PowerPoint 2007 exams too…

"Bonus" Technical Deep Dive Session at the MCT Summit - Redmond and Prague

The vast majority of the content at the 2009 MCT Summit events is heavily weighted toward the IT Professional audience. This is largely due to the fact that the major developer and database product releases took place in 2007 and 2008, while there are significant releases in-flight for Windows and Exchange Server. But I believe there should still be some deep technical content for at least one underrepresented trainer audience: the BI developer.

So I'm going to fill in this gap by presenting an "off the schedule" technical deep dive on SQL Server Integration Services. I did something similar at the 2008 Redmond summit and it was very well received, so I'm going to model the 2009 Summit session on the same model. Here's the deal:

“Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About SQL Server Integration Services but Were Afraid Your Students Would Ask”

In this technical “deep dive” session, Matthew Roche will take attendees on a wild and sometimes horrifying ride into the dark underbelly of real world SSIS development that existing SSIS books and courseware doesn’t effectively cover, including development and deployment best practices, data flow internals and performance tuning and more. But be warned – there will be no fixed agenda for this session! The topics covered will be driven by attendee involvement, so the more questions you bring to the session the more everyone will get out of it. If you teach (or fear you may be asked to teach) the SSIS courses for SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008, this is a session you don’t dare to miss.

Does this sound interesting to you?

If you are attending either event (Prague or Redmond) and would be willing to attend this session after the summit sessions end one day[1] then please reply here[2] to express your interest. If anyone (even one attendee) is interested then I will come prepared to spend as much time as necessary (I think we ran around three hours at the 2008 Summit in Redmond) to give each attendee everything he needs. So speak now or forever hold your data...

[1] This is a key point, as it will mean skipping on some other planned after-hours event, I'm sure.

[2] Or in the microsoft.private.mct.mctsummits newsgroup.

Join Me in Prague!

Earlier this week the MCT team here at Microsoft Learning went live with the MCT Summit 2009 web site. There's information about the two currently scheduled summits:

• Prague, Czech Republic - Jan 6, 2009 - Jan 9, 2009
• Redmond, Washington, US - Jan 20, 2009 - Jan 23, 2009

We're also going to be announcing a 3rd Asia-Pacific region event soon, but the dates and location aren't yet finalized.

But the excitement here[1] today is that I will be attending the Prague event. I wasn't sure until today if I would be able to make it to Prague, but everything has come together and I will be there representing Microsoft Learning in my new Quality Architect role.

And for my own personal pleasure, I'm hoping to do a repeat performance of my "SSIS deep dive" session from February's MCT Summit event in Redmond, and present an "Everything you ever wanted to know about SSIS but were afraid your students would ask" technical session in addition to my Microsoft Learning presentations. The Summit schedule is still up in the air, but even if I can't get on the official schedule I will still do the session if I can find a room and an audience.[2] If you're interested, let me know early, ok?

I'll see you there!

[1] "Here" in this case is my office in New York - I'm sure that everyone at Microsoft Learning in Redmond is probably saying "Oh no, not that guy again!" ;-)

[2] This is what happened in Redmond at the 2008 MCT Summit. Everything came together at the last minute, so there was no way to get on the real schedule, but we ended up with a few dozen MCTs who stuck around for almost four hours of SSIS goodness, even though Microsoft was supplying MCTs with free drinks and food on the other side of town, How's that for commitment?

Certification Offers at PASS

Are you going to be at the PASS Community Summit 2008 conference next month in Seattle? I am, and you should be too. Why? Well, if the opportunity to attend amazing sessions and rub shoulders with members of the SQL Server product group and SQL Server MVPs wasn't enough, Microsoft Learning is offering a variety of certification-related offers to help PASS attendees get certified on SQL Server 2005 or SQL Server 2008.

First of all, there are two discounts offers available.

1. If you're among the first 100 to register for an exam, you get the exam for free. This offer has been published for a while, so act now for a chance to get this 100% discount.
2. If you're not among the first 100, you still get a 25% discount on any exams you want to take during the conference - just register and go.

Next, Microsoft Learning is also offering a set of exam prep sessions for PASS attendees who want an extra edge when taking a certification exam. Here's the tentative schedule (it's really unlikely that this is going to change, but you know how conferences are - you should always check the schedule on site once the event begins) for the exam prep sessions:

• Tuesday, November 18                           
• 10:15am - 70 432 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Installation and Maintenance
• 1:00pm - 70 431 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Implementation and Maintenance
• 2:45pm - 70-447  UPGRADE: MCDBA Skills to MCITP DBA by Using Microsoft SQL Server 2005
• Wednesday, November 19
• 10:15am - 70 448 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance
• 1:30pm - 70 445 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Business Intelligence
• 3:00pm - 70 455  Upgrade: Transition your MCITP Business Intelligence Developer Skills to MCITP Business Intelligence Developer 2008
• 4:30pm - Cert 101
• Thursday, November 20
• 10:15am - 70 432 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Installation and Maintenance  (repeat)
• 1:30pm - 70 450 PRO: Designing, Optimizing and Maintaining a Database Server Infrastructure using Microsoft SQL Server 2008          
• 3:00pm - 70 453 Upgrade: Transition your MCITP Database Administrator Skills to MCITP Database Administrator 2008

As you can probably guess, I'm going to be presenting the three BI exam sessions on Wednesday. They asked me "can you do two?" and I said "no, but I can do three!" The other exam prep sessions are going to be delivered by veteran MCTs Telmo Sampaio and Rob Boek, and the Cert 101 session is going to be delivered by none other than Microsoft Learning's own Gerry O'Brien. What's not to love?

So - if you're going to be at PASS and are thinking about getting certified on SQL Sever, don't miss these offers. And be sure to look me up during the conference. I'll be in the certification area on Wednesday, and will probably be hanging out in the Ask The Experts Lounge at least some of the time (I have so many questions! ;-) and who knows where else I'll be the rest of the time - just keep your eyes open and be sure to say hello.

SQL Server 2008 - Free with Classroom Training

Talk about synchronicity - the old and the new have come together with a great big bonus for SQL Server professionals who are seeking training on SQL Server 2008. Microsoft Learning[1] is teaming up with the SQL Server[2] team to give away free copies of SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition to people who attend instructor-led classroom training at a Microsoft Certified Partner for Learning Solutions (CPLS). Here's the deal:

1) Attend one of these classes at a participating CPLS between December 10, 2008 (when the courses start to become available) and June 30, 2009:

• 2778 - Writing Queries Using Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Transact-SQL
• 6158 - Updating Your SQL 2005 Skills to SQL Server 2008
• 6231 - Maintaining a Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Database
• 6232 - Implementing a Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Database
• 6234 - Implementing and Maintaining Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Analysis Services
• 6235 - Implementing and Maintaining Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Integration Services
• 6236 - Implementing and Maintaining Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2008 Reporting Services
• 6317 - Upgrading Your SQL Server 2000 Skills to SQL Server 2008

2) Get SQL Server 2008:

• SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition – Full software
• 1 Client Access License (CAL)
• 32 bit, 64 bit and IA64 versions included
• Software will be English only at this point

Pretty simple, right? There are a few minor gotchas, but please don't let these stand in your way:

• Each CPLS will decide whether or not they participate in this promotion campaign, so talk to your local CPLS and make sure they know about it and that they are participating.
• This offer is only good while supplies last. Plan your training early!

And that's that. Call your local CPLS today and ask about SQL Server 2008 training. Tell them Matthew sent you. [3]

[1] This is the "new" part - I joined Microsoft Learning as a Senior Program Manager earlier this month, although I cannot take any credit for this cool promotion.

[2] This is the "old" part - I've loved SQL Server since forever.

[3] And no, I don't get any kickbacks. How unfair is that? ;-)

Losing My MVP

Since the beginning of the year I've had the Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) logo on my blog. I've been delighted to be honored with the MVP award, because is is an acknowledgment of the effort I've made to give back to the Microsoft technical community. This is what Microsoft has to say about the MVP award:

"The Microsoft MVP Award Program recognizes and thanks outstanding members of technical communities for their community participation and willingness to help others. The MVP Award is given to exceptional technical community leaders who foster the free and objective exchange of knowledge by actively sharing their real-world expertise with technology users. The MVP Award celebrates the most active community members from around the world who provide invaluable online and offline expertise that enriches the community experience and makes a difference in technical communities that feature Microsoft products."

What a cool thing to have Microsoft say about you, right? But in another three weeks I will no longer be an MVP - Microsoft is taking the award away from me.

Why would they do that, you ask?

Well, since I haven't been violating any NDAs lately, that narrows down the field. Have you guessed yet?

That's right - I'm going to be joining Microsoft as a full time employee. MVPs are "independent experts" and Microsoft employees cannot be MVPs.

Starting October 6th I will be joining Microsoft Learning as a Senior Program Manager/Quality Architect. I will be working with Microsoft Learning's Courseware Development Group (CDG) to improve the quality of Microsoft Official Curriculum (MOC) courseware. This is a challenge that is very close and dear to my heart. I've been a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) since 1996, and have taught many MOC courses over the years. The quality of the courseware is a big factor that affects trainers (and their students) around the world, and being in a position to make such a big difference to such a large audience is an opportunity I simply could not refuse.

And I get one of those cool blue badges - how cool is that? ;-)

VDUNY Meeting Tonight

Just as a quick reminder, I will be presenting on new features in SQL Server 2008 at the Visual Developers of Upstate New York user group tonight at 6:00 PM in Rochester, New York. If you're in the Rochester area, be sure to attend.

And remember - as an added bonus I will be giving away a set of post-conference DVDs from this year's TechEd conference. This is a set of nine DVDs with all of the breakout sessions and keynotes from both the TechEd Developers and TechEd IT Professionals conferences, with a retail value of $195. It could be yours!

One More Reason to Attend

I've posted a few times already[1] about the SSWUG Business Intelligence vConference that I have been helping to organize. Well, the conference is now less than a month away, and there is more news to share:

We're giving away a copy of Microsoft Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Suite with MSDN Premium to one lucky attendee.

That's right - the big one. This is the ultimate version of Microsoft's MSDN subscription, with a suggested retail price of $10,939. If you're a software developer or BI professional, this package has everything that you need to develop for the Microsoft platform, and then some.

If you'd like a chance to win this MSDN subscription, just register for the SSWUG Business Intelligence vConference. For just $100 you get:

• 30 amazing technical sessions from 10 amazing speakers.
• The ability to watch the sessions either during their multiple scheduled timeslots, or on demand for up to 14 days after the conference is over.
• Online chat and Q&A with the speakers during the scheduled sessions.
• Downloadable slides, transcripts and demo files so you can continue the learning once the session is done.
• And here's the one that blows my mind - a $150 discount on the Fall SQL Connections conference in Las Vegas. So if you're planning to attend the SQL Connections conference, the SSWUG Business Intelligence vConference more than pays for itself.

So what are you waiting for? This vConference is going to be amazing, and we'd love to see you there!

[1] For example:

• BI for the Virtual Guy
• Check Out This Lineup!
• And also a mention in What Happens in BIDS, Stays in BIDS

SSIS in Stockholm 2.0

Last autumn I visited the beautiful country of Sweden for the first time. I delivered a two-day SQL Server Integration Services "advanced topics" seminar in Stockholm and presented at the Swedish SQL Server User Group one evening as well.[1] I had a great time and based on their evaluations the seminar attendees did too.

So we're doing it again.

On October 1 and 2, I will be back in Stockholm for another SSIS seminar. The outline looks like this:

• SSIS development best practices
• SSIS deployment best practices
• Extending SSIS packages through custom .NET code using the Script Task and Script Component
• Using open source tools to enhance the SSIS development lifecycle
• Building a custom configuration solution to move beyond the built-in configuration features
• "Elegant solutions for common problems" utilizing SSIS expressions to build real-world packages
• Adding data mining to your SSIS packages
• Performance tuning the SSIS data flow
• New SSIS features in SQL Server 2008
• Lots of opportunities for Q&A and real-world SSIS discussion

It's always a real joy for me to speak on my favorite topic (SSIS) and this seminar is going to be doubly exciting. Not only do I get to return to Stockholm, I also get two full days to present on some of my favorite subjects, do lots of hands-on demos, share some cool code, and above all share my passion and excitement for the SSIS platform with everyone involved.

So if you're going to be in Stockholm at the beginning of October, you should definitely plan on attending this event. And if you're not going to be in Stockholm, you should plan on coming anyway. The city is beautiful this time of year, the food is amazing, and the seminar content will be even better.

[1] I also had some of the best food I've ever eaten, got to explore a truly beautiful city, and meet some really nice people.

Check Out This Lineup!

I've posted before about the Business Intelligence Virtual Conference I'm helping to organize. Even though I have not had much to say about this exciting event in the last few weeks, this doesn't mean that I haven't been feverishly busy making sure that the conference will be great. We're still finalizing the session schedule, but we have the speaker list nailed down[1]. Check this out:

• Donald Farmer: Donald is the Principal Program Manager for SQL Server Data Mining at Microsoft and was the Program Manager for SQL Server Integration Services for the SQL Server 2005 RTM release. Donald is always a much sought-after and highly rated speaker, especially when he's talking about his favorite topics like data mining and fish farming.[2]
• Brian Knight: Brian is a SQL Server MVP and the author of multiple books on SQL Server Integration Services. He's presented regularly at major conferences like TechEd and PASS, and is a great speaker all around.
• Ted Malone: Ted is a Visual Studio Team System MVP, but knows more about the Microsoft BI stack than most SQL Server MVPs I know. Ted is also a great speaker who has presented at various conferences on lots of SQL Server related topics.
• Matt Masson: Matt is a developer on the SQL Server Integration Services team at Microsoft, and worked at Cognos before joining Microsoft. As an SSIS insider, Matt has great insight into the inner workings of the product, and will be sharing them during his sessions.
• Sonya McNeal: Sonya is a Microsoft Certified Trainer and consultant who specializes in the Microsoft BI stack. She presented some of the highest rated instructor led labs at the TechEd conference in Orlando this June, and will be bringing her many years of training and presenting experience into play for the virtual conference.
• Scot Reagin: Scot is a SQL Server MVP and a mentor with Solid Quality Mentors with more than 20 years experience in the database and BI field. Scot has presented at many major conferences including TechEd, PASS and SQL Connections.
• Matthew Roche: If you're reading my blog hopefully you have some idea who I am, but just in case, I'm a SQL Server MVP, MCT and experienced BI speaker and consultant. I'm honored to be the conference chair for this conference, and will be doing everything in my power[3] to ensure that this conference sets the bar for BI conferences to come.
• Craig Utley: Craig is a mentor with Solid Quality Mentors, and used to be a Program Manager on the SQLCAT team at Microsoft and is the author of several books. These guys are the best of the best - they're the ones that get called in when no one else can solve the problems. Craig is also a regular presenter who can make even the most complex BI topics easy to understand.
• Erik Veerman: Erik is a SQL Server MVP and a mentor with Solid Quality Mentors who has co-authored several books on SQL Server Integration Services and is responsible for the SSIS ETL best practices in Microsoft's Project REAL. Erik is a regular author and presenter on all facets of the Microsoft BI stack.
• John Welch: John is a SQL Server MVP and is the Chief Architect at Mariner, where he is responsible for the full end-to-end Microsoft BI stack. John is an experienced presenter with deep insight into all of Microsoft's BI products.

What an amazing lineup - I can't adequately express how excited I am to be working with this team. Each speaker will be presenting three sessions (and I'm just as excited about the session list as I am about the speaker list - I can't wait to share it with you) for a total of 30 sessions plus three keynote presentations - one for each day of the conference.

And remember - the entire virtual conference is just $100 for the full three days, and as I mentioned in an earlier post, if you attend the virtual conference you also get a $150 discount off the Dev Connections Fall 2008 Conferences this November in Las Vegas.

How could it get any better than this?

[1] As of this writing, the speaker list on the conference web site isn't complete - we're still waiting on a photo from Matt Masson, but everything else is there.

[2] Don't ask. Trust me. ;-)

[3] And of course, because I listen to Manowar, my power is pretty much limitless.

What Happens in BIDS, Stays in BIDS

That's right - it's time to start planning for the Fall 2008 SQL Server Connections Conference in Las Vegas. It's going to be held at the Manadalay Bay Resort and Casino from November 10th through November 13th, and there are lots of excellent sessions scheduled. In fact, I will be delivering two SQL Server Integration Services sessions:

SQL Server Integration Services Development Best Practices
Are you tired of feeling like you’re making the same mistakes over and over again? Would you like to have a roadmap that outlines the pitfalls you’re likely to encounter when building ETL solutions with SSIS? Then this session is for you! You’ll learn how to get the most from the SSIS tools and platform through a set of SSIS development best practices from a battle-scarred database and BI consultant who has survived the rough projects and lived to tell the tale.

SQL Server Integration Services Performance Tuning and Optimization
SSIS packages have many capabilities, from control flow to event handlers to scripting. But the SSIS data flow is where the decisions you make will have the greatest impact on the performance of your packages. In this session, you’ll learn what’s going on under the hood in the SSIS data flow pipeline, and how to take advantage of that knowledge to make your packages perform better. You’ll also learn general tips and tricks to improve SSIS package performance and how to get the most out of your packages.

Sound like fun? Well, it gets even better!

Do you remember the Business Intelligence Virtual Conference I mentioned a few weeks back? I'll post more information about the virtual conference once we get the session schedule finalized, but for now you should know that if you attend the Business Intelligence Virtual Conference - $100 for three days worth of amazing content - you will get a $150 discount for the Fall SQL Server Connections conference.

How cool is that? If you're planning on attending the SQL Server Connections conference (or any of the Dev Connections conferences being held at the same time, because a ticket to one gets you admission to all of them) then we're essentially paying you $50 to attend the Business Intelligence Virtual Conference. That's like $50 better than free, which in my book is pretty darned cool.

So start planning now, and I'll look for you in Las Vegas!

More Details on TechEd

As I posted earlier in the month, I'll be presenting a pre-conference/post-conference Train the Trainer (TTT) session on Saturday June 7th between the Developer Week and IT Pro Week of the Microsoft TechEd 2008 conference. Although not everything has been finalized, there is more information to share, and if you're a Microsoft Certified Trainer who is planning to attend either week of TechEd, hopefully this will help convince you to come.

Here's the deal:

Bill Chapman, the MCT Readiness Manager[1] at Microsoft has a new blog, and he's posted the schedule for the TTT events here: http://blogs.msdn.com/billchapman/archive/2008/04/24/train-the-trainer-teched-2008-orlando.aspx. Take a look and you'll see that I'll have just under three hours to cover SSIS topics. Other trainers (names not yet posted) will be covering the SSAS and SSRS content, so I'll be able to focus on what I love the best: SSIS.

Here's the working agenda for this TTT session:

Moving Beyond the MOC and Into Real World ETL with SQL Server Integration Services
SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) is a true enterprise-scale Extract, Transform and Load (ETL) platform with unparalleled performance and extensibility. But despite its capabilities, SSIS includes an incomplete and complex set of tools, and can sometimes be unintuitive to use and difficult to master. This complexity can be both a blessing and a curse for Microsoft Certified Trainers who deliver the MOC courses on SSIS and the SQL Server BI product suite – a blessing because more people see the need for training, and a curse because the MOC courses fall short of preparing students for the painful realities of SSIS development projects.

This 2 hour 45 minute session is designed for MCTs who deliver (or plan on delivering) the SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008 SSIS MOC courses and who want to better understand the real-world problems their students face – and the right solutions for those problems. This session will include:

· Coverage of SSIS in both SQL Server 2005 and 2008
· Package development best practices
· Package deployment best practices
· SSIS Architecture and performance tuning
· Online and offline resources for post-session continued learning
· Lots of interactivity and Q&A throughout the session

SSIS is the cornerstone of any SQL Server BI application. As an MCT you strive to prepare your students for their projects to the best of your ability. This session will go far beyond the MOC courseware and will help prepare you to face the most challenging classes with confidence.

Sound like fun?

Of course it does.

And remember, it only gets better - if you're an active MCT, these TTT sessions are absolutely free. Contact Bill Chapman (the details are on his blog) and get registered for the sessions you're interested in. I'm sure they're going to fill up quickly, so don't delay.

Also, if there is any specific SSIS content that you'd like to see covered, please post a comment here. I can't guarantee that I'll be able to cover everything in this session, but the more I know about what you'd like to see and hear, the more likely it is that I'll make you happy.

[1] Yep - we MCTs have so much trouble getting ready that we need a dedicated manager just to help.

Calling All Trainers - Return of the BI Guy

If you are a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) and are going to be attending either week of Microsoft's TechEd conference this year, be sure to block off the day of June 7th, the Saturday between the Developer and IT Pro weeks of the conference.

Why block off this date?

It's because I'm going to be delivering a full-day pre-conference (or post-conference if you're talking about the developer show) Train the Trainer (TTT) session on the new SQL Server 2008 BI courseware that's coming soon from Microsoft Learning. That's right - a complete day filled with SSIS, SSAS, SSIS, SSRS and SSIS! (Not that I'm biased or anything.)

The full details are still being worked out, so stand by for more information, but if you're an MCT who teaches (or would like to teach) the SQL Server BI courses you will definitely want to attend. We'll plan on moving beyond what's in the courseware, focusing on technical depth and real-world examples so you'll have lots of "value adds" to take back to your classroom after the event.

If you have any questions, just let me know!

I Came, I Saw, I Coded

Starting one week from today, April 5th and 6th 2008 is the 9th semi-annual Code Camp at the Microsoft New England District office in Waltham, MA. A code camp is something like a mini-conference, held on a weekend, and it's free.

That's right - it's free.

And why am I blogging about an event that's around 300 miles away from me? Because I'm going to be presenting three sessions on SQL Server Integration Services, that's why! I am scheduled to deliver these three exciting SSIS sessions:

Jumping Into the ETL Deep End with SQL Server Integration Services

If you’re a developer, you often run into situations where you need to get data from point A to point B, and often need to massage it along the way. Odds are you’ve seen the SSIS tools, but like many DBAs and developers you weren’t quite sure where to begin. If this sounds familiar, then this is the session for you. In this session you’ll learn what SSIS can do, how to make it do what it does, and what tools to use to make it work its magic. We’ll look at package development and deployment, and when the session is done you’ll be ready to build and deploy SSIS packages with confidence.

SQL Server Integration Services Development Best Practices

Are you tired of feeling like you’re making the same mistakes over and over again? Would you like to have a roadmap that outlines the pitfalls you’re likely to encounter when building ETL solutions with SSIS? Then this session is for you! In this session you’ll learn how to get the most of the SSIS tools and platform through a set of SSIS development best practices from a battle-scarred database and BI consultant who has survived the rough projects and lived to tell the tale.

SQL Server Integration Services Deployment Best Practices

You've built a set of SSIS packages to populate your data warehouse, and everything works great on your development environment - but what next? SSIS has a great set of tools, but when it comes to preparing for and executing a seamless deployment from development into test and finally into production, it's not always obvious what tools to use or how to best use them. In this session you'll learn how to prepare for and execute a seamless deployment of complex ETL solutions through a repeatable, testable process for both SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008. If you're tired of saying "but it worked on my machine!" then this is one session you can't afford to miss.

And not only am I scheduled to present these three sessions, there are over 60 different sessions on topics ranging from SQL Server to Windows Communication Foundation to SilverLight to Visual Studio to BizTalk. It looks like this will be a fantastic event!

Fantastic for the attendees, anyway. ;-)

Did you notice how I was being especially careful to say "I'm scheduled to present three sessions" instead of "I'm presenting three sessions?" There's a reason for that. The "Jumping Into the ETL Deep End with SQL Server Integration Services" session is scheduled for 10:35 Saturday morning, and there is a decent chance that I will not be able to reach Waltham in time. I'm going to be out on the west coast all next week, and my flight home is scheduled to arrive around midnight Friday night. Since it's a four hour drive to Waltham under ideal circumstances, there's a pretty good chance that I will actually deliver two SSIS sessions and not all three.

But don't let this stop you! There are still around 75 attendee slots still open (out of the available 500) so sign up now if you haven't already. And I'll see you there!

Update: The fantastic organizers of the Code Camp (thanks, Chris and Chris!) have reworked the schedule to accommodate my travel restrictions, so all three sessions should go as planned. Here are the updated times for my three sessions:

Sat 15:25-16:40 - Jumping Into the ETL Deep End with SQL Server Integration Services

Sat 16:50-18:05 - SQL Server Integration Services Development Best Practices

Sun 12:30-13:45 - SQL Server Integration Services Deployment Best Practices

SSIS Deep Dive at the MCT Summit in Redmond

I know that this is not a lot of notice, but if you're in Redmond for the MCT Summit event, I will be delivering a bonus SQL Server Integration Services "Deep Dive" session at the end of the day in Salon 3/4. This is the same room where my final scheduled session will be held, so if you're attending the "New Features in SQL Server 2008 for Database Developers" session, you'll already be in the correct room.

Please be warned that we'll probably overlap with the scheduled bowling trip (which really doesn't appeal to me) and the attendant open bar that Microsoft is going to provide (which does appeal) so there is a trade-off to be made. I'm more than happy to pass on the open bar (especially since each attendee at this bonus session will need to buy me a drink in payment ;-) but potential attendees should take this into account.

What's the agenda? It will (hopefully - I don't have any slides, so I may well forget) look something like this:

• Package development best practices
• Package deployment
• Design patterns and suggestions
• Real-world package demos and walkthroughs
• Q&A - hopefully we'll have a TON of interaction, and the Q&A session will last a long time

Hopefully I'll see you there!

Buy Me a Drink and Watch Me Dance!

No, I have neither lost my mind[1] nor changed careers. Instead, I'm planning a "bonus session" on SQL Server Integration Services for this week here at the MCT Summit in Redmond. I just spoke with a fellow SQL Server MCT (Rick, who had commented on an earlier blog post a few days back - hi Rick!) who let me know that although my "bonus session" this week is not going to be an SSIS deep dive, he's still interested in getting that content.

And I'm still interested in delivering it.

So... At some point this week (time and location TBD) I'm going to be delivering a deep SSIS technical session with any MCT who wants to attend. If you're at the summit and are reading this, spread the word and let me know what you want to hear. We'll find a room and make it happen.

And the cost? One Grey Goose and tonic, to be delivered after the session is complete. ;-)


[1] Quiet, Ted.

Taking off the BI Hat, Putting on the Toque

You probably already know that I'm going to be presenting three SQL Server sessions at next week's MCT Summit event in Redmond, Washington. But now I'm going to take off my BI hat and put on my Toque. That's "chef's hat" for those of you who may not follow the culinary world as closely as you follow the world of database.

Why would I do this, you ask?

Because I'm going to be presenting a surprise fourth session next week as well:

Test your Metal – Software Architecture Case Study – TechEd Iron Architect
MCT Matthew Roche won Microsoft's Iron Architect contest, defeating all competitors in a head-to-head battle of software architecture and design. In this session Matthew will present his winning solution along with the decisions and thought processes that went into his final design. Attendees will participate in an interactive discussion of software architecture, how to incorporate architectural topics and themes into developer classes, and perhaps how to become the next Iron Architect themselves.

Sound like fun? The Iron Architect contest was one part Iron Chef, one part American Idol, and one part architecture. If you're a developer-focused MCT who is interested in deeper architectural topics, I hope I'll see you in this session. I'm hoping to make it as interactive and dynamic as possible, and I know that it will be a lot of fun.

And the octopus ice cream will be delicious!