It has been more than 3 months since we have started experimenting with a new concept in  SQL in Sixty Seconds. Every Wednesday, we putt a fresh new interesting concept out via video. Rick Morelan, Vinod Kumar and myself – the three of us decided to do something new and something exciting. We decided to create a short video which will consider the attention span of the viewer, keep them focused and help them learn something new through our teaching.

We all liked the idea of SQL in Sixty Seconds. As the name suggests, you will not watch content for more than a minute. We did our best to keep the video down to single minute, well, in most of the cases. There are cases when we could not accommodate the content in sixty seconds so the video had to roll for over few more seconds. In the end, we try to come up with an extremely short video which is able to teach some learning on SQL Server. So far we have 10 videos out for the SQL in Sixty Seconds series.

SQL in Sixty Seconds

Here are the details to our SQL in Sixty Seconds series. It has a total of 10 videos and a total cumulative time of around 15 minutes for all the videos.

Link to watch all the Episodes

Episode 01 - Subquery to CTE
Episode 02 - T-SQL Errors and Reactions
Episode 03 - T-SQL Constructs – Declaration and Initialization
Episode 04 - Function: Is Leap Year
Episode 05 - T-SQL Errors and Reactions Demo
Episode 06 - SQL Server Performance: Indexing Basics
Episode 07 - Table Variables and Transactions
Episode 08 - Using MAXDOP 1 for Single Processor Query
Episode 09 - T-SQL Constructs – += and *=
Episode 10 - Installing AdventureWorks Sample Database

We need your help

We seriously need your help by means of rating our videos. All you have to do is to answer these three simple questions:

1. Which is your most favorite SQL in Sixty Seconds Episode? and Why?
2. Which is your least favorite SQL in Sixty Seconds Episode? and Why?
3. What next you would like to see in SQL in Sixty Seconds?

Just leave your answers in comment area.

Selection of Winner

On May 1st, we will go over the complete list. Rick, Vinod and I have also picked our most favorite episode and least favorite episode. You may call it a co-incidence or an accident, but our choice was exactly the same. Yes, three of us have selected the same video for best and least favorite videos. We will select the winner who has exactly the same selection as our selection. In case of a tie, we will look at the third question and as well as your answers to the “Why” follow-up question asked in the first and second questions.

Prizes

We have decided to have more than one prize. This time, we’re giving away three prizes for the winners:

• SQL Server Interview Questions and Answers Book - 1 winner
• SQL Wait Stats - 1 winner
• Pluralsight FREE learning code – 5 winners

If you stay in a country where we cannot ship these books, we will send you the appropriate Pluralsight FREE learning code.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

SQL Server Cheatsheet has been extremely popular download from my blog. There are plenty of request for me to update it with SQL Server 2012 features. I have finally upgraded the cheatsheet with SQL Server 2012 features. The new cheatsheet has following updates

• SSMS Shortcuts
• Columnstore Index
• SQL Server 2012 Datetime Functions
• SQL Server Ranking Functions
• SQL Server 2012 Analytic functions

Download SQL Server Cheatsheet

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Pinal Dave on LinkedIn!

It seems like a few year ago, there was a big “boom” in social media websites.  All of a sudden there were so many sites to choose from.  MySpace or Orkut?  Blogging websites for your business or a LinkedIn account?  The nature of the internet is to always be changing, but I believe that out of this huge growth of websites, a few have come to stay.  Facebook is obviously the leader in social media networking, especially for your personal life.  Blogging is great, but it can be more of a way to get your ideas out there, rather than a place for people to connect to you professionally.  If you want to have a professional “face” on the internet, LinkedIn is the way to go.

LinkedIn is best explained as “professional Facebook.”  This is simplifying things a little bit too much, but it is certainly a website where you link up with professional contacts, so that others can see where you have worked, who you have worked with, and what projects you have done.  This is a much better place for professional contacts to find you than someplace like Facebook, where all they will see is your face and maybe picture of you at a birthday party or something like that!

Because so much of my SQL Server life is conducted on the internet, especially on my blog, I felt that it would be a good idea to have a well-maintained LinkedIn web page as well, so that if anyone is curious about me and my credentials they can quickly and easily find me and see that I am for real, and not someone pretending to know a lot about SQL Server.

My linked in profile is www.linkedin.com/in/pinaldave.  I keep all my professional information here, and I update it as often as possible.  Feel free to come find me, especially if you would like to “link up” and share professional information.  The technology world is becoming more and more interconnected, and more and more international.  I feel that it is very important to stay linked up virtually, because so many of us are so far apart physically.

I try to keep very connected with my LinkedIn profile.  I let anyone connect with me, and I read updates from the professional world very often.  I keep this profile updated, but do not post things about my personal life or anything that I might put on Twitter, for example.  I also include my e-mail address here, if you would like to contact me professionally.  This is the best place for me to conduct business.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Pinal Dave on Youtube!

Some people might not know it, but YouTube is actually more than a place to watch funny cat videos and people singing their favorite pop songs – it’s actually a social media site.  When you are a member of YouTube you can follow people who regularly post videos, post video responses of your own, and even gain a following for your own videos.  I myself was not aware of YouTube’s potential until recently, when I started to make SQL Server in Sixty Seconds videos.

YouTube is very different than other types of social media, and a big factor is that anyone can look at videos without being a member.  Unlike other social media sites, like Twitter and Facebook, you have to have an account in order to participate.  But on YouTube you are even more anonymous.  To make and post videos you need an account, but anyone who comes to the site can look at what you’ve made without signing in or leaving any trace of having seen your material.  This makes YouTube very anonymous and hard to track.

However, we should not overlook the power of video on the internet.  Over the past few months I have been making SQL Server in Sixty Second videos and have come to love it.  It is very exciting to be able to talk about a subject that mostly I write about, and for many people video is far more accessible and easy to understand.   I have really enjoyed diving into something new, and would love to have more people check out these videos and give me feedback.  You can find me at www.youtube.com/user/pinaldave.

I am very excited with all the possibilities on YouTube and it might just be the technology evangelist in me, but I would love for other people to discover how fun and exciting this site can be, too.  Don’t think of it as just a place to find funny videos and waste a few minutes of your time, think of it as a place to learn and interact with interesting people.  Come watch a few of my videos, while you’re there.  Remember, everything is free and there are no contracts to sign, but I hope that you get as excited as I am and join up.  We need more people creating good content on this site!

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Pinal Dave on Twitter!

Frequent readers of my blog might know that I am trying to get more involved in all social media sites, both professionally and personally.  Readers might also know that I have often struggled with finding the purpose of some social media sites – Twitter especially.  One of the great uses of social media is to stay connected and updated with followers.  Twitter’s 140 character limit means that Twitter is a great place to get quick updates from the world, but not a lot of deep information.  In fact, I have the feeling that Twitter’s form might actually limit its usefulness – especially for complex subjects like SQL Server. However, #sqlhelp has tag has for sure overcome that belief. You can instantly talk about SQL and get help with your SQL problems on twitter.

I believe in keeping up with the changing times, and it didn’t feel right to give up on Twitter.  So I have determined a good way to use Twitter and set rules for myself.  The problem I was facing that if I followed everyone who interested me and let anyone follow me, I was completely overwhelmed by the amount of information Twitter could give me every day.  It didn’t seem like 140 characters should be able to take up so much of my time, but it took hours to sort through all the updates to find things that were of interest to me and to SQL Server.

First, I was forced to unfollow anyone who made too many updates every day.  This was not an easy decision, but just for my own sake I had to limit the amount of information I could take in every day.  I still let anyone follow me who wants to, because I didn’t want to limit my readership, and I hope that they do not feel the way I did – that there are too many updates!

Next, I made sure that the information I put on Twitter is useful and to the point.  I try to announce new blog posts on Twitter at least once a day, and I also try to find five posts from other people every day that are worth re-Tweeting.  This forces me to stay active in the community.  But it is not all business on Twitter.  It is also a place for me to post updates about my family and home life, for anyone who is interested. In simple words, I talk every thing and anything on twitter.

If you’d like to follow me, my Twitter handle is www.twitter.com/pinaldave.  It is a good place to start if you’d like to keep updated with my blog and find out who I follow and who my influences are.  Twitter is perfect for getting little “tastes” of things you’re interested in.  If you are interested in my blog, SQL Server, or both, I hope that my Twitter updates will be interesting and helpful.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

TechEd India 2012 was held in Bangalore last March 21 to 23, 2012. Just like every year, this event is bigger, grander and inspiring.

Pinal Dave at TechEd India 2012

Family Event

Every single year, TechEd is a special affair for my entire family.  Four months before the start of TechEd, I usually start to build the mental image of the event. I start to think  about various things. For the most part, what excites me most is presenting a session and meeting friends. Seriously, I start thinking about presenting my session 4 months earlier than the event!  I work on my presentation day and night. I want to make sure that what I present is accurate and that I have experienced it firsthand. My wife and my daughter also contribute to my efforts. For us, TechEd is a family event, and the two of them feel equally responsible as well. They give up their family time so I can bring out the best content for the Community.

Pinal, Shaivi and Nupur at TechEd India 2012

Guinea Pigs (My Experiment Victims)

I do not rehearse my session, ever. However, I test my demo almost every single day till the last moment that I have to present it already. I sometimes go over the demo more than 2-3 times a day even though the event is more than a month away. I have two “guinea pigs”: 1) Nupur Dave and 2) Vinod Kumar. When I am at home, I present my demos to my wife Nupur. At times I feel that people often backup their demo, but in my case, I have backup demo presenters. In the office during lunch time, I present the demos to Vinod. I am sure he can walk my demos easily with eyes closed.

Pinal and Vinod at TechEd India 2012

My Sessions

I’ve been determined to present my sessions in a real and practical manner. I prefer to present the subject that I myself would be eager to attend to and sit through if I were an audience. Just keeping that principle in mind, I have created two sessions this year.

SQL Server Misconception and Resolution

Pinal and Vinod at TechEd India 2012

We believe all kinds of stuff – that the earth is flat, or that the forbidden fruit is apple, or that the big bang theory explains the origin of the universe, and so many other things. Just like these, we have plenty of misconceptions in SQL Server as well.

I have had this dream of co-presenting a session with Vinod Kumar for the past 3 years. I have been asking him every year if we could present a session together, but we never got it to work out, until this year came. Fortunately, we got a chance to stand on the same stage and present a single subject.

 I believe that Vinod Kumar and I have an excellent synergy when we are working together. We know each other’s strengths and weakness. We know when the other person will speak and when he will keep quiet. The reason behind this synergy is that we have worked on 2 Video Learning Courses (SQL Server Indexes and SQL Server Questions and Answers) and authored 1 book (SQL Server Questions and Answers) together.

Crowd Outside Session Hall

This session was inspired from the “Laurel and Hardy” show so we performed a role-playing of those famous characters. We had an excellent time at the stage and, for sure, the audience had a wonderful time, too. We had an extremely large audience for this session and had a great time interacting with them.

Speed Up! – Parallel Processes and Unparalleled Performance

Pinal Dave at TechEd India 2012

I wanted to approach this session at level 400 and I was very determined to do so. The biggest challenge I had was that this was a total of 60 minutes of session and the audience profile was very generic. I had to present at level 100 as well at 400. I worked hard to tune up these demos. I wanted to make sure that my messages would land perfectly to the minds of the attendees, and when they walk out of the session, they could use the knowledge I shared on their servers. After the session, I felt an extreme satisfaction as I received lots of positive feedback at the event. At one point, so many people rushed towards me that I was a bit scared that the stage might break and someone would get injured. Fortunately, nothing like that happened and I was able to shake hands with everybody.

Pinal Dave at TechEd India 2012

Crowd rushing to Pinal at TechEd India 2012

Networking

This is one of the primary reasons many of us visit the annual TechEd event. I had a fantastic time meeting SQL Server enthusiasts. Well, it was a terrific time meeting old friends, user group members, MVPs and SQL Enthusiasts. I have taken many photographs with lots of people, but I have received a very few back. If you are reading this blog and have a photo of us at the event, would you please send it to me so I could keep it in my memory lane?

SQL Track Speaker: Jacob and Pinal at TechEd India 2012

SQL Community: Pinal, Tejas, Nakul, Jacob, Balmukund, Manas, Sudeepta, Sahal at TechEd India 2012

Star Speakers: Amit and Balmukund at TechEd India 2012

TechED Rockstars: Nakul, Tejas and Pinal at TechEd India 2012

I guess TechEd is a mix of family affair and culture for me!

Hamara TechEd (Our TechEd)

Please tell me which photo you like the most!

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

There were plenty of request for Vinod Kumar to come back with SQL in Sixty Seconds with T-SQL constructs after his very first well received construct video T-SQL Constructs – Declaration and Initialization – SQL in Sixty Seconds #003 – Video. Vinod finally comes up with this new episode where he demonstrates how dot net developer can write familiar syntax using T-SQL constructs. T-SQL has many enhancements which are less explored. In this quick video we learn how T-SQL Constructions works. We will explore Declaration and Initialization of T-SQL Constructions. We can indeed improve our efficiency using this kind of simple tricks. I strongly suggest that all of us should keep this kind of tricks in our toolbox.

More on Errors:
Declare and Assign Variable in Single Statement
Declare Multiple Variables in One Statement

I encourage you to submit your ideas for SQL in Sixty Seconds. We will try to accommodate as many as we can.

If we like your idea we promise to share with you educational material.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

I am very excited to learn that there is a new version of expressor’s data integration platform coming out in March of this year.  It will be version 3.6, and I look forward to using it and telling everyone about it.  Let me describe a little bit more about what will be so great in expressor 3.6:

• Greatly enhanced user interface
• Parallel Processing
• Bulk Artifact Upgrading

The User Interface

First let me cover the most obvious enhancements. The expressor Studio user interface (UI) has had some significant work done. Kudos to the expressor Engineering team; the entire UI is a visual masterpiece that is very responsive and intuitive. The improvements are more than just eye candy; they provide significant productivity gains when developing expressor Dataflows.

Operator shape icons now include a description that identifies the function of each operator, instead of having to guess at the function by the icon.

Operator shapes and highlighting depict the current function and status: Disabled, enabled, complete, incomplete, and error. Each status displays an appropriate message in the message panel with correction suggestions.

Floating or docking property panels provide descriptive tool tips for each property as well as auto resize when adjusting the canvas, without having to search Help or the need to scroll around to get access to the property.

Progress and status indicators let you know when an operation is working.

“No limit” canvas with snap-to-grid allows automatic sizing and accurate positioning when you have numerous operators in the Dataflow. The inline tool bar offers quick access to pan, zoom, fit and overview functions.

Selecting multiple artifacts with a right click context allows you to easily manage your workspace more efficiently.

Partitioning and Parallel Processing

Partitioning allows each operator to process multiple subsets of records in parallel as opposed to processing all records that flow through that operator in a single sequential set. This capability allows the user to configure the expressor Dataflow to run in a way that most efficiently utilizes the resources of the hardware where the Dataflow is running. Partitions can exist in most individual operators. Using partitions increases the speed of an expressor data integration application, therefore improving performance and load times. With the expressor 3.6 Enterprise Edition, expressor simplifies enabling parallel processing by adding intuitive partition settings that are easy to configure.

Bulk Artifact Upgrading

Bulk Artifact Upgrading sounds a bit intimidating, but it actually is not and it is a welcome addition to expressor Studio. In past releases, users were prompted to confirm that they wanted to upgrade their individual artifacts only when opened. This was a cumbersome and repetitive process. Now with bulk artifact upgrading, a user can easily select what artifact or group of artifacts to upgrade all at once.

As you can see, there are many new features and upgrade options that will prove to make expressor Studio quicker and more efficient.  I hope I’m not the only one who is excited about all these new upgrades, and that I you try expressor and share your experience with me.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Recently I just wrote a blog post on about Learning SQL Server Performance: Indexing Basics and I received lots of request that if we can share some insight into the course.

Here is 200 seconds interview of Vinod Kumar I took right after completing the course. We have few free codes to watch the course, please your comment at http://facebook.com/SQLAuth and we will few of first ones, we will send the code.

There are many people who said they would like to read the transcript of the video. Here I have generated the same.

Pinal: Vinod, we recently released this course, SQL Server Indexing. It is about performance tuning. So tell me – how do indexes help performance?

Vinod: I think what happens in the industry when it comes to performance is that developers and DBAs look at indexes first.  So that’s the first step for any performance tuning exercise, indexing is one of the most critical aspects and it is important to learn it the right way.

Pinal: Correct. So what you mean to say is that if you know indexing you can pretty much tune any server and query.

Vinod: So I might contradict my false statement now. Indexing is usually a stepping stone but it does not lead you to the end. But it’s good to start with indexing and there are lots of nuances to indexing that you need to understand, like how SQL uses indexing and how performance can improve because of the strategies that you have made.

Pinal: But now I’m confused. First you said indexes are good, and then you said that indexes can degrade your performance.  So what is this course about?  I mean how does this course really make an impact?

Vinod: Ok -so from the course perspective, what we are trying to do is give you a capsule which gives you a good start. Every journey needs a beginning, you need that first step.  This course is that first step in understanding.

This is the most basic, fundamental course that we have tried to attack. This is the fundamentals of indexing, some of the key things that you must know about indexing.   Some of the basics of indexing are lesser known and so I think this course is geared towards each and every one of you out there who wants to understand little bit more about indexing.

Pinal: So what I understand is that if I enrolled in this course I will have a minimum understanding about indexing when dealing with performance tuning.  Right?

Vinod: Exactly. In this course is we have tried to give you a nice summary. We are talking about clustered indexing, non clustered indexing, too many indexes, too few indexes, over indexing, under indexing, duplicate indexing, columns tune indexing, with SQL Server 2012. There’s lot’s to learn.

Pinal: You can see the URL [http://bit.ly/sql-index] of the course on the screen. Go ahead, attend, and let us know what you think about it. Thank you.

Vinod: Thank you.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)

Today’s SQL in Sixty Seconds video is inspired from my presentation at TechEd India 2012 on Speed up! – Parallel Processes and Unparalleled Performance.

There are always special cases when it is about SQL Server. There are always few queries which gives optimal performance when they are executed on single processor and there are always queries which gives optimal performance when they are executed on multiple processors. I will be presenting the how to identify such queries as well what are the best practices related to the same.

In this quick video I am going to demonstrate if the query is giving optimal performance when running on single CPU how one can restrict queries to single CPU by using hint OPTION (MAXDOP 1).

More on Errors:
Difference Temp Table and Table Variable – Effect of Transaction
Effect of TRANSACTION on Local Variable – After ROLLBACK and After COMMIT
Debate – Table Variables vs Temporary Tables – Quiz – Puzzle – 13 of 31

I encourage you to submit your ideas for SQL in Sixty Seconds. We will try to accommodate as many as we can.

Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)