Top 4 Reasons Next Week is a Big Week

Hello Dear Reader, next week is a very big week for me SQL wise.  Family wise I will be missing the heck out of my wife and my kiddos while I’m half a continent away.   Just this last week my Bug lost another tooth, the baby got even cuter (don’t ask me how she does it constantly), my Big Guy got even bigger (seriously my 7 year old has pec’s), and my wife continues to be AWESOME, (the Bug and I had a conference and deliberated on this earlier in the week).  So while I’m missing all the other Balls, I’ll be busy out of my mind. 

“So Balls,” you say, “What’s keeping you so busy?”

No good way to say it other than list it.

1.       My First PASS Summit

2.       I’m sitting at the Bloggers Table at the PASS Summit

3.       I’m Presenting TWO times at the PASS Summit

4.       I’m the Professor of Compression Next Week For SQL University!

Any other week one of those items would keep me fully occupied.   Next week I will be utterly consumed learning, teaching, meeting, and greeting.  So let’s break it down a little.

MY FIRST PASS SUMMIT

http://www.sqlpass.org/summit/2011/# PHOTO CREDIT: Deepak Puri

This needs no introduction.  If you are involved with SQL Server you know that the PASS Summit is the biggest SQL Server Conference in the World.  Not North America, not Europe, not Asia, the WORLD.  The brightest SQL Speakers in the World will be there.  People from all over the Globe, experts from many many nations will be together in one spot.   Top Microsoft Experts, the Cat Team, many Microsoft Developers for the SQL Server Team, you name it the PASS Summit has it.

I’ve wanted to go to this event since I started seeing advertisements for it on SQLSeverCentral.com, for the last 4 or 5 years.   Getting to watch the streaming keynote last year just made my desire to go grow even more, and now here it is! 

If you have never heard of the PASS Summit then go check out the current website.  As if that isn’t enough I’m attending 2 of the great pre-cons that are being offered.    I will be blogging like a mad man while I’m out there so keep checking back Dear Reader, this should be a fun week!

SITTING AT THE BLOGGERS TABLE

http://www.sqlpass.org/summit/2011/SummitContent.aspx PHOTO CREDIT: Pat Wright

I’ve blogged previously on The Top 5 Reasons You Should Be On Twitter, but I could add a 6^th as well.  Opportunity.  On Twitter it was announced that PASS was accepting applications to sit at the Bloggers table.   I jumped.  Then I emailed the contact listed and WAHOO I was selected!   As a result I’ll have access to blog from a table of Blogger All-STAR’s and SQL MVP’s, and lil ol’ me J!

So not only will I be at the top event for SQL Server, I’ve got a front row seat.  I’ll do live blogging of the Keynotes, and attempt a daily re-cap.  As I snap pictures I’ll make sure to get them uploaded and attached to the blog.

PRESENTING TWICE AT THE PASS SUMMIT!

My wife’s best friend had a quote on her Facebook page that I feel describes me to a T, since she told me it I laughed and then I thought, “If I could only get that on a Family Crest”. ….  The quote “I’ve got 2 speeds; Off & M@Ther F#(king ON”.  That has been me my whole life, when I’m down I’m out.  When I’m up and running, there’s no stopping.

During this week I’m presenting a Lightning Round Talk 24-a 5 minute Horror Story, and  the Page & Row Compress Deep Dive.   I’ve been working on a lot of great Demo’s that I can bring to the table.  I presented the Deep Dive recently at SQL Saturday 85, and internally for my DBA team.  I’ve gotten a lot of good feedback, and I’m really excited to give this a 3^rd time.   The 5 minute Horror Story is a real life adventure, with appropriate details blurred, from Father’s day 2009.   Show up to the session and you hear all about the wonderful world of a 24-7 on call DBA and why backups are so important.   Not just that you take them, but if something goes wrong that you grab a fresh set.

PROFESSOR OF COMPRESSION FOR SQL UNIVERSITY

Jorge Segarra (@SQLChicken | Blog)  is the Chancellor of SQL University.  If you’ve never heard of SQL U then you should head over there and take a look.  It is a web blog that collects the input from the experts in our field and has them write on a new topic a week. 

Think college syllabus but for SQL, with different Topics, and written by MVP’s & Experts.  I’m honored beyond belief to be among them, and starting next week I’ll have a Lead Up to the Deep Dive.  I’m still writing and formulating as we speak and a lot of this will get finished up Sunday to Monday.  But I’ll have a post a day on Compression.  We’ll start up slow and work our way through a set of topics that will help you understand Compression and feel good about taking it to your work and finding ways you can apply it.

Alright Dear Reader the break from blogging is over, time to get to the grind stone and get working!  I hope your week is a good one.

Thanks,

Brad

I’m On The NomCom! What’s a NomCom?

This is a blog I’ve been wanting to write for a while, I’ve been a little backed up and with the 2011 PASS Summit starting next week, now seemed like the perfect time.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrick-smith-photography/4525976964/

  Back in August PASS, the Professional Association of SQL Server, announced that they were seeking applications for the NomCom.  I like to participate in things so I started reading up on it.

I wasn’t as active at this time last year with PASS, I was on the ramp up to becoming more active, but I was still a couple weeks away from attending my first SQL Saturday.   So if you are not familiar with it there was a bit of controversy last year with the PASS elections and the NomCom.   I’m not going to go into it, but I researched it before I submitted my application and it is pretty easy for you to find on the IntraWebs if you are interested.

My participation on the NomCom is a direct result from last year.   In order to put more transparency into the process that is the NomCom, it was decided that PASS membership should have the majority of the seats.  So I’m a community representative as well as Roy Ernest (@RumblingDBA | Blog ) and ½ of my Future Law Firm of Bigun’s and Balls Newly Minted SQL MVP Jack Corbett(@unclebiguns | Blog).

After reading over what the commitment would entail and speaking with my family to make sure they were okay with it I put in an application.  

“So Balls”, you say, “What in the name of SQL Server does a NomCom Do?”

Great question Dear Reader.

WHAT’S A NOMCOM

PASS has announced that there will be a Board of Elections meeting this year, to learn more visit the PASS 2011 Election Website.  As part of the process people will fill out an application and submit to be considered for the election.  There are some pre-qualifications that they have to meet, you have to be working with SQL Server (Sorry Larry Ellison).... you get the idea.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mshahab/4935745220/

After all the applications that do not meet the pre-qualifications are taken out of the mix, the applications are then handed over to the NomCom.  We review them weigh  (fancy word for score) each based on a set of criteria that we received from the current Board of Directors.   We will interview the references  and eventually we will interview the applicants and weigh those interviews as well.

We will use these scores to form a rank, and then we will pass these candidates along to the Board, passing along the top number that the Board Requests to be considered as the slate for elections.   The board will review everything we have given to them.  If they are not satisfied with the slate of candidates we put forward.  They will push it back to us and give us new instructions.

So to make a long answer short, What does a NomCom do?  We are nothing more than a Nominating Committee, that ranks the applicants as best we can and hands that over to the current Board of Directors.   We will be doing a lot of heavy lifting.

Just a quick clarification about the criteria used to rank candidates.  We have been meeting for weeks reviewing what the Board has given us and asking for clarification where needed, and disagreeing with criteria where needed.   It has been a very civil and easy process.  Everybody wants the community to vote and decide who is best to serve on the PASS Board, and we are doing our absolute best to make sure that who the community wants they will get.

So basically, I have no power, and if people are unhappy with the results I will probably get a lot of people talking to me through the IntraWebs USING CAPS!!!!

WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO YOURSELF

http://www.flickr.com/photos/yorkie/188523375/

Well I do enjoy a good roller coaster.  And to be quite honest it felt like the right thing to do.  I’m not running for the Board of Directors.  Personally I don’t feel like I have the experience yet to where that would be a good fit for PASS or for me.  The election process though is a very important one, and it is one I believe deeply in for better or for worse.

America doesn’t ask much of you, but it does ask that you vote.  (okay it wants those pesky taxes too, but nobody likes them.)   You have a chance to shape the world around you every four years.  And for PASS you get that option a little more often.   I’ve gotten to meet a lot of the Board of Directors.   I like them, they are nice people, and they are very knowledgeable in SQL Server which gives us a common bond immediately.

But when I look at the SQL World around us I want to get more involved and help change things for the better.  We've done a lot of good work, but there is always more that needs some doing.

I’m not a deep insider.  I still grin like a kid with a backstage pass when I look around at the places and people that I’m going to work with.   Getting to hang out with guys like Jack and Roy still makes me grin ear to ear.  As if that isn’t enough rounding out the NomCom is Thomas Larock(@SQLRockstar | Blog) and the Immediate Past President of PASS Wayne Snyder (@SQLWayne ).

I’ll be writing more as the process moves along.  I’ve seen several people on Twitter announcing their intention to run for the board and I’m looking forward to this. 

Thanks,

Brad

SQL Saturday 85 – Thank You Everyone!

About a week ago we had SQL Saturday 85 in beautiful Orlando FL.  I wanted to do a quick recap and say a BIG Thank You to everyone who participated!  From the wonderful people on the planning team Andy Warren (@SQLAndy | Blog), Shawn McGehee (@SQLShawn | Blog), Karla Landrum (@karlakay22 | Blog), the O’Fearless Leader of MagicPASS Kendal Van Dyke (@SQLDBA|Blog), to 41 Different Speakers, to the Event Volunteers, to the Attendees, to the Sponsors, and to the great folks at Seminole State College who allow us to use the beautiful facilities, Thank YOU!

“So Balls,” you say, “What was the best part of the day?”

Well Dear Reader, I would have to say the pictures that I took, and those that I wish I had taken. 

The Day Started out with an early wake up call.  I the Dodge Durango was so loaded with drinks for the event that it was actually sagging, (I wish I had a picture of that ).  I drove over to Seminole State College and the Volunteers were already there and the tables were set up.  We quickly unloaded the drinks, and I returned to the hotel to put the projectors and screens from our Pre-Con’s into the back of the truck. 

Between the two trips I saw that we had the road signs up directing people in, and that we even had a volunteer standing on the Ellipsis to ensure people drove the right way.  Our volunteers are amazing!  When you stand outside in the Florida sunshine, for hours, to direct people on an Ellipsis so others can learn about SQL Server, then that is above and beyond dedication (I wish I had a picture of that).

And it was off to the races.  Making sure people knew where they were going.  Walking the halls to make sure that it was apparent which way to go, and putting up signs when it wasn’t.  Taking pictures of the Speakers while they were entertaining our attendees.  And Tweeting more than I do in most weeks.  I didn’t get to attend many sessions.  I was in my buddy Dan Taylor’s Session, the Deep Dive on Compression that this Bradley Ball guy did (not bad needs some work), and in Mike Davis’s SSIS vs. T-SQL Smackdown.


This was a very gratifying perspective however.  Normally I'm here just to learn, but this was completely different.  I was there to Serve.  To make sure that our attendees made it to where they wanted to go, to make sure that our sponsors had power outlets, to make sure we had signs, to find the correct speaker room, and occasionally to join into the fray and do some speaking.

This was a very different perspective indeed, and as much as I love learning about SQL today it was learning about all the time and hard work that goes into the great events.   Learning about the magic that goes on while we slide from one session to another.   Thinking about the event in review I'm still left in awe at all the hard work that our volunteers achieved.

So now without further ado, let’s get to some pictures.

SESSION PICTURES FROM 8:30 am to 9:30 am

Erin Stellato (@erinstellato | Blog) You Are My Density: Making Sense of Statistics

William E. Pearson III  Getting Started with MDX

Mike Antonovich Introduction to PowerPivot

Andy Warren Building a Professional Development Plan.

Don Stevic The Fundamentals of DBA-Ism

The One & Only Buck Woody From Ground to Cloud for Databases

Bradley Schacht Introduction to SSIS

SESSION PICTURES FROM 9:45 am to 10:45 am

My Buddy Dan Taylor on Useful tools for a DBA or Database Developer

Janis Griffin on Performance Management 2008 MDW-How & Why

Adam Jorgensen Analysis 0 to Cube & PowerPivot

Michael Wells Rapidly Deploying SQL Server with Powershell

Eric Wisdahl SSIS Data Flow Buffer Breakdown

Kendal Van Dyke Working with XML in SQL Server

SESSION PICTURES FROM 11:00 am to 12:00 pm

Nathan Heaivilin Introduction to Execution Plans

Phillip Rosen Biz Intel Dashboards w/ Excel OLAP formulas

Ronald Dameron Powershell by Example

Rob Collie PowerPivot BI & Massive Data Analysis for Humans

Mike Davis Using Script Task and Components in SSIS

Craig Purnell Upgrade Roadmap Taking YOU to R2!

Rodney Landrum T-SQL Alphabet Soup

BRADLEY BALL PAGE & ROW COMPRESSION DEEP DIVE 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm

I was up during this time slot so I didn’t get to make it around to all the other Presenters.  There were a lot of great people presenting in this time slot, and I hear we all did great.  I had a nice group for my first Deep Dive at a SQL Saturday.  This was on Compression, and I got a great question that will deserve a future blog on the bit structure of nvarchar compressed records.

I got a lot of great feed back, it was positive which is nice.  But I think all of the folks that made it realized that the second time I present this session it will be at the PASS Summit.   So even though it was positive, I got a lot of good suggestions as far as, expand here, maybe skip this and make more time for this.   I really like that feedback because it matched how I felt.

As a presenter I like to tell a story.  Even though we are talking technology and it isn’t hot and sexy like the movies, we can still have a good story with a solid flow.  I realized I have a little work to do on my story, and it was better to learn that now than at the Summit.  There were a lot of great speakers that made it to my session, Buck Woody (@buckwoody | Blog) stopped by to play the Piano, Eric Wisdahl (@EricWisdahl| Blog),  and Craig Purnell (@CraigPurnell | AboutMe) came by to help expand the cast.

 I feel really solid about the presentation and I’m looking forward to the Summit!

SESSION PICTURES FROM 2:45 pm to 3:45 pm

Rob Volk Revenge: The SQL!

Patrick Thompson Where to with NoSQL

James McAuliffe SSIShare The Code Man

William E. Pearson III Becoming DAX: An Introduction....

Kevin Boles Parallel Query Execution Deep Dive

Jeff Garbus Rewriting Bad Code

Herve Roggero SQL Azure Performance Considerations

SESSION FROM 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Once again I wasn’t able to run around, I was a part of the show this time around!  I was the referee for the SSIS vs. T-SQL Smackdown between Adam Jorgensen(@adam_jorgensen|Blog) and Mike Davis (@MikeDavisSQL | Blog).  As always it was a great battle between two Intellectual power houses. 

Mike Davis was displaying how he could fast load a data warehouse using SSIS, and Adam was doing the same using T-SQL.  Both competitors did a great job of layething the Smackdown on the data in the form of ETL processes.  Mike showed how versatile SSIS is with the ability to switch data sources and interface with multiple Database platforms.  Adam showed how versatile T-SQL is, tossing out Merges, CTE’s, and old pictures of Mike in the Navy like they were going out of style.

At the end of the bout I spoke briefly with Vince McMahon(WWE) and took a poll of the audience.    I would like to say that the results surprised me, but Adam had managed to really get Mike’s goat, or was the goat Brian’s (@brianknight | Blog)?  Regardless, there was a goat, fisticuffs, Adam was pronounced the winner, and then I was viciously and savagely attacked by Mike.   No sooner had he left the room then he returned and we all took a bow.

It is an amazing thing to watch professionals that are so good at what they do that they can have fun doing it.  It was something else all together to be a part of the action, and it was a lot of fun.  I hear Mike is having a Smackdown in Tampa for SQL Saturday 86.  I’ll be there doing my presentation on Compression.  I wonder if they have steel chairs there…..

AND WITH THAT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN I BID YOU GOODNIGHT

When I was kid I remember sitting in the 6^th grade watching some cheesy mandatory movie educating us on some subject that my memory doesn’t care to retain, and one line stood out to me.  “Take a picture and remember it in your heart.”

 I laughed about it with my friends.  I believe the phrase “how lame” was uttered, but for some reason it always stuck with me.  I take a lot of mental pictures as I go about the day.  Some end up in the recycle bin just as fast as they hit the desktop, others never leave. 

For years to come I will remember meeting Buck Woody and getting to drive him to buy Orange Juice, looking at the speaker dinner room and smiling at all the great people that come together to share a passion, the BBQ Line at lunch, running the halls to take pictures and Tweet about each presenter as they were working their magic, my buddy Dan Taylor’s (@DBABulldog | Blog) first presentation ever, forcing Kyle Walker (@WalkerSQLRanger) to get on Twitter, getting to meet Craig Purnell and his wonderful wife Julie, talking with my friend Adam Jorgensen, and having the SQL SMACKDOWN layethed on me by Mike Davis.

Less than a year ago, I walked into my first SQL Saturday in Orlando.  I left with a feeling that I had come home.  I wanted to dive right in with both feet, and it helped me to grow in ways that I hadn’t even realized I needed to grow. So I found it strange to have come full circle, and this year I was one of the guys standing up top, getting to toss t-shirts out to the crowd.   Andy Warren looked at me and asked how I felt about helping putting something together like this, I just smiled and said it felt Awesome.  

We wound up the night at Liam’s Fitzpatrick’s, and I got to speak with people I’ve connected with over the last year.  Eddie Wuerch (@EddieW| Blog ) from SQL Rally, Craig Prunell from earlier in the week at MagicPASS, Ron Dameron (@RonDBA | Blog) from SQL Saturday 62 in Tampa, Don Stevic(@SQL_Superman | Blog)  from SQL Saturday 74 & 79, Nathan Heaivilin from last year at SQL Saturday 49 (and 62), Bryan K Mcdonald (@BrianKMcDonald | Blog) from just this week.

To everyone I mentioned Thank You, to everyone I didn’t Thank You, Volunteers, Speakers, Sponsors, Attendees, and my fellow Team Members Thank You, Thank You, Thank You.  And to my friend Jack Corbett (@unclebiguns | Blog), newly minted SQL Server MVP, Thank You for your recommendation, your faith, and for the encouragement to get involved! 

I hope I see you all next year!

Thanks Again,

Brad