Latest News from Jerry Dixon

SQL Server and SODA

Fri, 16 Mar 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Over the past year, I've been discussing some of the various technologies found inside SQL Server 2005. Three of these technologies are CLR integration, HTTP endpoints, and Service Broker. (Articles on these topics were published, respectively, in the November 2005, March 2006, and November 2006 editions of the DNDJ.) Each of these is a powerful tool in its own right, and can be used to great effect in almost any SQL installation. When used together, however, they become much more powerful. Used together, these tools let SQL Server become an active participant in a service-oriented system. Not only can SQL Server provide the data used by these services but it can host the services themselves. This is an example of what Microsoft calls a 'Service-Oriented Database Architecture' or SODA, and it's another powerful capability of the SQL Server 2005 system.

SQL Server and SODA

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 10:00:00 EDT

SQL Server 2005 Service Broker

Fri, 17 Nov 2006 14:00:00 EST

In today's complex and demanding environments, it is quite common for users to be able to submit requests faster than those requests can be processed. In some situations, this is because the system has an enormous number of users. In other situations, it is because the requests take a long time to process. In both cases, the system needs to be designed so that it can accept the requests immediately, and process those requests later on. Such a system is said to be asynchronous.

DDL Triggers

Sat, 29 Jul 2006 11:00:00 EDT

A number of years ago, I worked for a company that was developing internal applications with SQL Server 2000. We didn't have any real database administrators. I was given that responsibility, but I was really a developer, one of many in fact. The problem with this arrangement was that all the developers had high-level rights to SQL Server. Each one could make whatever changes seemed appropriate to him at the time, and they could do this without consulting me. This often resulted in data incompatibilities that caused a bit of downtime, but lots of irritation. One day, however, my frustration reached a peak when some developer accidentally deleted a table that was used by a large number of applications.

PIVOT and OUTPUT

Thu, 13 Apr 2006 11:00:00 EDT

SQL Server 2005 has many new and improved features. So many, in fact, that it would be very difficult to cover them all thoroughly. Therefore, I've been concentrating on those features that I feel will have the most impact on developers. Because of this, I want to present two more new T-SQL features. They were left out of my first T-SQL article because of space limitations. However, I believe that interest in these capabilities has grown, and that they deserve some coverage here.

SQL Server Web Services

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 10:00:00 EST

These days, applications built around a service-oriented architecture (SOA) are all the rage. Complex systems can be written as a collection of services that communicate with each other through standard protocols. When implemented properly, these systems can become immensely flexible, scalable, and easy to maintain. The most common SOA designs utilize Web services as the communications medium, because they can be created and consumed by disparate systems and platforms. This highly useful capability has made Web services a very important part of today's information systems.

A Point of Order: Organize Your Data with SQL Ranking Functions

Sun, 19 Feb 2006 15:45:00 EST

Sequential numbers. Sooner or later, you'll find a process that requires you to generate a series of sequential numbers. As a matter of fact, most database engines provide at least one method of producing such numbers. Microsoft Access, for example, has AutoNumber columns, while SQL Server has IDENTITY columns. However, these are features of tables. There are times when you need some sequential numbers, but creating a table is inconvenient or inefficient. So how does one proceed? How does one obtain a list of sequential numbers without creating tables?

Create XML Easily with FOR XML PATH

Thu, 19 Jan 2006 14:15:00 EST

Do you love XML? Have you been using XML with SQL Server? Many people have, starting way back when with SQL Server 7.0. Back then, there was no support for XML in the database, so we had to write external programs to convert the relational data into an XML format. This was time-consuming and often inefficient. When SQL Server 2000 came out, with its integrated support for XML, there were a lot of high expectations. Unfortunately, XML still couldn't be easily stored in the database, although it could be created and consumed.

T-SQL Grows Up

Fri, 23 Dec 2005 13:45:00 EST

Have you ever heard the expression 'I want it so bad that I can taste it?' Well, that's the way I feel about SQL Server 2005. I've been looking forward to the official release for quite some time. When people ask me why, I usually say 'SELECT TOP X.' In addition to generating some funny looks, this response gets my point across rather nicely. The next version of SQL Server supports many enhancements to the T-SQL language, and the ability to pass a variable to the TOP clause is just one of them. While changes such as this may seem small and insignificant, they can have a large impact on SQL developers.

Jerry Dixon's Exclusive New Column: SQL Server 2005 for the .NET Developer

Sun, 27 Nov 2005 15:15:00 EST

For most of this year, I've been giving presentations and teaching classes on various aspects of Visual Studio 2005 and SQL Server 2005. In my consulting role, I've been constantly presented with problems that, while definitely solvable with current tools, simply screamed for the new products. Alas, like most of you, I haven't been in a position to use these tools in a production environment. Now the wait is over. By the time you read this, production versions of both products should be available to the general public. Now we all need is to help each other learn how to make the best use of the new and improved features that these products provide. That's where .NET Developer's Journal comes in.

Generic Object Configuration

Fri, 20 May 2005 11:00:00 EDT

In a previous article (DNDJ Volume 3, issue 4), I discussed an application that had to load, process, and transmit data received from multiple customers. The system had to perform a specific set of tasks or steps for each customer. Because of the diverse needs of each customer, however, the actual implementation of each step could vary widely, often on a per-customer basis. In addition, new customers would be added long after the application was completed, and the unique requirements of these new customers would also have to be met.

Hot-Swappable Objects

Wed, 11 May 2005 09:00:00 EDT

Like many of you, I have been using .NET since before it was officially released. Even now, after years of using the product, I am still impressed by its incredibly flexible nature. When using the classes in the .NET framework, there are usually half a dozen ways of performing the task at hand.