Fort Worth SQL Server Users Group

TOPIC:  An Introduction to Profiler and SQL Trace

Profiler (and its underlying subsystem, SQL Trace) is a tool for recording a SQL Server instance's activity. This diagnostic and performance data is valuable for troubleshooting and characterizing a system's workload. Like any powerful tool, misuse can be quite harmful, so great care must be exercised. This session will teach you how to efficiently configure, run, and analyze the data from traces, while minimizing the overhead of the data collection and avoiding common pitfalls.

About Trevor:

Trevor Barkhouse is an Escalation DBA for Terremark Worldwide, Inc., a leading global provider of IT infrastructure services.  His passions are automation, performance tuning, and troubleshooting.  Trevor has spoken at many user group meetings, seven SQLSaturday events, the 2010 Houston TechFest, and last two the PASS Community Summits (North American). 

New features, new toys, new tools! Hear your favorite SQL instructor again before he disappears for another big writing project.  CPT 1 dropped in November and CPT 2 should be out in April. It's slated to be called SQL Server 2011, so it'll be here soon.

Do you have a Zombie Database? Does your database suffer from roaming hordes of problems like the lack of primary and foreign keys, poor normalization, in place updates and deletes,  and an insatiable drive to eat your braaaaaaaaaaaaaains (CPU cycles).

Fear not fellow survivor, for I’ll show you how to control the zombie apocalypse and prepare your data for use with PowerPivot, a free add on for Excel 2010. I’ll show you how to use PowerPivot to slice and dice your data and keep your users safe from the zombie databases which threaten their very way of life. 

David Stein is a SQL Server Business Intelligence DBA specializing in designing, developing, and maintaining Data Warehouses using Microsoft BI Tools. He also has the distinction of being the world's foremost expert with one of the worst Zombie Databases known to man.

Oh my! Zombie movies are a guilty pleasure for me. I may well have to break out the zombie brain Jello molds!

See you there.

Our special guest runs his very own user's group over in Addison for Tableau. He has been a SQL Server professional for many years and has now extended into Tableau and heavy data visualization. Tim has taught us some great SSIS stuff in the past, but know he wants to focus our attention on how to visualize our data. You probably think in tables and code. If you really want to reach your audience, think about how to present it visually. 

This month, we will be meeting in the same location you're all used to, except we will be using an upstairs room.  It's the Tim room, in fact. Every time he presents, this is his room. Maybe Freese & Nichols will paint it yellow to match his laptop.  Thanks again to Mark and Freese & Nichols for hosting us.

Other learning opportunities:

• Free videos for Master Certification training:

http://www.sqlskills.com/T_MCMVideos.asp

• Also, Programmatic Works is producing a few free webinars: http://pragmaticworks.com/Resources/webinars/Month.aspx/91

It's the third Wednesday of the month, but We are not meeting in December in observance of holiday mania/joy.

We wish you glad tidings of a slight increase in hiring! We have quite a few jobs coming up, particularly in Oklahoma City.

Enjoy the season, and see you January 19th.

If you have never gotten to hear this well known SQL author break it down for you, you're missing out. Bryan is going to take us on a foray through MDX.

Bryan Smith is a SQL Server Specialist with Microsoft in Dallas, TX. Before joining Microsoft, Bryan served as a senior architect and trainer with Hitachi Consulting.  At Hitachi Consulting, Bryan helped numerous organizations get started with the development of Business Intelligence programs leveraging Microsoft technologies and is the author of several books on SQL Server technologies

Hear a distinguished and seasoned lecturer speak on mapping spatial data types from SQL server 2008 to online virtual earth and google earth mapping services using APIs. The topics covered will include:

1). Javascripts for APIs

2). AJAX (asunchronous javacript and XML)

3). Example use of stored procedure to query spatial data

4). Web handler as intermediary between SQL server and VE/GE

Dr. Muttiah even promised to hit a little dojo.connect listener for ArcGIS if he has time and if we are good boys and girls.

Our Mascot and host takes the stage to showcase geospatial data types. Mark has worked with ArcGIS for far longer than SQL has supported geospatial data types. He has spent years out in the field and making real life solutions for terabytes of geospatial data. He has deep industry knowledge and I can't wait to hear what he's doing with the new SQL Server 2008 features for geospatial data. 

This coming July 21st is our fourth year! Celebration time! We are delighted to have our very own Jack Green share his experiences with policy based management and what he is doing with the new Facets in SQL Server 2008.

SQL Server 2008 defines over 70 different facets that can be used to manage SQL Server 2008 instances. This introduction to Policy-based management will discuss how those facets can be used to manage the configuration of your SQL Server 2008 databases.  We’ll cover setting policies to monitor and control your SQL Server 2008 environment using real-life scenarios that you can start using right away to help manage your SQL Server databases more effectively.

Jack Green is the Lead Database Administrator at Rapp, a marketing an advertising firm located in Las Colinas. They are currently using policy-based management to manage over 30 SQL Server 2008 instances.

OK, we’re finally past the newness of PowerShell and have some great scripts to apply directly to SQL Server. Trevor has a great show and tell lined up for us!

Description:     This introduction to PowerShell is different than most.  Instead of starting with a full treatment of the language, you will receive a brief overview then a collection of “recipes,” stand-alone PowerShell scripts that automate various administration tasks for SQL Server 2000, 2005, and 2008.  You will learn by example, and quickly realize why investing a little time into learning PowerShell will make your job a great deal easier.  Despite the title, there will be value for database and business intelligence developers too!

Biography:       Trevor Barkhouse is an Escalation DBA for Terremark Worldwide, Inc., a leading global provider of IT infrastructure services.  His passions are automation, performance tuning, and troubleshooting.  Trevor is very active in the community. In addition to recently finishing a term on the board of directors of the North Texas SQL Server Users Group, he has spoken at many user group meetings, three SQLSaturday events, and at the 2009 PASS Community Summit.

Web site:          http://SQLServerSleuth.com/