Last Day to Register for the SSIS class…
12 sessions a month of learning, lots of help from SQL Server MVP Eric Johnson, all about SSIS. You can’t go wrong!
Check it out here to get more information – class starts Sept 1!
Is There a Shortage of SQL Server Experts?
I came across this question in a news group thread and started thinking how I might respond. Then I started asking myself, "am I an expert in SQL Server, or any part of it?"
Frankly, I’m good, and can figure out most things. I’ve been working with Relational databases since 1983, and different brands of SQL since 1985. Still, I don’t consider myself an expert. It seems like every week I find a new facet or feature that I didn’t know. Or I find something I used to know was a fact about SQL Server that is no longer true.
With the growing number of features that are a part of SQL Server I’m just happy to know they exist. For example, I know that SQL Server supports integrating of File Streams into a transaction. I have not had an application that needed that feature, so my knowledge has no experience. SSIS, SSRS, SSAS are all products in their own right, and since bundled with SQL Server tend to be considered a part of that expertise.
I’m thinking we really need more SQL MVPs; people who know generic SQL Syntax; people who know engine specific strategies; people who know different operating systems hosting an SQL engine which has to integrate in some fashion.
MVPs are not necessarily an expert in all things SQL. Instead they share with the SQL community their areas of knowledge, and are willing to help others solve real world problems. In my opinion these are the people who are real champions. MVPs tend to take us from our current point of knowledge and move us forward with resources or instructions for better work. They are contrasted with the expert intentionally making us feel stupid for not asking the right question, or asking the right question with a solution that differs from their experience.
Let’s hear it for the MVP.
So, what does it really take to really be an SQL Server expert? Are there people you consider to be experts in SQL Server? Do you look for experts? What is the true value of an expert? Send your thoughts our comments to btaylor@sswug.org.
Cheers,
Ben
Featured Script
dfrag SQL
This routine uses a cursor to do some defragmentation on your db tables… (read more)
SSWUG.org Free Expo Event Friday, September 24, 2010 9:00 a.m. PT
This free expo will be all about SQL Server Performance Monitoring, Tuning & Troubleshooting. Working with SQL Server to provide for excellent performance means understanding your options. This expo will focus on items you’ll want to know for monitoring your SQL Servers, then what you can do with that information to have systems that work well.
Register here.