[dba-SQLServer] Wizards, books, etc.

Thanks for the encouragement.  

One of the problems that many of us face is the sheer diversity of the job
spec.  I have to this point worked mostly in Access because my job was
delivering database applications to small companies as a consultant.  I do
not "have a job" or "have a boss" I have many different jobs and many
different bosses.  

I happened to get a client that wanted a database done is SQL Server,
importing a huge (to me, coming from Access) address list into SQL Server.
It slowly over time morphed (as these things tend to do) and the complexity
morphed with it.  It is no longer "just a list" maintained in SQL Server but
moving towards a full blown application intended to "merge" multiple lists
into a single master name / address system, complete with time stamps for
when a person lived at a specific location, and the ability to export /
import all the data to a system for Address validation, and another system
for building queries against the data.

And so here I am struggling to learn a very complex tool (SQL Server) which
I never really had a need for until this specific job came along.  And of
course VB.Net in order to take the user interface and utilities out of
Access and into an environment where the application can breath.  I am
essentially starting from scratch in both tools.  And of course I am
building servers, installing OSs and SQL Server and Visual Studio and... all
the rest of the stuff needed...

A lot to learn, quickly, and yet still supporting all of my existing Access
clients too.  That is one reason that I try to use the wizards where I can,
to stretch out the learning curve a bit.

I have always been a "Yes, I can do that" kind of guy, and I will, but it is
stressful ATM.

John W. Colby
Colby Consulting
www.ColbyConsulting.com
-----Original Message-----
From: dba-sqlserver-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:dba-sqlserver-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of David Lewis
Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2007 1:42 PM
To: dba-sqlserver at databaseadvisors.com
Subject: Re: [dba-SQLServer] Wizards, books, etc.


Hi John:  

Re: "time to get past the wizards" -- very true.  They are great, but as
soon as one gets past 123 (which your project passed long ago) they are more
trouble than they are worth.

Re:  "gotta get a book" -- Ken Henderson's books are great, Itzak ben Gani,
Joe Celko, and of course the one at your fingertips (BOL!!)...  In addition
I highly recommend a sql server magazine subscription, sswug.org, and
sqlservercentral.com.  

I started in Access ~10 years ago, then was compelled to move to sql server
~7.  I was used to building queries in Access' gui, and absolutely hated
(and was incapable of) writing raw sql.  However, once I made the plunge and
weaned myself from access, I found there were many many more possibilities
that were not possible in the gui.  By that I mean there are many t-sql
structures that the gui cannot display, and because I had limited myself to
the gui I had never learned them.  Sort of like playing the piano with two
fingers, then suddenly discovering you have 8 more.  It takes some practice
to bring the other 8 into play, but once you do there is no going back.  

I realize it is hard to do all this while under the pressure of deadlines,
but hang in there.  

D


Message: 4
Date: Wed, 16 May 2007 16:55:50 -0400
From: "jwcolby" <jwcolby at colbyconsulting.com>
Subject: Re: [dba-SQLServer] Output wizard choked
To: <dba-sqlserver at databaseadvisors.com>
Message-ID: <20070516205549.0BD06BBF8 at smtp-auth.no-ip.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"

Yep.  I am actually using Left().  Thanks.

Now I can't get the output wizard to allow me to edit the field widths for a
fixed width output.  

I do so love this stuff.

Time to get past the wizards I suppose.

John W. Colby
Colby Consulting
www.ColbyConsulting.com
-----Original Message-----

------------------------------

Message: 5
Date: Wed, 16 May 2007 16:59:24 -0400
From: "jwcolby" <jwcolby at colbyconsulting.com>
Subject: Re: [dba-SQLServer] Output wizard choked
To: <dba-sqlserver at databaseadvisors.com>
Message-ID: <20070516205923.5927EBDC4 at smtp-auth.no-ip.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"

I gotta get a book for this stuff.

John W. Colby
Colby Consulting
www.ColbyConsulting.com
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