Bucket List

This morning I read Brent's blog and I took a cue from his and the following bloggers that wrote a bucket list.
Brent Ozar (blog | twitter)
Sarah Sjolander (blog | twitter) 
Bob Pusateri a.k.a.@SQLBob (blog | twitter) 


This is good timing too, for I have settled in Colorado Springs now and am doing good in my new job. One of my goals, as you'll see, has to do with my career... 


Land my Dream Job - programming for a firm that is flexible, cutting edge, stress free and casual with a fridge stocked with caffeinated drinks and pantry with snacks.


Here are my others:
Go to a World Series Game - Not this one, perhaps one with the Dodgers or Yankees
Visit Italy - My wife is part Italian, I'd love to take her visit her roots
Catch a record (or near record) breaking Bass
Write a Technical Book - not like I written a non technical book either
Travel the country in an RV - hopefully catch a big fish while traveling 
Have my wife and I take grandkids to Disney - still long ways, but its in my list


There it is.

Career Move

Last month, a company in Colorado Springs took interest in my experience. After a few phone calls and email exchanges, I flew out to meet with them. We met up in Denver and they drove me out to Colorado Springs for a very casual meeting, then lunch, as they asked me questions regarding my skills. On the drive back to Denver, I was told to talk to my wife and prepare for a decision to relocate. For those of you who know us well know the event that happened 5 years ago this November that brought us back to El Paso. Even though, my wife and I put some thought into this decision, and have opted to leave El Paso for greener pastures.
I accepted the position the end of August, to begin October 1st. Today marks my last week at my current employer and the following week I will be moving to Colorado Springs, aka, “The Springs”. I will be programming for a software company, going back to more Windows development and less web development. Although the primary platform is in VB.Net and C#, the company is over 20 years old and there are still lines of COBOL in their flagship product that needs conversion. I will also be involved with their SaaS (Software as a Service) module and dashboard products they offer their clients, which means I will still be doing some ASP.Net.
The Springs looks beautiful, this was my second time there. My boys are excited about picking up snowboarding and Myriam loves cold weather. I can’t wait to take my baby girl out to the snow and not worry about it melting away by 10 A.M. I will find it challenging to explain to my kids what Medical Marijuana is though. Seems a lot of the technology firms are out there, Oracle, HP, Verizon just to name a few, so it’s a solid decision that we are moving to the right place.
I will leave some unfinished projects in El Paso. I was organizing a GiveCamp, a weekend long event where programmers and IT pros donate their time to develop a web/software solution for non-profit organizations. I was also starting up a .Net and SQL Server User group for El Paso developers and initiating it with a Code Camp, and day long even with workshops and talks on various techniques with .Net. If anyone is interested taking over these project, feel free to email me. I have put many hours into preparation and made many contacts for these projects that are only a hairline away from getting started. I would hate for these projects to be dropped.
So the countdown continues, one week in counting at work, then finish packing and move to the Rockies.

Installing Python on Linux

Installing Python on Linux


This is an article I contributed in a series of Hacking and Programming, particularly programming Python in Linux.

Twitter and the SQL Server community

Let me share with you the power or Twitter and the SQL Server Community. In a post I wrote about a year ago, Social Networking for Dummies – nay, Beginners Part 2, I explain the uses for Twitter. When I joined a new firm last summer, I knew some of my new skills needed sharpening. To make matters worst, the firm’s applications were on .Net 2003 and SQL Server 2000. At the time, I had worked with only .Net 2005 and SQL Server 2005 but not on a production environments. So it became my goal, and my job, to migrate applications and databases to 2008 platforms accordingly. I’m the developer, that becomes the accidental DBA, and still program .Net applications. I had to do research on our current databases and do performance tuning, check the current disaster recover plan and not to mention develop BI. I was in dire need for help.
Enter the social media assistance. I don’t recall who I followed first, but it could of been @BrianKnight or @PatrickDba when I first found a Pragmatic Works webinar. From then on, my list grew, following DBA’s like @SQLChicken, @SQLVariant and alas, @BrentO, MVP, MCM. Yes, there is a form of DBA Rock stardom in the SQL Community, and in that class, there are only 3 major Rock Star DBA’s. Any DBA that wants to know the best resources, or what a Rock Star DBA has for lunch, reference Tom LaRock’s SQL Rockstar hierarchy page.
I created a Twitter list of Database Experts I follow on a day to day basis. Via these tweeps (Twitter Peeps), it made my learning a lot easier. A lot of these experts have been published by RedGate and Wrox books, just to name a few, so their microblogs are not dull. I don’t care to follow people telling me they “ate a sandwich”, or they had to “visit the dentist”, unless you’re Brent, Paul or Kim. I follow technologist that have a career like mine, and follow the #1 community rule, “share”.
Many of these tweeps have turned me on to books I read and webinars I took. On a daily basis, you see articles they recommend, or blog posts they shared, all of which hold valuable SQL Server information, tips, techniques and news. I must say, this past year has been an experience, that I have been to a TechFest in Dallas and am planning a few more visits to Dallas if SQLSaturday #56 BI Edition opens the waitlist again, all thanks to tweets from my DBA Twitter List. Lastly, there is a hash on Twitter, the #sqlhelp hash, it is like the Batman beacon, you use it when you are in need of an answer to a particular question, use it wisely, “with great power comes great responsibility”. Wow, two superhero comic referenced in one sentence. I have to say, the SQL Server community is very helpful and resourceful, if this is not your cup of tea, this works well with any technology or trade you might want to follow.
I can’t seem to thank ever DBA I follow for I’m sure I have referenced a link or a blog post to help me at one point, but those I remember I’d like to put it out there for others to hopefully follow as well.
Jorge, thanks for SQL University, and great resource.
Patrick, keep those SQL Luncheons going, hopefully audio won’t be a problem on my end soon.
Jen and Sean, I’m still watching those Midnight DBA Videos.
And finally, If you want to start on Twitter properly, I suggest this free PDF, The Simple Twitter Book by @BrentO.

10 Practices That Every Developer Needs to Start Right Now

Dallas TechFest Session by Caleb Jenkins, presented on July 30, 2010

I have to say, Dallas Tech Fest is over and done, but I am still learning from it, especially the 10 Practices every developer should know. Caleb Jenkins, in mine and most opinions, had the best talk of the day. I encourage if anyone has the opportunity to listen to a session of his, go! I encourage you to breeze through the slides. Caleb went over Object Orientation, SOLID, Patterns, Secure Coding, Team Work, Unit Testing and Processes. I’m emphasizing on Object Oriented, which led me to Core Agile OO Design Principles. The Principles of OO Design are SOLID
S - Single Responsibility Principle (SRP). The SRP, also known as SoC, means each class should have only one reason to change.
O - Open Close Principle (OCP). “Software entities should be open for extension, but closed for modification.” — Robert Martin paraphrasing Bertrand Meyer
L - Liskov Substitution Principle (LSP). The LSP is flexible to change behavior by passing different objects around the solution as needed. Caleb was heckled at this point due to a misrepresentation of LSP. If you every seen StrongBad Emails, you’d know what I mean when all I could think was, “… I heard a couple of nerds arguing about it one time.”
I - Inversion of Control (IoC). Objects that depend on other objects to do work should not be responsible for creating those object themselves.
D - Dependency Inversion Principle. The IoC leads to DIP.
These subjects are worth to look over and research from the presentation. I enjoyed the session and hope to share more regarding OOD and SOLID.

10 practices that every developer needs to start right now

View more presentations from Caleb Jenkins.

MVVM in Windows Phone 7

I was very fortunate to attend the Dallas Tech Fest Friday. Much to share in .Net, here is a MVVM session by Chris Koenig. Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

MVVM in Windows Phone 7

View more presentations from Chris Koenig.

T-SQL Tuesday #008: Gettin’ Schooled

T-SQL Tuesday is the brain child of Adam Machanic (Blog|@AdamMachanic). Adam bestows the honor of hosting T-SQL Tuesday upon one lucky blogger each month, this month, the host is SQLServerCentral author and MCM, Robert Davis (Blog|Twitter).

Learning to program isn’t easy, and like the old saying goes, “you never stop learning”. I don’t know if I’m the first to mention, but I never had an intention to “learn” SQL. When I first dove into programming, I remember I created applications that would calculate risk factors and call shell commands or print a batch of documents according to risk priority numbers. It wasn’t until I had to SAVE records that, like many beginners, I created a few tables on MS Access 98 and used DAO to connect via Visual Basic. But up until then, I only had C++ and Visual Basic courses under my belt, not to mention QBASIC. The architecture began to get more complicated, and I was suppose to stop using DAO and VB and use ASP, ADO and a database called, SQL Server 7.0. This was the “Hard Knocks” call, realized I didn’t learn any of this in school. So I ran to Barnes and Nobel one night and figured, with this book, I’ll be ready by morning.

Of course, that was not the case. I did however, learn to create a database and tables with this book. When it was time to code views and stored procedures, there was nothing better than actual test and debug. I will have to admit, and to this day, the reference site that taught me the most was www.w3schools.com. I used that reference at that time I had to learn ASP, ADO and SQL. And to this day I use it for CSS, HTML5, JavaScript and PHP.
Books are good learning tools, and I have a large collection of them, from Distributed Programming in VB 6, Programming C# and Linux Cookbook to Oracle DBA and ADO.Net.
A more modern day method of learning is in the way of the Internet via crowd sourcing. When one crowd sources, they use Twitter or Facebook for instance and reach out to a network for help. I been doing my recent learning from Tweeps (Twitter Peeps) I follow, via #sqlhelp hash tags just to name a few. When you crowd source, you usually get a response from a friend or follower or a link to a site that will answer your questions. This is where you get recommendations to blogs. When you connect with friends on social networks, you find an array of resources to continue your learning, such as webinars and user groups of the subjects you are trying to learn.
I now do most of my recent learning via the web. I will add that formal education is in fact the social norm of learning. When I first went to college, I got a degree in Mass Communications. I decided to return to school to enhance my enthusiasm with computers and took programming classes at a community college. All in all, Books, web sites, webinars, Crowd Sourcing, social networking and formal education make for a good combination of learning.
What am I currently learning and how
I am learning BI (Business Intelligence) for SQL Server 2008 now, I reference the online community and crowd source for knowledge. Although, I did buy Microsoft’s Smart Business Intelligence Solutions with SQL Server 2008 by Langit, Goff, Mauri, Malik and Welch, I do plenty of online learning. I’m don’t negate that books are not as effective, did I mention, a few of the Tweeps I follow are very successful book authors in SQL Server. I recommend the Learn Microsoft BI site and Pragmatic Works webinars. And connect with some of the experts via Twitter or Facebook, ask and learn.

The Road to MCITP: DBA

It’s about that time to focus on a few things, one being Microsoft Certification. I passed the 70-433 Database Developer certification last year. My intention is to become a Microsoft Certified IT Pro Database Developer and DBA.
Microsoft has three Technology Specialist (MCTS) certification and three IT Professional certifications for SQL Server 2008. The MCTS include Implementation and Maintenance (70-432), Database Development (70-433) and Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance (70-448). Each of these are the prerequisite to the IT Professional certifications (MCITP) . For instance if you take 70-432 and 70-450, Designing, Optimizing and Maintaining a Database Server Infrastructure using Microsoft SQL Server 2008, you obtained MCITP Database Administrator. Exam 70-433 along with 70-451, Designing Database Solutions and Data Access Using Microsoft SQL Server 2008, makes you an MCITP Database Developer. Lastly, 70-448 and 70-452, Designing a Business Intelligence Infrastructure Using Microsoft SQL Server 2008, make you an MCITP Business Intelligence Developer.
I plan to log my voyage to obtaining my goals on this blog. I anticipate that discussing any details will boost my confidence, and perhaps will encourage others to shoot for Microsoft certification. You can get more details about SQL Server certification of other products from the Microsoft Learning site.
A few tips that I know of. First and foremost, set a date to test. I noticed I prep more for the exams when I schedule and actually register for the test. Registration fee’s for most MS exams are $125 USD. You can register for an exam at www.prometric.com. Currently, they have an offer, from now until June. I’ve known of the free retake voucher for any Microsoft Exam from Prometric for some time now. I been a very bad geek and have been putting if off for some time.  Also, thanks to Rob Boek, I have obtained a 50% off voucher for the 70-432, the first requirement for Certified DBA. Step one, register, secondly, log into Microsoft Learning Plan with a MS Live account and take advantage of the free Microsoft material which include readings, tutorials and recommended books.
Lot into it. If you’re about to take a test, Good Luck and I Hope this information helped.

SQL Server R2 Countdown

The time upon us is near. MSDN subscribers will be able to download the full second release of SQL Server 2008. I’m looking forward to it. At the organization that I work for, we have been sitting on SQL 2000 for a while. Although we have implemented SQL Server Report Services, it is now time to focus on the new. Our plan of attack includes migration of DTS to SSIS and a full performance tuning routine to include reviewing of index, clusters, bottlenecks, etc. Moreover, our existing Disaster Recovery will be updated, and luckily, R2 should make it easier.
All in all, it’s a very exciting time, with that said, I killed some time creating this simple R2 countdown in JavaScript. If you’re interested, simply copy the code below and add it to your site.

<script language="JavaScript" src="http://gvilla.co.cc/sql_rs_cntdwn.js"></script>

I plan to write more on this as we go along, perhaps I can get some thoughts from others.

Best regards.

SQL Server 2008 R2 announcement

Twenty months after SQL 2008 was released, Microsoft announced this morning SQL Server 2008 R2 has been released to manufacturing in a conference call with Sr. Vice President Ted Kummert. After several “Launch Goofs” and speculated dates, the definite dates are May 3^rd, 2010 for MSDN and TechNet subscribers and the public will have the R2 available to them on May 13^th, 2010. Although, a trial version and a light weight Free SQL Server 2008 R2 Express is already available for download.
Although I cursed Pivot tables at a previous job where we lived by them on a day to day basis, a highly talked about feature of R2 is PowerPivot. PowerPivot is a self serviced data tool for user access using Excel 2010 and SharePoint 2010. A feature I look forward to is the Report Builder 3.0. Coming from Crystal Reports development and just recently began using SSRS, the new release will provide enhanced wizards, visualizations and authoring.
Other features include a Master Data Services to centrally manage critical data assets companywide and across diverse systems. In addition, Master Data Services will enable more people to securely manage master data directly. Also featuring StreamInsight a latency complex event processing platform to help monitor, analyze and act on the data in motion to make more informed business decisions in near real-time.
And even though PBM was only slightly mentioned in the Q&A, R2 will be capable to manage applications and instanced by policy. To learn more about PBM, pick this book up, Pro SQL Server 2008 Policy-Based Management.
To conclude, the most important detail of conference call in Redmond was SQL Server 2008 R2 availability dates, May 3^rd for MSDN and TechNet subscribers and May 13^th available for public download. There’s no Launch party as of yet, however you can get more details on the R2 Digital Tour.

Next Gen iPhone: Lost and Found

Weather Gray Powell lost his iPhone or this is just a distraction so Steve Jobs can really WOW Apple fans for a different announcement, Gray Powell will go down in history. Just like Thomas “John” Crapper (going to the John or taking a Crap), Gray Powell will be synonymous with losing things.

“Make sure you back up that data, you don’t want to Powell it”. “Those Redsox are having a Gray season aren't they?”

But this story needs more fact checking. Why is it that Gizmodo has the scoop and how did they get the phone from the guy sitting next to Powell and some “Random Really Drunk Guy”. Or could this simply be some ploy.

T-SQL Tuesday #005 SQL Server Report Services Basic Parameter Tips

Today is my first attempt to participate in T-SQL Tuesday. T-SQL Tuesday is an idea by Adam Machanic, inviting new and existing SQL Server bloggers to post about the same topic on the same day. I decided to take a look at this Tuesday’s topic, Reporting, and give it a go.
I come from developing Visual Studio applications with SQL Server databases, and Crystal Reports have been my reporting tool of choice. Until now of course, I utilize SQL Server Reporting Services. This has been a recent change, and the hardest thing for me was to find basic help or online resources. Aside from sources writings on how to install and configure SSRS, therefore I share with you basic parameter tricks. The first thing one need to know is they must have SQL Server Business Intelligence Development Studio or Visual Studio installed.
SSRS allows you to set parameters on your report on the SQL syntax. For instance, you want to show a report pertaining to specific date range, your SQL would be something like this:
SELECT ProductID, Description, ModelNo, WarrantyExp FROM Products WHERE WarrantyExp  BETWEEN (@DateFrom and @DateTo)
When you browse to this report, you will see on the toolbar two input boxes, DateFrom and DateTo. Open the “Report Data” Tab from the View menu. You will see a directory with Parameters, these being the ones in your query. You can right click and select their dataype, to where a DateTime datatype will enable a date picker in the input boxes at run time. Keep in mind that the input boxes will be names accordingly to the parameter variable without the “@” sign.