The Religious Wars
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As DBAs we are taught to quickly say two words in response to almost any question.
"It Depends"
Of course those two words don't make you an expert because you then need to expand upon the argument and give the reasons why it depends, the impact of different scenarios, other considerations, tradeoffs, etc. But we always start off with "it depends."
Because it does.
The older I get, and the longer I stay in the computer business, the more I see there are tradeoffs and decisions that need to be made that may not result in what we would do in a different situation. What is the best decision for a database design or a query in one company isn't the one that we might make for the same application in a different company.
That leaves out the fact that I'm not sure of what's "best" in most situations because there are tradeoffs in different designs. There are certainly better performing and worse performing choices. There are portable and non-portable solutions. There are all different kinds of choices that we make for a particular application and a particular situation.
We've some debates and discussions, even degenerations into name calling in our forums, many times because someone is sure they have a rule that everyone should follow. Don't use NULLs, no Temp Tables, no cursors, the list goes on and on. I've seen some incredible debates over the years that never seem to resolve themselves.
However, there is one thing that I am pretty sure of: there are no absolutes.
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Beg to Differ Steve, there is one absolute. That is the absolute which states there are no absolutes!
regards,
Rob
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Well... it depends...
--Jeff Moden
RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally) -
"Always" and "Never" are two words people should always remember never to use. Especially when giving advice.
Original author: https://github.com/SQL-FineBuild/Common/wiki/ 1-click install and best practice configuration of SQL Server 2019, 2017 2016, 2014, 2012, 2008 R2, 2008 and 2005.
When I give food to the poor they call me a saint. When I ask why they are poor they call me a communist - Archbishop Hélder Câmara
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But Rob, are you absolutely certain there are no absolutes?
ANS: It depends.
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Steve, you are absolutely wrong on this one... depending.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore RooseveltAuthor of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning -
As to absolutes: Are we talking religion here? THAT will start a whole bunch of arguments.
It's not easy being a DBA/Developer/Theologion
ATBCharles Kincaid
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In programming anything - not only databases - there are no absolutes - just tradeoffs and styles and preferences. In religion, there are absolutes - without these absolute truths, there is no religion. In other words, I understand the full irony of your editorial title.
Mia
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"Irony"... thanks for the reminder... I gotta iron a shirt for tomorrow's holy war with management
--Jeff Moden
RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally) -
I can positively, most definitely state that I am almost 100% confident that we are mostly talking about databases.
I think.
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Very true.
I had a physics teacher that loved to ask suddenly "is that fast?" or "is that small?" after lecturing on a speed of a beam or size of a particle.
He always had several people that would fall for it, to answer you need to know relative to what, there are no absolutes.
Well, other than that *one* absolute
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Right you are. Mostly. I tend to write about ethics in softeware. A definition that I was given is that "Ethics is good people trying to do well." I got that from Dr. Flannegan - but she is also Sister Flannegan.
Doing the "right thing" is more than a once a week thing. We have our different beliefs and traditions. The gift that we have of being able to trot them out, compare, contrast, and enjoy is a marvel. It is freedom. Something that I feel strongly about.
Welcome to the fire.
ATBCharles Kincaid
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I tend to follow Nancy Reagan's slogan that she once made so popular.
"Just say No"
So when I'm asked a question, I say No first. Then I make the inquirer expand on their own question, providing more information then they originally provided. Sometimes, this works in letting them answer their own question themselves before I have to say "it depends".
Otherwise the answer is still No.
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I say we start a jihad on all the Oracle DBA's, whose with me?
Oh sorry you meant "It Depends" on what you need to do or not do or might do or want to do or maybe need to do or just think you need to do.
Joke on a freind the other day when asked why I don't like Oracle, I said "You're wrong, I love Oracle, otherwise I wouldn't have a SQL Server DBA", he then thought about the fact he is my SQL Server DBA and used to be an Oracle DBA.
It Depends.
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I don't know what you are talking about I run oracle and SQL Server together everyday and I have no problem I am a developer so Oracle new SQL Developer GUI is just fine for me if I am a DBA I may have to buy Embarcadero I know it shows matrices in Oracle that are useful but is also very good with SQL Server from 7.0.
I am a programmer I do things to create solutions so there is no correct way to do things, only solutions one reason I am not an ANSI SQL purist I just use ANSI SQL.
Kind regards,
Gift Peddie
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