As I write this it's been a long day, starting 15+ hours ago and I've still got some work to do. Attending a conference is never a break for me, with very long days, mediocre food, too much coffee, and not enough adult beverages. At least not until late at night, at which point I pay for them the next day. It's a grinding week, usually 55-60 hours of time listening, talking, and meeting with people.

TechEd in the past has been a huge show, with so many people it's a little mind boggling, almost like being in university during exam week. People moving quickly around the floor, packing in knowledge, others moving slower and having fun, and always lots of fun intermingled with work. Last year was well over 11,000 people, lots of swag, and a buzz that you could feel.

This year things are subdued, less people, less of an audience with the developers having been through here last year, it's almost like the show is half the size. And not only are there less people, it's less exciting, and there's less extravagance. I don't see the donut or espresso machines, though there's plenty of coffee.

For me the conferences are really about networking with people. Reconnecting with those I haven't seen since other shows, meeting new people, and since I'm volunteering at the Microsoft booth (look for the green, SQL Server manageability area if you want to say "hi"), I'm also trying to provide answer and information to those coming here to learn. I get ideas for editorials and articles, just as in years past I got ideas for solutions as a DBA. There's still lots of information and opportunities to get inspired if you ar emotivated.

So what are the hot things for SQL Server I've seen?

RC0 is the main one. I'm still hearing Q3 as the release time frame, and as of last Friday, Release Candidate 0 was let go to MSDN And TechNet subscribers. This week we're handing out lots of DVDs and since Q2 is almost over, this code is likely very, very close to what will be released. If you are considering an upgrade from SQL Server 2000, download or pick up a copy and start testing.

The guidance I've gotten from many people is that the upgrade from SQL Server 2000 to SQL Server 2008 is no different than the upgrade from SQL Server 2000 to SQL Server 2005. So why give up three years of your life cycle? If you're upgrading now, slow down and move the remaining servers to 2008. If you're worried about the pain moving from SQL Server 2000, it's the same pain for 2008 as 2005, so push on those vendors to get compliant, do some research, and test, test, test. Then upgrade.

SQL Server 2008 is an enhanced version of SQL Server 2005. There are lots of new features, but the core items are SQL Server 2005 and not much as changed. However I think there are two major things to consider for 2008 that DBAs should keep an eye on: PBM and Powershell.

YASL (Yet Another Scripting Language) is what many people say about Powershell, but it's got lots of advantages over other scripting solutions, and more importantly, it's built into SQL Server and almost every other Microsoft product. I've been skeptical, but I think this will have some staying power, so I'd urge you to learn a thing or two about it. It's in RC0 as well as Windows 2008, so you can play with it there or download it and use it in a few other products.

The second thing is the Policy Based Management. It's new, it's a 1.0 product, it needs some enhancements and I'm sure it has some bugs, but this type of declarative rules-type management is where other products are trying to be as well, so I'd say this is one technology worth learning.

If you're not at TechEd, I hope you get to go sometime, and I hope that Microsoft moves back to the one week format. It's a great, inspiring, exciting show and worth attending if you get the chance.

Steve Jones

Podcasts

The podcasts are suspended today because of time and resource constraints. Look for them to return tomorrow.