It’s Monday time for this week’s blog and twitter round-up for last week. If you haven’t already, follow me on twitter (@StrateSQL). This is a good chance to catch up on data platform technology and career related information I’ve shared in the last week and activity on this blog.

Most Popular Article Shared

Last weeks most popular link is an article posted by Debra Dove a Program Manager on the the Azure SQL Database.  If you have been considering using SQL Database, this is something to look at when building your architecture.

Last Week’s Popular Posts

The most popular posts on this blog in the week are:

1. 31 Days of SSIS – The Introduction (790)
2. Get Just The Tools: SSMS Download (406)
3. 31 Days of SSIS – Raw Files Are Awesome (1/31) (321)
4. 31 Days of SSIS as a Book (298)
5. Looking to SQL Server 2014 High Availability In Standard Edition (166)
6. Security Questions: Difference Between db_datawriter and db_ddladmin? (156)
7. XQuery for the Non-Expert – Value (156)
8. Security Questions: Removing Logins From Databases (134)
9. Determining Filegroup for a Table (129)
10. 31 Days of SSIS – Generating Row Numbers (23/31) (109)

Last Week’s Top 20 “Reading” Links

Along with the most popular link, here are the top twenty items relating to SQL Server, technology and careers that were shared last week. If you missed them throughout the week, here’s the opportunity to get caught up on some items that other’s read after I linked them out.

1. Managing multiple Azure SQL Databases just got easier with Elastic Database Jobs [22 clicks]
2. Jeremiah & Kendra are Heading Out [20 clicks]
3. Discoveries of an Anti-Gunner: My Conversion to the Other Side [20 clicks]
4. Hekaton In-Memory Tables: HASH Indexes [15 clicks]
5. 9 Leadership Lessons From Toxic Workplaces [15 clicks]
6. 11 Cool Ways to Use Machine Learning [12 clicks]
7. Fun with Database Administration : Improvements for Table Partitioning in SQL Server 2012 [12 clicks]
8. SQL Server Simple and Forced Parameterization [11 clicks]
9. Powershell in a Month Day 13 – Remote Control [10 clicks]
10. DBCC SHOW_STATISTICS Works With SELECT Permission [10 clicks]
11. A 6-Part Structure for Giving Clear and Actionable Feedback [10 clicks]
12. The Power BI app for Android is now available [9 clicks]
13. Statistics (Part 5) – String Index [8 clicks]
14. Can The Best Financial Tips Fit On An Index Card? [7 clicks]
15. 7 Elements of a Great Company Culture [7 clicks]
16. Energy Forecasting in Smart Grids using Azure Machine Learning [7 clicks]
17. Something’s Brewing with Azure Data Factory [7 clicks]
18. Improving the Top / Top Descending Median Solution [7 clicks]
19. Building Data Analytics Pipelines Using Azure Data Factory, HDInsight, Azure ML and More [6 clicks]
20. Azure Backup enables backup of large volumes, VMs, databases and more [6 clicks]
21. Further Testing with Automatic Updates to Statistics [6 clicks]

Last Week’s Posts From Previous Years

Sometimes the most useful content on a blog wasn’t written in the past week, it’s often other articles shared in the past that resonate with readers. Check out the following links that I published in past years over the past week:

1. 31 Days of SSIS – UnPivot Transformation (11/31) (2011-01-11)
2. 31 Days of SSIS – UnPivot Alternative (12/31) (2011-01-12)
3. Find Duplicate Foreign Keys (2009-01-13)
4. 31 Days of SSIS – Create XML Document (13/31) (2011-01-13)
5. 31 Days of SSIS – Instant Excel Spreadsheet (14/31) (2011-01-14)
6. 31 Days of SSIS – Every Which Way Outputs (15/31) (2011-01-15)
7. 31 Days of SSIS – 10 Things About Expressions (16/31) (2011-01-16)
8. 31 Days of SSIS – Environmental Variable(17/31) (2011-01-17)
9. XQuery for the Non-Expert – @Variable Use (2011-01-17)
10. STATS_DATE() Doesn’t Indicate The Validity of Statistics (2013-01-17)
11. 31 Days of SSIS – SQL Server Configuration (18/31) (2011-01-18)

Other Items Shared

Of course, no week would be complete without a few off-topic links. These have nothing to do with technology or your career, but they are interesting and worth a second look.

1. L.A.’s Massive ‘Crater’ Shows Why Parking Is the Biggest Fight in Urban Planning [24 clicks]
2. THE FORCE AWAKENS Director J.J. Abrams Comments on the Lack of Rey Toys | Nerdist [23 clicks]
3. The collapse of parenting: Why it’s time for parents to grow up [23 clicks]
4. Someone Re-Edited Obi-Wan’s Speech About Luke’s Father and It’s Incredible [21 clicks]
5. Updating statistics for Memory-Optimized tables in SQL Server [19 clicks]
6. These Tweaks To Your Morning Routine Will Make Your Entire Day More Productive [17 clicks]
7. At Long Last…My “Star Wars: Episode Vii” Review. The Force Awakens & The Rise Of Idiot Journalism [16 clicks]
8. This is what happens when you reply to spam email [16 clicks]
9. EPIC CATCH!!! Dashing Thru the Snow – CN Train 406 West at Salisbury, NB [10 clicks]
10. Guy runs over CASE OF BEER with SNOWBLOWER!!! [7 clicks]
11. The Regenerating Degenerate Is At It Again: Check Out ‘Deadpool’s’ New Hilarious Promo [8 clicks]
12. Science: It Works [6 clicks]
13. Destiny weekly reset for January 12 – Court of Oryx, Nightfall, Prison of Elders changes detailed [3 clicks]
14. Bison named ‘Sparky’ survives lighting strike, now sports epic battle scar [3 clicks]

Got something you think I should read and share, leave a comment below. Also, if you want to see all of the links that were tweeted out last week?