Are the posted questions getting worse?

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Are the posted questions getting worse?

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Ron McCullough SSC Guru Points: 63877 More actions · Answer 1

Roy Ernest
With all due respect, I disagree. In SSC, yea you are right or maybe right. But not in your own DB at your work place. If you want to see that your DB is working in the optimal way, you should have some basic standards that you enforce on the DB objects that you or your developers create.

To a considerable extent in 2008 Policy Based Management (PBM) allows you to implement what I would consider to be standards perhaps not to the extent you would desire, but nevertheless it is a tool worth your consideration and a step in the direction you want to travel. Couple that tool with acquainting your developers with the templates available in SSMS and you have a potent set of tools to work with

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

Ron

Please help us, help you -before posting a question please read[/url]
Before posting a performance problem please read[/url]

jcrawf02 SSC-Insane Points: 24198 More actions · Answer 2

You know, reading my own post, I can't help hearing:

What is your name?

What is your quest?

What is your favorite color?

---------------------------------------------------------
How best to post your question[/url]
How to post performance problems[/url]
Tally Table:What it is and how it replaces a loop[/url]

"stewsterl 80804 (10/16/2009)I guess when you stop and try to understand the solution provided you not only learn, but save yourself some headaches when you need to make any slight changes."

Lynn Pettis SSC Guru Points: 442467 More actions · Answer 3

You know, geeks can be quite humurous. Too bad we're the only ones that seem to understand our humor! 😛

tosscrosby SSCoach Points: 18045 More actions · Answer 4

GSquared (2/25/2009)
I don't know about the three or more spaces thing. I've seen ones with punctuation and such that were basically a full description of the purpose of the database. Those are definitely "kill it before it gets to the children" situations. But spaces? I'm not so sure. They're bad, but are they that bad? 🙂

I started a new job about a year ago. One of the production databases was ported from Access (which is still the front end - until July - rewrite!!) and the database name is fine but all tables and nearly every field has spaces in it. A pain using the square brackets but it is the hand I was dealt. That all goes away in a few months so you kind of grin and bear it. Not my design but it's worked for them for a number of years.

-- You can't be late until you show up.

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 5

lmu92 (2/25/2009)
From my point of view any type of best (or recommended) practice does not need to be mentioned as an "entry requirement for requests" unless there is any "reward" for OP's following that practise versus others that don't.

Heh... there is a reward... they get their questions answered quicker and, if they've provided the necessary test data, they get tested answers.

--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)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 6

GSquared (2/25/2009)
Bob Hovious (2/25/2009)
Hey G 🙂
It's not barrier to entry. Nobody has to take a test on the material. It's just something that first time OPs should read before they ask their question. If they spend five minutes reading it, they might even get their question answered faster.
This community is committed to helping everyone, regardless of their skill level, which is a great thing. The point is that the more people you can teach to ask correctly, the faster you can get their questions answered and the more time will be available to help others. Also, as was previously pointed out, sometimes just setting up the question helps an OP see the answer.
Many of you have heard the old saying "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and he can feed himself for a lifetime." Just out of curiousity, how many of you see this forum's ultimate objective to be giving people fish, or teaching them to fish?
I see having to read moderately technical documents before being allowed to post as a barrier to entry. Terms and conditions are already there to be bypassed, why add more to it that can be ignored just as easily?
I kind of judge the fish thing by the person I think I'm dealing with.
Some people want to go to the grocery store and buy a fish.
Some seem to want a free fish just for being alive.
Some would like to learn how to fish, but don't have the time.
Some are already skilled hunters, and just need a fish this once to supplement their venison.
Some are ready to learn how to fish and just need to learn how to stop poking themselves with the hook.
Some already know how to fish, but are having bad luck with their current pole and bait.
Periodically, someone who is already a master fisherman just can't seem to find his bait that particular morning.
And sometimes you teach someone to fish, and he spends his days drinking beer and lying about how many miles long the one that got away was.
(Maybe I'm getting too much mileage out of that metaphore.)

Heh... and some, apparently, have a real hankering for pork chops! 😛

--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)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 7

Steve Jones - Editor (2/25/2009)
I like that code, but then Jeff will get upset over the leading commas. I find myself constantly moving his trailers to leaders. Can't someone explain to him how to format stufff!?!?!!?!! 😛

Heh... it'll never happen. People do it supposedly to make commenting out easier... there's no difference between the two methods except for the first or last row. And, since I don't start paragraphs or sentences with commas in writing, it's just not going to happen on my watch.

Personally, I think it's a butt ugly kludge hatched by a very bored ESL. 😉

--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)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 8

jcrawf02 (2/25/2009)
*sniff *sniff - smells like fish in here. :hehe:
I think perhaps what we're looking for are a couple of questions that need to be answered as part of the post?
something like:
1 - what are you trying to accomplish?
2 - what have you already tried?
3 - do you have sample scripts available with sample data? (see http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/ for help with this)
4 - What is your question?
Then it's part of the form, not a barrier requirement before posting. Even if they don't fill it out, it's right there in front of them, begging to be noticed.
Forgot one,
5 - do you use leading commas? (this results in expulsion)

6. Especially for those with letters after their name who should be able to find simple answers to simple questions in BOL or by Googling or anyone who answers "Yes" to question #5 ... do you like pork chops? 😉

--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)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 9

I'm going to give up my formatting habits on this forum... from now on, I'm going to post all code with no comments, all upper case, and, heh... no spaces... 😛

[font="Courier New"]SELECTTOP11000IDENTITY(INT,1,1)ASNINTODBO.TALLYFROMMASTER.DBO.SYSCOLUMNSSC1,MASTER.DBO.SYSCOLUMNS

SC2ALTERTABLEDBO.TALLYADDCONSTRAINTPK_TALLY_NPRIMARYKEYCLUSTERED(N)WITHFILLFACTOR=100GRANTSELECTONDBO.TALLYTOPUBLIC[/font]

--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)

Steve Jones - SSC Editor SSC Guru Points: 736255 More actions · Answer 10

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

SSC Guru

Points: 736255

February 25, 2009 at 9:00 pm

#950388

Red...No, blue...AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Steve Jones - SSC Editor SSC Guru Points: 736255 More actions · Answer 11

Sorry, Jeff, had to edit that one. Boy that's annoying when someone does that.

Speaking of which....maybe I should make it a development priority to automatically format all code with leading commas 😉

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 12

Steve Jones - Editor (2/25/2009)
Sorry, Jeff, had to edit that one. Boy that's annoying when someone does that.
Speaking of which....maybe I should make it a development priority to automatically format all code with leading commas 😉

Does what?

Heh... the way I figure it, if you can finally get it so code windows don't include smiley faces, then you can do the leading comma thing... I've been looking for a new forum anyway... 😉

--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)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004360 More actions · Answer 13

Hey! By the way, Steve... is there a way to enforce a max width limit on the code windows? Say, at 120 characters so when some of these folks post, it doesn't come out a 1,000 characters wide?

--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)

RBarryYoung SSC Guru Points: 143329 More actions · Answer 14

Jeff Moden (2/25/2009)
... or anyone who answers "Yes" to question #5 ... do you like pork chops? 😉

Love 'em! :w00t:

[font="Times New Roman"]-- RBarryYoung[/font], [font="Times New Roman"] (302)375-0451[/font] blog: MovingSQL.com, Twitter: @RBarryYoung [font="Arial Black"]
Proactive Performance Solutions, Inc. [/font][font="Verdana"] "Performance is our middle name."[/font]

RBarryYoung SSC Guru Points: 143329 More actions · Answer 15

Jeff Moden (2/25/2009)
I'm going to give up my formatting habits on this forum... from now on, I'm going to post all code with no comments, all upper case, and, heh... no spaces... 😛
[font="Courier New"]SELECTTOP11000IDENTITY(INT,1,1)ASNINTODBO.TALLYFROMMASTER.DBO.SYSCOLUMNSSC1,MASTER.DBO.SYSCOLUMNS
SC2ALTERTABLEDBO.TALLYADDCONSTRAINTPK_TALLY_NPRIMARYKEYCLUSTERED(N)WITHFILLFACTOR=100GRANTSELECTONDBO.TALLYTOPUBLIC[/font]

So now, you're an IBM JCL programmer? 😀

[font="Times New Roman"]-- RBarryYoung[/font], [font="Times New Roman"] (302)375-0451[/font] blog: MovingSQL.com, Twitter: @RBarryYoung [font="Arial Black"]
Proactive Performance Solutions, Inc. [/font][font="Verdana"] "Performance is our middle name."[/font]