Data Mining Reloaded

The two main functions of data mining are classification and prediction (or forecasting). Data mining helps you make sense of those countless gigabytes of raw data stored in databases by finding important patterns and rules present in the data or derived from it. Analysts then use this knowledge to make predictions and recommendations about new or future data. The main business applications of data mining are learning who your customers are and what they need, understanding where the sales are coming from and what factors affect them, fashioning marketing strategies, and predicting future business indicators.

The Insight Reports: Grid Computing

In the two years since Insight's last examination of the topic, grid computing has moved out of the laboratory and into mainstream commercial applications. No longer the exclusive tool of researchers seeking to harness enough compute power for massive computational challenges such as weather modeling or weapons test simulations, today grids are being deployed in more traditional commercial computing applications. For example, commercial computing stalwarts IBM, Intel, Hewlett-Packard (HP) and Sun recently announced they were forming the Globus Consortium to drive the technology into the mainstream for applications such as financial analysis, oil exploration and pharmaceutical testing. And within the technical community, new standards being developed called the Web Services Resource Framework (WSRF) will foster convergence of the Web service and grid computing communities, which in the years ahead is likely to have a major impact on quality and diversity of Web services.

SQL Server Data Structure

A look at the page, table, and index structures inside SQL Server.

MSSQL Server 2000 Reporting Services : Black Belt Administration: Exec

We introduced our previous article, Prepare the Execution Log for Reporting, with a discussion about a valuable source of information for performance and auditing analysis, identifying the Report Server Execution Log as a great place to start for this sort of reporting. We noted that the Execution Log captures data specific to individual reports, including when a given report was run, identification of the user who ran it, delivery destination of the report, and which rendering format was used, among other information.

Interviewing With a Dud

Looking for a new job? Trying to move up the career ladder and gain another position? This article is not SQL Server or DBA specific, but Steve Jones takes a look at the actual interview. The interview where the person conducting the interview is not prepared and what you can do to shine.

PASS Summit 2005 Deadline for Abstracts Approaching

THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS MARCH 4, 2005. Don’t miss your chance to be a part of the largest educational event exclusively dedicated to SQL Server! The 2005 PASS Community Summit in Grapevine, TX offers a great opportunity to both share your experience, tips and techniques with fellow SQL Server professionals and to solidify yourself as a SQL Server expert. You can share the stage with user-experts from around the world, a host of MVPs and many key members of the Microsoft SQL Server development team who are participating at the PASS Community Summit for one reason – to enrich and inspire the user community.

SQL Tools Case Study

Three years ago, the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) made a critical decision: Faced with the limitations of its 18-year-old mainframe system hard-wired to 43 county offices, the DJJ began using SQL Server tools to develop a web-based system for tracking juvenile offenders.

Armed with a three-year, $1.8 million grant from the Federal government, the DJJ first shifted responsibility for computer technology from the Division of the State Chief Information Officer to a newly formed IT group.

The SQL Server Web Data Administrator

Do you need the ability to manage your SQL Server data wherever you are? Microsoft released a Web interface that can help you manage your SQL Server databases. With this tool, called the SQL Server Web Data Administrator, you can:

* Perform ad-hoc queries against databases and save them to your file system.
* Create/edit databases in SQL Server 2000 or MSDE 2000.
* View, create, and edit stored procedures.
* Export and import database schema and data.
* Manage users and roles.

The Case of the Stolen Laptop: Mitigating the Threats of Equipment The

The fear of having laptops stolen is a huge worry for all organizations. Maybe it’s even happened to you (I hope not!). The solution is simple, really -- don’t let your laptop get stolen. (I can hear you laughing now.) Keep the thing with you at all times, or leave it in your hotel room when you don’t want to carry it around. Yes, everyone has heard the warnings about hotel room theft, but I’ve never had something stolen from a hotel room and I spend well over 200 nights a year in hotels. (If you travel to a location where the general population has kleptomaniac tendencies, stay in hotels that offer safes in the room.) You’re far more likely to leave your laptop or PDA or smart phone or USB drive lying on the seat in a taxi or on the counter at a bar.

The Perils of Fiber Mode

Ken Henderson explains the effects that SQL Server fiber mode coupled with the User Mode Scheduler component can have on your system, and what to consider carefully before enabling fiber mode.