SQL Server 2005
Making use of the great new features in SQL 2005.
There's two interesting posts over at the MSDN blogs from Craig Freedman about the new PIVOT operator in SQL 2005. First, he gives a nice overview of the operator and how to use it, and then he follows it up with a performance analysis as well. A good read, check it out.
SQL Server User-Defined Functions (UDFs) can return either a single value or virtual tables. However, sometimes we might like for a User-Defined Function to simply return more than 1 piece of information, but an entire table is more than what we need.
Did you know that a new feature in SQL Server 2005 allows you to specify an OVER partition for aggregate functions in your SELECT statements?
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Previously, I had written that UNION ALL (combined with a GROUP BY) is a really quick and easy way to compare two tables. Well, now in SQL 2005, we have another option: using EXCEPT and INTERSECT. And these are even easier!
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I had to do some data clean up the other day, and really needed some regular expression replacements to do the job. Since .NET has a great RegularExpressions namespace, and since SQL 2005 allows you to integrate .NET CLR functions in your T-SQL code, I thought I'd go ahead and experiment with creating a RegExReplace() function.
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I wrote about a few of the new features in SQL 2005 and how they can be used to solve some old "classic" SQL problems very easily, and I thought I'd briefly discuss a few more. Also, if you enjoy baseball, read on!
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The RANK and PARTITION features in 2005 are simply amazing. They make so many "classic" SQL problems very easy to solve.
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Have you visited the SQL Server 2005 Express Downloads page lately?
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Most of these are really basic. Some are my take on established ideas and standards, and may be controversial. Agree or disagree? All feedback is welcome! (well ... mostly the "I agree, you're a genius" feedback is welcome ... but I'll accept all of it, I suppose)
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