Executing Heavy Set-Based Operations Against VLDBs in SQL Server

In this article, we will discuss about executing heavy set-based operations against Very Large Datatabases (VLDBs) in SQL Server.   Introduction Recently I had to design and execute some heavy set-based T-SQL operations against a large number of very large databases (VLDBs) within a SQL Server instance. I won’t enter the debate of Row-Based vs. … Read more…

Using Unicode in SQL Server

In this article, we will be discussing about using Unicode in SQL Server.   Introduction Unicode is the standard used in the computing industry for encoding and representing any text in the most written languages (…). SQL Server supports Unicode, thus allowing the easy storage and manipulation of data in the most languages.   Example … Read more…

Microsoft MVP for the third year in a row!

Today is a very special day! I just got re-awarded with the Microsoft MVP Award on SQL Server for the third year in a row! —————————————— Dear Artemakis Artemiou, Congratulations! We are pleased to present you with the 2011 Microsoft® MVP Award! This award is given to exceptional technical community leaders who actively share their … Read more…

Selected Tweets of Year 2010!

Well, I guess that’s it. It’s time to say goodbye to 2010 and welcome a brand new year: 2011! Like last year, in this post I am presenting a set of selected tweets I did in 2010 grouped into different categories. Again, it was a great experience communicating with the SQL Server Community among other, … Read more…

Segmenting Strings in SQL Server

Lately I have been dealing a lot with SQL Server development that involves among other, segmenting strings. So, I decided to post an example-based article that discusses some simple ways of segmenting strings with T-SQL mainly by using the SUBSTRING built-in function and some other built-in functions such as CHARINDEX, LEFT, RIGHT and LEN. Additionally, … Read more…

Categorization of Blog Posts

Sometimes I get asked; “Hey Artemis, are you a SQL Server Administrator or a Developer?” I then answer: “none of the two” 🙂 I would rather prefer calling myself a Data Architect as I believe it is more accurate. In a relevant article I posted a year ago, I talked about the responsibilities of database … Read more…

Eliminating Blank Spaces in SQL Server Tables

In this article, we will be discussing about eliminating blank spaces in SQL Server table records and columns.   About Blank Spaces Blank spaces always needed special handling in many programming languages. This is not an exception in the case of the SQL programming language. In SQL Server, a variety of built-in string functions exist … Read more…

Product Review: SQL Search – Searching for SQL Text Within SQL Server DB Objects

Some time ago Red Gate released SQL Search, a SSMS add-in that allows the user to search for fragments of text within database objects in a SQL Server instance! Yes, I know, this is cool! 🙂 There are many scenarios where the tool can come in handy. For example, imagine trying to perform a modification … Read more…

Congratulations 2010 Microsoft MVP!‏

Today is a very special day! I am proud to announce that I received the MVP award for the second time in a row! ——————————————————————- Dear Artemakis Artemiou,Congratulations! We are pleased to present you with the 2010 Microsoft® MVP Award! This award is given to exceptional technical community leaders who actively share their high quality, … Read more…

Selected Tweets of Year 2009!

This is a rather different post than the usual. As the end of year 2009 approaches, I decided to publish a selected number of tweets I did, grouped into different categories. It was a great experience to communicate with the Community, among other, by using Twitter. Throughout tweeting it was possible to easily and directly … Read more…

Using the OUTPUT Clause: A simple data archiving example

In this article, we will be discussing about the OUTPUT clause in SQL Server, and how we can use it for creating data archiving mechanisms.   What is the OUTPUT Clause in SQL Server? The OUTPUT Clause in T-SQL as described in the relevant MS Docs article, “returns information from, or expressions based on, each … Read more…