Join us Wednesday, 11/14/2018 at the Alliance Safety Council for this month's user group! This month will be out speaker idol where we'll
have 5 short form presentations by local speakers plus a demo presentation by
this month's sponsor Quest
Software!
Speaker idol generally tends to be one of our more entertaining meetings of
the year. Come get a few nuggets of knowledge and get your final
geek-friend fix before your holidays gets into full swing, as we won't be
meeting again until January!
Agenda:
• 5:45 - 6:15: Introduction/Food and Drinks
• 6:15 - 7:30: Presentations
• 7:30 - Until: Open forum for questions
Contestant Topics:
Theming Bootstrap
Intro to Extended Events
Embedded PowerBI: What Good is Data if Nobody Sees it?
The Option Pattern: A pattern for eliminiating bugs like null-pointer
exceptions, unhandled exceptions, and race conditions
The Vim text editor
All of our meetings are open to the public, open to students, folks looking
to get into the fieldand
those looking to move up! Please spread the word and come prepared to learn and
share your knowledge and experience!
This month's meeting is brought to you by Quest
Software!
The data analysis expression (DAX) language is easy, most Power BI users learn DAX in days, if not hours! From there the analytical value of data models can be significantly improved with minimal effort by using simple DAX calculations. Eventually, every power bi user comes to the realization that there is much more to the DAX language than they could have ever imagined.
Unfortunately, the gap between the basics of DAX and advanced applications of DAX is quite wide. In this session, you will start building the knowledge necessary to “bridge” that gap so that you can author, with confidence, DAX solutions that solve complex business problems.
Lightning Round:
Intro to Extended Events - John Wells
It's time to go all in on Extended Events! In this quick demo, I will go over Extended Events, show you how easy they are to set up and my favorite Event that makes capturing code simple!
Bios:
Mitchell Pearson is a Business Intelligence Consultant and the Training Content manager for Pragmatic Works. Mitchell has experience developing enterprise level BI Solutions using the full suite of products offered by Microsoft (SSRS, SSIS, SSAS, & Power BI). Mitchell is very active in the community presenting at SQL Saturday events, PASS virtual chapters, the Power BI World Tour and giving free webinars for Pragmatic Works. Mitchell can also be found blogging at mitchellpearson.com.
Originally from Southern California, John Wells is enjoying the slower pace here in Louisiana. He continues his journey with PowerShell and Performance Tuning. If he is not at a SQLSaturday event or a LSU game, he is grilling something or killing some crawfish! Actually he smokes more than he grills, but when he says this people look at him funny.
posted Sep 10, 2018, 10:18 AM by Andy Parkerson
[
updated Sep 10, 2018, 10:19 AM
]
Wednesday, September 12, 2018
5:45 PM
Alliance Safety Council
10099 N Reiger Rd
Baton Rouge, la 70809
Agenda:
• 5:45 - 6:15: Introduction/Food and Drinks
• 6:15 - 7:30: Presentations
• 7:30 - Until: Open forum for questions
This week we will be doing BBQ for dinner so please RSVP so that we get an accurate head count!
Main Presentations:
Building Component Based UIs with Asp.Net Core Razor Page - Bryan McCoy
Asp.Net Razor pages are the newest aspect of the Asp.Net toolbox. In this talk we will go over some of the basic features of Razor Pages as well as how to design and build components and component based UIs.
Introduction to PowerApps - Devin Knight
In this session, you’ll learn how to create your first application using PowerApp. PowerApps is part of the Power Platform from Microsoft and provides a business-friendly way of creating applications quickly that can integrate with the Microsoft Power BI and Flow platforms for visualizing and moving data. This technology is one of the hottest new offerings from Microsoft and included in your Office 365 subscription.
Lightning Round:
TBA
Bios:
Bryan McCoy is a Software Developer who primarily focuses on the web side of things. He has worked for the City of Baton Rouge, various consulting companies both locally and in Chicago, and now works for BCBSLA. By day he focuses on the Microsoft stack, but by night he loves all things Linux. He spends most of his time programming in C# and/or Javascript with frameworks such as Asp.Net Core, AngularJs, and React.
Devin Knight a Microsoft Data Platform MVP and the Training Director at Pragmatic Works. He is an author of seven SQL Server and Business Intelligence books and speaks at conferences like PASS Summit, PASS Business Analytics Conference, SQL Saturdays and Code Camps. He is also a contributing member to several PASS Virtual Chapters. Making his home in Jacksonville, FL, Devin is the Vice President of the local Power BI User Group and SQL Server User Group (JSSUG).
posted Jul 23, 2018, 11:07 AM by william assaf
[
updated Jul 23, 2018, 11:08 AM
]
Free training day for SQL Server, PowerBI, .NET and more
SQLSaturday is a global event to bring Information Technology speakers and professionals together for a community-driven, community-attended free day of technical training. The Baton Rouge SQLSaturday event is sponsored by the Baton Rouge SQL Server and .NET User Groups, and will be our annual event on campus at LSU. We expect 600+ regional IT professionals and national speakers to join us. This free conference is open to the public and is perfect for students, CIO's, database administrators, developers, IT managers, server admins and job-seekers.
An all day FREE training event with SQL Server, Development and SharePoint related sessions spread out over multiple tracks of Business Intelligence, Database Administration, SQL Development, SharePoint, IT Pro and .NET development.
When:
Saturday, August 11, 2018. Registration is now open, but it is filling up fast so reserve your spot now. Attendee check-in will begin at 8:00 AM first sessions beginning at 9:15 AM.
You MUST print your SpeedPASS and bring it with you! We will NOT be providing blank raffle tickets this year. If you do not print and bring your SpeedPASS, you will not be able to register for the Raffle!
posted Jun 15, 2018, 11:58 AM by william assaf
[
updated Jun 18, 2018, 11:12 AM
]
What is Networking Night?
Many professional organizations have an annual meeting dedicated to career development and professional networking.
Networking Night is a special User Group format where we will have several short-format talks, networking and career development, and an opportunity for Baton Rouge SQL Saturday sponsors to have an official presence to do recruiting, evangelism, etc.
Who should attend? Everyone should attend free Networking Night! Starting in 2014 and through 2017, each year 50+ IT professionals including many newcomers attended this fun event!
Looking for a job? Meet and greet, bring your resume
Hiring? Introduce yourself to folks in your needed the field
Current Student? Talk to your future colleagues and managers
Are you a Gold or Platinum sponsor of SQLSaturday Baton Rouge 2018? Part of your sponsorship comes with an official presence at Networking Night! Please join us and fill out the speaker signup form.
Instead of a regular user group meeting, Networking Night is open to everyone in the Baton Rouge IT community, for free!
• 5:45 - 6:15: General Introduction/Food and Drinks
• 6:15 - 7:30: Presentations
• 7:30 - Until: Open forum for questions
Main Presentation:
Yoke Wanneevechasilp from Lucid, LLC
Main Topic:
Demo of a data mart from end-to-end using AWS Redshift as a database, ETLs in Python and Power BI as a front-end for data interaction and visualization
Bio:
Yoke Wanneevechasilp is a Tech Lead in BI Engineering at Lucid. Yoke has experience working in numerous industries, including fiancial services, market research, construction, healthcare, technology, education, government and manufacturing. Her expertise has included project lifecycle management, data modeling, data integration, and enterprise BI solutions using Microsoft BI Stack (SSIS, SSAS, SSRS), Power BI, Informatica PowerCenter, IDQ, MDM and Python. Yoke loves dogs, gardening, and beach volleyball.
Lightning Round:
Willow Sells from ShoppersChoice.com
Lightning Round Topic:
Google AMP pages for a faster mobile web
Bio:
Willow Sells is a full-stack developer at ShoppersChoice.com. She likes building things and solving problems. Her current position at ShoppersChoice requires her to play with everything from databases to SEO optimization. In her spare time, she builds circuits for fun projects, dances, and goes adventuring.
Many professional organizations have an annual meeting dedicated to career development and professional networking.
Networking Night is a special User Group format where we will have several short-format talks, networking and career development, and an opportunity for Baton Rouge SQL Saturday sponsors to have an official presence to do recruiting, evangelism, etc.
Who should attend? Everyone should attend free Networking Night! Starting in 2014 and through 2017, each year 50+ IT professionals including many newcomers attended this fun event!
Looking for a job? Meet and greet, bring your resume
Hiring? Introduce yourself to folks in your needed the field
Current Student? Talk to your future colleagues and managers
Are you a Gold or Platinum sponsor of SQLSaturday Baton Rouge 2018? Part of your sponsorship comes with an official presence at Networking Night! Please join us and fill out the speaker signup form.
Instead of a regular user group meeting, Networking Night is open to everyone in the Baton Rouge IT community, for free!
posted Apr 27, 2018, 8:16 AM by Andy Parkerson
[
updated May 16, 2018, 2:35 PM
]
Date: May 9, 2018
Location:
Alliance Safety Council
10099 Reiger Rd
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
Directions:
Turn onto North Reiger Rd between the McDonald's and Racetrack on Siegen Lane. We are located in the fancy building next door to Office Depot. Parking is directly in front of the building.
Entrance is the double glass doors in the front of the building under the awning and there will be signs pointing to where the meetings will take place.
SQL Server is often I/O bound - but why? Do you feel lost when talking to your storage administrator? Are your storage subsystems like a mysterious black box where your databases live but you can’t go visit? This session will get you up to speed with the fundamentals of storage subsystems for SQL Server. You will learn about the different types of storage that are available, and how to decide what type of storage to use for different workload types. You will also learn useful tips and techniques for configuring your storage for the best performance and reliability. We’ll cover methods to effectively measure and monitor your storage performance so that you will have valuable information and evidence available the next time you have to discuss IO performance with your storage administrator. Come to this session to learn how to analyze I/Os as well as options to reduce the bottlenecks.
In this lightning round, we will go over why it is important to choose your data types wisely. I will show a few different examples of data types, the difference in I/O and why Developers need to stop with the NVARCHAR(MAX) already.
Bios:
Glenn Berry is a Principal Consultant with SQLskills. He has worked as a SQL Server professional for many years in a variety of roles, most recently as Database Architect for Avalara in Parker, CO.
Glenn has been a SQL Server MVP since 2007, and has a whole collection of Microsoft certifications, including MCITP, MCDBA, MCSE, MCSD, MCAD, and MCTS, which proves he likes to take tests. His expertise includes DMVs, high availability, hardware selection and configuration, and performance tuning. He is also an Adjunct Faculty member at University College – University of Denver, where has been teaching since 2000. He has completed the Master Teacher Program at University College.
Glenn is heavily involved in the SQL Server community, and is a frequent speaker at user groups, SQL Saturdays, and the PASS Community Summit. He is the author of the book SQL Server Hardware, and he wrote chapters for SQL Server MVP Deep Dives and SQL Server MVP Deep Dives Volume 2 books.
John Wells: Originally from Southern California, I am enjoying the slower pace here in Louisiana. I continue my journey with PowerShell and Performance Tuning. If I am not at a SQLSaturday event or a LSU game, I am grilling something or killing some crawfish! Actually I smoke more than grill, but when I say this people look at me funny.
This session highlights the starting point for using the execution plans from SQL Server to assist in query tuning. Briefly, we will look at the history to get an idea of how Microsoft has improved the display through Graphical Plans, Missing Index suggestion, Live Query Statistics and the Query Store. Then, we will answer questions like the following. What is the difference between a Table and Clustered Index Scan? What is a Lookup? How do you improve performance of Lookups? What are the different types of Loops? How to get more information from the Plan with the properties window?
A tale of intrigue and wizardry, harkening back to days when men and women of valor roamed the countryside righting wrongs and not just making connections with data, but also making connections with humanity.
Join me on a journey, if you will, through the sordid escapades of “self-service BI” and discover what we all know deep down in our souls: that people are willing to serve themselves as long as the task is made sufficiently easy.
Bios:
Thomas LeBlanc
Thomas LeBlanc (Microsoft Data Platform MVP) is a Data Warehouse Architect in Baton Rouge, and uses his 28+ years in IT to develop OLTP systems with normalized databases for high-performing T-SQL and dimensional data marts using SSIS, SSAS, SSRS, Power BI, and Excel. As a PASS volunteer, he is past chair of Excel BI and Data Arch VCs and is active in the Baton Rouge UG and SQLSaturday. Blog - TheSmilingDBA.BlogSpot.com and Thomas-LeBlanc.com
Andy Parkerson
Web Developer and Wand'ring Minstrel - With a MS in Mathematical Sciences, Andy has spread the joy of business intelligence and analysis wherever he goes. As developer at the leading eCommerce in luxury barbecue grilling, he has worked on automating product rankings to reduce and in some places eliminate the monkey-work of deciding what grill to show where, and what accessory to show with it. He is currently transitioning the reporting workflow to become more automated and more reactive to changes in the business.
posted Feb 28, 2018, 5:47 PM by william assaf
[
updated Mar 12, 2018, 8:38 AM
]
IMPORTANT - Please note that the location for this meeting has changed. We've listened to your feedback and are experimenting with different locations. Seigen Lane, get ready for the Baton Rouge User Groups!
Date: March 14, 2018
Location:
Alliance Safety Council
10099 Reiger Rd
Baton Rouge, LA 70809
Directions:
Turn onto North Reiger Rd between the McDonald's and Racetrack on Siegen Lane. We are located in the fancy building next door to Office Depot. Parking is directly in front of the building.
Entrance is the double glass doors in the front of the building under the awning and there will be signs pointing to where the meetings will take place.
From the lead author of SQL Server 2017 Administration Inside Out by Microsoft Press, come learn in technical detail what’s new for developers, admins, and users of Microsoft SQL Server 2017, including labs and demos. We'll discuss the new features for the platform, high availability, maintenance, and TSQL syntax.
Lightning Round:
3 Things about Indexing - John Wells
In this lightning round presentation, we will go over 3 common misunderstandings that I keep running into. Upon completion of this demonstration, you will have the knowledge to correct them. Come join me as we discover these 3 issues and improve query performance!
Bios:
William Assaf, MCSE
A principal consultant and DBA Manager at Sparkhound in Baton Rouge, LA. He started off as a .NET developer out of college and moved into database administration and architecture, and has been lead database designer on major application and data warehousing projects for private and public clients. A SQL Server consultant since 2007, he blogs about SQL at sqltact.com and has spoken at various user groups, SQLSaturday and TechFest conferences in the Gulf South region. William is a member of the Baton Rouge User Groups Board, a regional mentor for PASS, and head of the annual SQLSaturday Baton Rouge Planning Committee. William was the lead author of SQL Server 2017 Administration Inside Out by Microsoft Press, published Feb 2018.
John Wells
Originally from Southern California, I am enjoying the slower pace here in Louisiana. I continue my journey with PowerShell and Performance Tuning. If I am not at a SQLSaturday event or a LSU game, I am grilling something or killing some crawfish! Actually I smoke more than grill, but when I say this people look at me funny.
Press Release - SQLSaturday Baton Rouge 2018.pdf
Glenn Berry is a Principal Consultant with SQLskills. He has worked as a SQL Server professional for many years in a variety of roles, most recently as Database Architect for Avalara in Parker, CO.
DataTypesMatter.zip