March 2006 - Posts

• Avoiding the TSQL 'Convert' styles.

  Posted Sunday, March 26, 2006 9:10 PM | 11 Comments
  
  

  A recent blog was extolling the advantages of being able to use the CLR routines in SQL Server 2005 to do Microsoft-style date formats, instead of having the fuss and bother of remembering the CAST or CONVERT styles for the various representations of Read More by Phil Factor | 11 Comments | Comment on this post

• The Incident of 'The Two Johns' -an IT Manager confesses.

  Posted Monday, March 20, 2006 10:25 AM | 4 Comments
  
  

  ...in which Phil Factor takes advantage of the cloak of anonymity to confess to an embarassing mistake As an IT Manager, I used to love doing staff appraisals. These rituals come by different names in different companies, ‘performance reviews’, ‘annual Read More by Phil Factor | 4 Comments | Comment on this post

• Spoofing Popularity-A warning to Webmasters

  Posted Monday, March 13, 2006 6:56 PM | 2 Comments
  
  

  In which Phil tries to warn you of the dangers of over-valuing Website-traffic Stats. A friend who runs a local history website in a rural area of England surprised me by saying that he values a single letter of interest or appreciation more highly than Read More by Phil Factor | 2 Comments | Comment on this post

• How to succeed in IT Part 2 Irregular verbs for IT managers

  Posted Wednesday, March 08, 2006 8:52 PM | 0 Comments
  
  

  The Devils Manual for IT Managers Part 2: Irregular verbs for IT managers The way you describe events, decisions and actions in IT development depends on who you are. The following chart should give the general idea on the way things can be spun. Read More by Phil Factor | 0 Comments | Comment on this post

• How to Succeed in IT Part 1: How to prevent Initiatives

  Posted Saturday, March 04, 2006 7:22 PM | 0 Comments
  
  

  The Devils Manual for IT Managers Part 1: How to prevent Initiatives The IT Manager must do all he can to prevent initiatives happening within his department, whilst, at the same time, maintaining a general atmosphere of innovation. Your staff may Read More by Phil Factor | 0 Comments | Comment on this post

• Palindromic Transact SQL

  Posted Wednesday, March 01, 2006 8:45 AM | 5 Comments
  
  

  Palindromes are words or phrases that read the same backwards and forwards. By the same token, Palindromic SQL executes just as well backwards and forwards A phrase such as ... "Did I do, O God, did I as I said I'd do? Good, I did" "Marge lets Read More by Phil Factor | 5 Comments | Comment on this post