T-SQL Tuesday - Assumptions, and Wisdom

08 July 2014

It’s T-SQL Tuesday today. The topic: assumptions, things that are accepted as true, without proof.

There are some great posts to read.

• Ken Wilson (@_KenWilson

  blog ) writes about why we do things because “that’s the way it’s always been done”.

• Aaron Bertrand (@AaronBertrand

  blog ) writes about common assumptions people make about how SQL Server works.

• Boris Hristov (@boris

  blog ) writes about how many brilliant professionals don’t train or present because they assume something is stopping them.

• JK Wood (@sqlslacker

  blog ) writes about data teams that build complexity on top of complexity by assuming everything exists for a good reason.

• Mickey Stuewe (@SQLMickey

  blog ) writes about why it’s important to list your assumptions when starting a project.

• Sebastian Meine (@sqlity

  blog ) writes about the dangers of assuming your company is safe from attacks (a.k.a. “security by obscurity”)

• Rob Farley (@rob_farley

  blog ) writes about the danger of assuming SSIS lookup transformations work like JOINs, and how to create lookup transformation behavior using T-SQL.

• Russ Thomas ( @sql_judo

  blog ) writes about the dangers of assuming something isn’t your problem.

• Jeffrey Verheul (@DevJef

  blog ) writes about teams that assume their tests are complete, their automation never fails, and people who assume they know the answer to every question.

• Adam Mikolaj ( @SqlSandwiches

  blog ) writes about what happens when everyone assumes a problem is your company’s fault.

• Kenneth Fisher ( @sqlstudent144

  blog ) writes about the dangers of assuming online answers are correct, and what to do to check.

• Jason Brimhall ( @sqlrnnr

  blog ) writes about the benefits of assuming responsibility, rather than assuming somebody else will take care of it.

• Julie Koesmarno ( @MsSQLGirl

  blog ) writes about ways to validate assumptions using T-SQL.

• Warwick Rudd ( @Warwick_Rudd

  blog ) writes about the assumptions people make when creating indexes.

• Wayne Sheffield ( @DBAWayne

  blog ) writes about a common ‘smart’ assumption: a table will return data in clustered index order without an ORDER BY clause.

• Cathrine Wilhelmsen ( @cathrinew

  blog ) writes about how assuming responsibility is a way to own, and question, assumptions.

• Vicki Harp ( @vickyharp

  blog ) writes about one a common gotcha: date formats and regional assumptions.

• Chris Yates ( @YatesSQL

  blog ) writes about the dangers of assuming your backups are good.

There is some amazing wisdom in these posts. I’d recommend reading each and every thing here. Twice. Don’t assume you already know these lessons (see what I did there?).

About T-SQL Tuesday

T-SQL Tuesday was started by Adam Machanic ( Blog | @AdamMachanic ) in 2009. It’s a monthly blog party with a rotating host, who is responsible for providing a new topic each month. In case you’ve missed a month or two, Steve Jones ( Blog | @way0utwest ) maintains a complete list for your reading enjoyment.

Thanks for blogging, and for reading!