If you plan to attend, Joe Healy has provided us with the fruit of his labors (and bruises).  Here is a list of things to do with your pc or laptop before coming to the install fest: http://www.devfish.net/FullBlogItemView.aspx?BlogId=469

Harris is looking for a solid MS SQL Server DBA at their corporate headquarters in Melbourne, FL.  If you are looking, or know anybody who's looking, drope me a line for more info.  Here's the basic job posting but I can fill you in on the actual details.  We've only got one other MS SQL DBA in house, so this is a great opportunity for somebody to step in and get some high profile tasks.

Manage multiple database versions from development through production for a diverse internal client base.   Be proficient in the design and architecture of complex, distributed, highly transactional database systems, including specification of hardware and network infrastructure requirements.

 Required:

• Customer focused
• Excellent communication skills
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision
• Step up, get it done attitude
• Ability to support and work multiple projects at the same time

 Responsibilities include:

• Database preliminary design, helping programmers and engineers to efficiently utilize the database
• Development and testing support
• Creating and testing backups
• Verifying or helping to verify data integrity
• Defining or implementing access controls to the data
• Ensuring maximum uptime
• Ensuring maximum performance, given budget constraints.  Make recommendations related to performance and efficiency of the data storage.
• Coordination with systems admins to configure hardware and software so that it functions optimally with the RDBMS

 Experience in the following areas:

• SQL Server 2000/2005 and Windows 2003, 64bit
• Oracle on Solaris
• Data Store and Warehousing
• RDBMS Security Design
• Performance Tuning
• Veritas and SUN Cluster high availability RDBMS clustering
• DRP
• Data Transformation Services/SSIS for SQL Server
• Software development background desired

http://scdnug.org/blogs/events/archive/2007/11/16/Visual-Studio-2008-Install-fest.aspx.  Let me reitierate what free means here. First fo all it is free like beer (not free like a puppy).  But... there is no glass for the beer.  You must drink it right there and then from the tap.  That is, you are not given install media or such at this event.  You are only temporarily given a CD to install with and that is it.  You are licensed for the instance of this installation only.  Hope to see everyone there!  Even if you don't need VS 2008, come by and have a beer and say Hello to everyone.  Microsoft has been known to buy a beer or two...  no promises.

The Space Coast .Net User Group is in the early stages of planning a load fest for Visual Studio 2008 with Joe Healy - MS Developer Evangelist.  The tentative date is Dec. 18th and the first 20 attenddees can bring their laptops and load the product for free.  We're looking for a location right now and since loading software (even free software) is so much fun (sarcasm) - it will hopefully serve alchohol.  Stay Tuned here or to the Space Coast .Net User Group web site.

We've been working on an ongoing issue with BizTalk 2006 at the office.  We've had a two fold problem with SQL Database blocking and our Messga Queues filling up with control messages.  After all of the go-arounds with Microsoft Professional Support Services (PSS), we collected enough data and they were able to reproduce the run-away queues.  They took all of this and produce a hot fix within 3 weeks.  After testing and installationin production, the blocking returned in the database.  But on the good side, the message queues did not fill up again.  So problem partially solved but the fun goes on.  The hot fix solved the problem of what happens when a cache service calls InstanceComplete.  If there is more than one message for the old instance, InstanceComplete gets called more than once causing the second call to fail because the instance had already been terminated by the previous call.  The batch operation is blown and the old caching service instance never gets properly cleaned up.  This old instance still gets control messages from the BizTalk core and since it is not actually running... they accumulate.  They accumulate alot!

So the accumulation no longer takes place... we are still concerned about the blocking.  Our port watcher application that enumerates pesky receive ports that shut down frequently.  When the port watcher calls into the WMI object model to enumerate the receive locations, ISSOConfigStore.GetConfigInfo() gets called.  This then calls ssox_spLookupXp whic reads from the SSO database and is the source of the blocking.  We are running more traces to gather information for PSS.  Stay tuned.

Drove over to Heathrow to the campus of SCC for the 2007 SQL Saturday.  It was a great event and got to meet some of the regulars plus a whole new crowd of DBA geeks.  I got some good information from the sessions but it was an excellent chance to do some networking.  Joe Healy has put up a nice collection of photos from the days events at Live Spaces.  Hung with Ken Tucker [MVP] from the Space Coast .Net User Group and got introduced to some other Enterprise Customers who come to community events.  There seems to be a perception that Enterprise Customers don't participate in the community - it aint so!