M365 Twin Cities Fall 2023 Community Days Follow Up

This past Saturday I was able to attend, present, and get connected with the community at the M365 Twin Cities Fall 2023 Community Days event. I haven’t presented at this event since Nov 2011 so it has been a bit and the last time I presented at the event my laptop went into hibernation mode when I was going to do my demo and I couldn’t wake it up, it was an epic fail –> Twin Cities ScarePoint Saturday Follow Up.

This time around I didn’t have any demos, my laptop didn’t go into hibernation mode, and only had a few minor issues with my remote clicker and advancing slides, so I thought it went very well. Now my content wasn’t really any 100 level information for beginners just getting started, but it is stuff that I run into repeatedly with customers, so wanted to share:)

The session was “Power BI Gotchas – Dan’s Dirty Dozen” – In this session you will get some insights into the Power BI gotchas that I have seen over the years. I will highlight a dozen of what I would call “what not to do” or shall we say “dirty” items. I have had an opportunity over the years to work with some of the largest customers of Power BI in the world and you might be surprised what comes up sometimes;) We will cover items around data model development, DAX, and report design of the things to be aware of and go over how to avoid and fix these things when developing Power BI models and reports that I feel should be avoided. The dozen items that will be covered are just a glimpse into the report development “what not to do” items at least in my opinion, I am sure you have seen your fair share as well and would love to hear what others have come across or potentially done too:)

On Friday at the event I went to the speakers dinner and got to meet lots of new people. I know most people in the SQL and BI community, so the M365 group is a little unknown to me. Thanks for all of those that made me feel so welcome and great to meet new people in the community!

In the picture above I am towards the back on the right wearing a blue Microsoft shirt:) I also wore one of my old Microsoft MVP jackets to try and blend in a bit more;)

I got to caught up in the vent and talking with everyone that I forgot to take a selfie picture myself with the attendees of my session. I did get to get included in the speaker photo after the event (I had to stand on my tippy toes in the back row so I could be seen).

Really appreciate the great work the M365 Twin Cities team put into organizing the event and thanks to all of the sponsors, speakers, and volunteers for making this possible. Looking forward to attending and presenting again in the Spring if the team wants me back:)

Here is a link to the pdf version of my slides and I will work on doing a recording of this event to make it available and post a follow up when that is available, that will add more context around the content that I shared – M365TC2023_PowerBIGotchasDanEnglish.

Minnesota (MN) SQLSaturday 2023 #1054 – Sep 30

Hello #SQLFamily, we are very excited that this year we will be back in-person for the Minnesota SQLSaturday event that will be held once again at Saint Paul College on September 30th SQL Saturday Minnesota 2023 (#1054).

The schedule for the event has been posted and is available to see here and there are just over 30 sessions and a fantastic line up of speakers coming to present.

I will be presenting on “Unraveling the Microsoft Fabric for the Power BI User” and the description for that session is –

“Are you a Power BI developer? Have you heard about Microsoft Fabric? What are all of these new ‘Data’ experiences – Data Factory, Data Engineering, Data Science, Data Warehousing, oh my and other items such as Data Activator and Real-Time Analytics? Wow! Where did Power BI go?

In this session we will go under the covers and unravel the Microsoft Fabric to help educate Power BI developers on the new capabilities available and provide some guidance on how to get started and skilled up on using these new experiences.”

And here is the link to register for the main event on Saturday as well SQL Saturday Minnesota 2023 (#1054) Registration, Sat, Sep 30, 2023 at 8:00 AM | Eventbrite

We look forward to seeing everyone at the event in-person again!

PASSMN September 2018 Meeting

The next Minnesota SQL Server User Group meeting is tomorrow, Tuesday, September 18. This month we are going to try something new and are going to have some of our upcoming MN SQLSaturday speakers attend and do a preview / introduction to their talk which will be on Saturday, October 6.

Be sure to register so that your name badge will be available for you at the Microsoft Technology Center when you arrive and so that we will have an accurate headcount for ordering food.

The sponsor for this month’s meeting is PASSMN.

Location: 3601 West 76th Street, Suite 600 Edina, MN 55437

Agenda:

• 3:30-4:00 : Registration, Networking, and Food
• 4:00-4:10 : Kickoff / Announcements
• 4:10-5:25 : SQLSaturday #796 MN Preview (multiple speakers)
• 5:25-5:35 : Closing
• 6:30-7:30 : Pinstripes social hour and bocce ball

Please click here for meeting details and to RSVP for the event

Presentation

SQLSaturday #796 MN Preview

Abstract: For this event we are going to have some of the speakers attend and provide a brief introduction to their session topic that they will be presenting and answer any questions to prepare everyone for the big event in October.

SQLSaturday is a free training event for Microsoft Data Platform professionals and those wanting to learn about SQL Server, Business Intelligence and Analytics. This event will be held on Oct 6, 2018 at Saint Paul College, 235 Marshall Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota, 55102.

Don’t forget to register and secure your spot for the SQLSaturday event:)
http://www.sqlsaturday.com/796/eventhome.aspx

Speakers:

Joshuha Owen, Dan English, Ross McNeely, Eric Zierdt, Rick Bielawski, Chris Kramer, Tim Plas, and more speakers will be added, stay tuned…

Social Hour:

We are planning on meeting over at Pinstripes in Edina afterwards to network, play bocce ball, and have some apps and refreshments.

Bocce ball reservation is from 6:30 to 7:30. Feel free to show up after the meeting ahead of time and socialize prior to the bocce ball.

3849 Gallagher Dr, Edina, MN 55435
https://pinstripes.com/edina-minneapolis

MN SQLSaturday #796 Pre-Cons

We are just a few weeks out from #sqlsatmn and over 250 have registered! Don’t miss out on securing your spot, register today! 

http://www.sqlsaturday.com/796/eventhome.aspx

Checkout pre-con events and the earl-bird pricing while it lasts:)  Early-bird pricing on pre-cons ends 9/14, so sign-up today and save:)

We have paid, full-day pre-conference sessions on Friday, October 5th, 2018 (also at Saint Paul College).

These full day training sessions are a great value, current early-bird pricing of only $99 plus fees! (early-bird pricing is good through Friday, September 14 and then the price will increase to $125)

Click the links below to get more details about the pre-con training events:

• Joshuha Owen, Steve Hughes – The Modern Enterprise Data Warehouse in Azure
• Brian Larson – Powering Up with Power BI
• Rick Lowe – Keeping Your DBA Happy. Why Some Practices Drive Admins Crazy.
• Ed Leighton-Dick – Data Security for the Cloud

You must register and pay through Eventbrite for these pre-cons.

#sqlpass

MN SQLSaturday #796 Schedule Posted – Oct 6

The schedule has been posted for this year’s Minnesota SQLSaturday event which will be held on October 6 at Saint Paul College. 

I will be speaking in the afternoon on Power BI: Dashboard in an Hour Walk-Through.

This session will provide a walk-through example showcasing the Power BI tools including the Desktop, Service, and Mobile application. You will see how you can quickly access and explore data and gain insights from any device as well as collaborate and share the content with others. The content and examples will be provided after the session so that you can go through the walk-through examples on your own.

This session is perfect for anyone that is new to Power BI and is looking for an overview and a demonstration of what the toolset can do and provide for reporting and analytics.

 

Make sure you register today and secure your spot before it fills up – register now!

Hope to see you there!

MN SQLSaturday #796 – Oct 6

This year’s MN SQLSaturday will be on October 6 at the same venue as last year, the Saint Paul College. This is a free training event for Microsoft Data Platform professionals and those wanting to learn about SQL Server, Business Intelligence, Database Development and Analytics.

 

The call for speakers ends on Sunday, July 15.

We look forward to seeing you at the event!

http://www.sqlsaturday.com/796/EventHome.aspx

 

 

 

PASSMN July 2018 Meeting

The next Minnesota SQL Server User Group meeting is on Tuesday, July 17. This month Mathew Phan from Quest will be doing a presentation on DevOps and NoSQL: The Two Trends Impacting Database Professionals.

Be sure to register so that your name badge will be available for you at the Microsoft Technology Center when you arrive and so that we will have an accurate headcount for ordering food.

The sponsor for this month’s meeting is Quest.

Location: 3601 West 76th Street, Suite 600 Edina, MN 55437

Agenda:

• 3:30-4:00 : Registration, Networking, and Food
• 4:00-4:10 : Kickoff / Announcements
• 4:10-5:25 : DevOps and NoSQL (Mathew Phan)
• 5:25-5:35 : Closing

Please click here for meeting details and to RSVP for the event

Presentation

DevOps and NoSQL: The Two Trends Impacting Database Professionals

Abstract: In this one hour session, Mathew Phan from Quest Software will discuss two technology trends greatly disrupting database professionals: DevOps and non-relational databases. First, he will go over what DevOps is, the value it adds, and what you need to know in order to adapt if your organization moves in that direction. Then he will discuss the rise of non-relational databases, why they’re being used to store huge amounts of data, the best scenarios to apply them, and how you can merge your knowledge of traditional relational databases like SQL Server in this new technology. During the course of the presentation, he will briefly touch on a couple of products from Quest Software that can greatly assist in getting users up to speed in both of these trends.

About Mathew: Mathew Phan began his career as a technical support engineer for Toad for Oracle after graduating from the University of California, Irvine, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in computer and information science. Mat has devoted his entire 12-year career with the Toad family of database solutions and held various positions helping to shape the direction and growth of Toad. Early in his tenure, his focus was on Oracle databases from a developer point of view. Now as a systems consultant, he continues to work with customers to build effective solutions that meet their needs.

PASS Business Analytics Virtual Group Feb 21 “Using Self-service Analytics to Build Strong Data Teams”

The next PASS Business Analytics Virtual Group meeting will be next week on Wednesday, February 21.  We welcome Julie Hyman who will be talking to us about building strong data teams using self-service analytics.

–> REGISTER NOW <– (Login with PASS account first to register for webinar)

February 21 – Using Self-service Analytics to Build Strong Data Teams

Session Abstract –

We understand that organizations like yours are looking for more efficient ways to tap into the data generated by your marketing and sales efforts, customer engagement, back-end operations, and more. If you want your business to be data-driven, you’ve got to strategically synthesize and analyze all of this data to turn it into actionable business intelligence. During this webcast, Quest product manager, Julie Hyman will explain the differences between full-service and self-service analytics, making the case for self-service as a way to eliminate analytic silos and data bottlenecks.

And, you’ll discover how the Toad solution helps create strong data teams:

• Non-technical business users can connect to nearly any data source.

• Users can standardize best analytics practices using a collaborative platform.

• Data teams can publish workflows and share information.

• Analysts can present fully prepped data to the rest of the business.

Speaker Bio –

Julie Hyman is a Sr. Product Manager for Quest Software. With 20+ years of experience in Development, Project Management and Product Management, Julie currently manages Toad Solutions, including Toad Data Point, Toad Intelligence Central and the new Toad Edge, among others.

–> REGISTER NOW <– (Login with PASS account first to register for webinar)

Also, we will be doing a random drawing after the webinar and giving away seven $50 Amazon gift cards to anyone that attends and fills out the survey!

PASSMN February 2018 Meeting

The next Minnesota SQL Server User Group meeting is on Tuesday, February 20. This month I will be doing a presentation on how to use Power BI Desktop to build reports off SQL Server database information and creating a dashboard.

Be sure to register so that your name badge will be available for you at the Microsoft Technology Center when you arrive and so that we will have an accurate headcount for ordering food.

The sponsor for this month’s meeting is DallasDBAs.

Location: 3601 West 76th Street, Suite 600 Edina, MN 55437

Agenda:

• 3:30-4:00 : Registration, Networking, and Food
• 4:00-4:10 : Kickoff / Announcements
• 4:10-5:25 : How to: Build a SQL Server Dashboard with Power BI (Dan English)
• 5:25-5:35 : Closing

Please click here for meeting details and to RSVP for the event

Presentation

How to: Build a SQL Server Dashboard with Power BI

Abstract: This session will provide an overview of Power BI tools including the Desktop, Service, and Mobile application. We will use Power BI to pull some information about SQL Server databases such as the count, sizes, last backup, recovery model, and file information. We will explore some of the recent capabilities that were added to Power BI Desktop like drill through and bookmarks. The example will be provided after the meeting so that you can review the code, try it out, and enhance the reports on your own.

About Dan: Dan is the Sr. Data Warehouse Architect at Constellation, Inc., a Microsoft Data Platform MVP, speaker, author, technical editor, and community leader. He has been developing with Microsoft technologies for over 20 years, and over 13 years with Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence. He has been working with SQL Server since version 6.5 and now using 2017! Dan has videos on YouTube and Vimeo, is blogger, and tweets. Dan is the group leader for the PASS Business Analytics Virtual Group and the Director of Technology for the MN SQL Server User Group.

PASS Business Analtyics Virtual Group Jan 25 “Power BI: How to take advantage of ArcGIS Maps, SandDance and Synoptic Panel”

The next PASS Business Analytics Virtual Group meeting will be this week on Thursday, January 25.  We welcome Marek Matuszewski who will be showing us some of the new cool data visualizations in Power BI.

–> REGISTER NOW <– (Login with PASS account first to register for webinar)

January 25 – Power BI: How to take advantage of ArcGIS Maps, SandDance and Synoptic Panel

Session Abstract –

Join us and learn best practices and some of the most powerful features which are available in all 3 Power BI visuals: ArcGIS Maps, SandDance and Synoptic Panel.

Speaker Bio –

Marek is the Managing Partner & Head of Business Intelligence at the Efexcon AG,+8 years Software Development Experience, Business Intelligence Specialist, Entrepreneur, extraordinary performer, Visionary leader. In 2017 at – O365 Business Tag, Microsft Munich; CeBIT 2017 Hannover, Microsoft Partner stand; SQL Saturday 656 in Denmark, Microsoft Kopenhagen. First person in Germany who gave a speech at ALL German Power BI User Groups. One of his biggest audience was 40 000 people hearing him live, broadcasting an Audition about IT in the local radio station. He is very energetic and always give a lot of positive energy for the Audience. Power BI expert -one of his report “Regular Crimes in Central London” was featured on Microsoft Power BI blog.

–> REGISTER NOW <– (Login with PASS account first to register for webinar)

Also, we will be doing a random drawing after the webinar and giving away eight $50 Amazon gift cards to anyone that attends and fills out the survey!