What Do You Think of the New Design?

Regular readers should have noticed that the logo and basic design of the blog has been "spiffed" up a bit. I did this because the blog has been around for a long time now... my first post was in October 2005! So it was time for a bit of freshening.

Generally speaking, I think blogs are mostly for conveying information, so perhaps I haven't paid as much attention as should have to the look and feel of this blog. But hopefully I fixed that (at least somewhat) for now.

Also, please note that I have not removed any old content. Everything that was here before stays here, even the posts from over a decade ago. I am a big believer in keeping stuff available... some might call that being a packrat, but I wear that label proudly.

So I tend to err on the side of not removing content... I figure, you should note the date of everything you read on the Internet anyway... right?

Let me know what you think of the new look!

Twitter

After listening to John Dvorak (on Cranky Geeks) talk about Twitter I decided to try it out this week. And I quickly found some other DB2 folks out there twittering (Willie, Troy).

I put up Twitter feeds on my home page and here on my blog, too (it is over there on the right). I'm not sure if I'll stick with Twittering long-term, but I probably will - it is a bit addictive. If you want to try it out yourself, click on the follow me on Twitter link over on the right hand side of this page - or click here if you don't want to be bothered tracking it down over there!

I noticed, too, that Willie Favero will be twittering during the upcoming IDUG conference next week and since I can recognize a good idea when I hear/read/see one (good idea, Willie), I think I'll try it, too. So sign up on Twitter before next week if you want to virtually attend IDUG by following our twittering.

On the Road Again

If you live in or around Birmingham, Alabama or Dallas, Texas or Phoenix, Arizona I will be in your neck of the woods the next two weeks speaking at the local DB2 user groups.

On April 30th, 2008 I'll be speaking at Alabama DB2 User Group on the topic of Managing Data For Long Retention Periods.

Then, on May 2nd, I mosey on over to Dallas to speak on two topics at the DB2 Forum meeting. I'll cover database auditing in one talk and the other will be my "famous" DB2 Top 10 Lists presentation.

The following week, on May 8th, I'll be in Arizona to discuss The Impact of Regulatory Compliance on Database Administration at SWARUG.

And in my last presentation before IDUG, I'll be giving a shortened version of the regulatory compliance presentation in my hometown of Houston, TX at the Techxans: CIO Speaker Forum.

So maybe I'll see you on the road... and, if not, I hope to see you in Dallas for IDUG the week of May 18 thru 22, 2008. I've got a presenation on data breaches from a database perspective (4 PM on Tuesday), and I'll also be leading a Special Interest Group discussion on the changing role of the DBA (9:15 AM on Thursday). You can see the entire agenda here on IDUG's web site.

My Most Recent DB2 Articles

Today I'm posting a quick blog entry to let my readers know about a couple of recent DB2-related articles/columns that I've had published. You can always keep up-to-date on my writings by visiting my web site at http://www.craigsmullins.com/articles.htm.

Any way, the following three articles might be of interest to DB2 for z/OS folks:

Use Real Time Statistics to Automate Your Database Maintenance was published in the April/May 2008 issue of zJournal. This article examines Real Time Statistics (RTS) and the benefits that can be accrued by using RTS. If you aren't using RTS yet, be sure to read this article to learn why you should!

Collecting Histogram Statistics With RUNSTATS was published in the March 2008 issue of DB2 Update. This article discusses one of the many new enhancements that have found their way into DB2 9 for z/OS -- the ability to gather histogram statistics with the IBM RUNSTATS utility.

And finally, the February/March 2008 issue of zJournal contains Much Ado About DB2 Locking. This installation of the z/Data Perspectives column takes a look at the most recent, new locking-related features of DB2 for z/OS.

Happy reading!

Free Downloadable eBook from IBM Press

Pearson and IBM Press have just published a new eBook on IBM database technology that is available for free download. Just follow this link, provide your e-mail, and they’ll direct you to a PDF containing sample chapters from six recently published books.

The information in the eBook comes from the following books:

• Understanding DB2: Learning Visually With Examples, Second Edition by Chong, Wang, Dang, and Snow - Chapter 2: DB2 at a Glance: The Big Picture
• DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows, Sixth Edition by Baklarz & Zikopoulos - Chapter 8: pureXML Storage Engine
• Understanding DB2 9 Security by Bond, See, Wong & Chan - Chapter 11: Database Security — Keeping It Current
• DB2 SQL PL: Essential Guide for DB2 UDB on Linux, UNIX, Windows, iSeries by Janmohamed, et al - Chapter 3: Overview of SQL PL Language Elements
• Mining the Talk by Spangler & Kreulen - Chapter 5: Mining to Improve Innovation
• An Introduction to IMS by Meltz, et al - Chapter 18: Application Programming in Java

IBM Press is also offering a 35% discount on these, and other selected titles. But in some cases, the amazon discount is greater than 35%, so if you'd rather buy from amazon.com, simply follow the links in the bulleted list above.

But make sure you download that free eBook... after all, what is better than free?

Blog Tagged

I have been blog tagged by Willie Favero. Don't worry, its not as painful as it sounds!

Basically, blog-tagging is a game, of sorts, that has been crawling its way through the blogosphere for awhile now. The way it works, when you are tagged by another blogger, you have to write a blog posting about yourself, with 8 things that others might not know. . . and then tag 8 other bloggers.

So here goes:

1. I am an avid music fan. At last count, I have 5,281 CDs and albums (yes, I still have records). I know exactly how many I have because, geek that I am, I keep a list of them in a Filemaker database that I sync up with my Treo. I need that list on my Treo because, without it, I have been known to buy a CD I already own.
2. I currently live in Texas, but I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. Go Steelers (we'll get 'em next year)! My Mom, my brother, and his family still live in the Pittsburgh area and I get back to visit them at least once a year.
3. I've also lived in the Chicago area. When people ask how I like it in Texas after living up North for so long, I tell 'em "I like it. I basically traded snow for humidity, and you don't have to shovel humidity!"
4. I've written two books - DB2 Developer's Guide and Database Administration: The Complete Guide to Practices & Procedures... and I'm working on co-authoring another one on DB2 performance.
5. I'm married, and I met my wife while working at PLATINUM technology. Remember them? A lot of good things happened during my days at PLATINUM! In fact...
6. At one point, I used to write those monthly DB2 tips you DB2 people used to get in the mail from PLATINUM.
7. I currently write four different columns for industry publications, as well as several blogs.
8. I own a dog, an English springer spaniel named Jerry... I call him my Jerry Springer spaniel... and two cockatiels.

OK, I guess that means I now have to tag eight others. Willie beat me to the punch on a lot of my favorite DB2 bloggers, though. So I'll tag Peter Armstrong, Chris Foot, Chris Eaton, Trevor Eddolls, Dave Moore, Phil Nelson, Fred Sobotka, and Ralph Wilson.

You folks are now "it"...