Most people check the SQL Server version with @@VERSION. I also like xp_msver, which shows extra details about the server where SQL Server is installed.
SQLAuthority News – Microsoft SQL Server Migration Assistant 2008 for MySQL v1.0 CTP1 – 2
What CTP1 of SQL Server Migration Assistant 2008 for MySQL means, plus the checks I would run before moving any MySQL database to SQL Server.
SQL SERVER – Change Collation of Database Column – T-SQL Script – Consolidating Collations – Extention Script
Brian Cidern’s extension script for consolidating collations across a database, a big help when you face the annoying cannot resolve collation error.
SQLAuthority News – Download IIS Database Manager
IIS Database Manager lets you manage local and remote databases from inside IIS Manager: tables, views, stored procedures, data and ad hoc queries.
SQL SERVER – Plan Caching and Schema Change – An Interesting Observation
What counts as a schema change for plan caching? More than table structure: adding or dropping an index also qualifies, per Greg Low’s white paper.
SQL SERVER – Difference between SQL Server Express and MySQL
SQL Server Express and MySQL are both free relational databases for smaller or embedded apps, yet they differ in important ways. Here is how they compare.
SQL SERVER – Introduction to Change Data Capture (CDC) in SQL Server 2008
My first article on Simple-Talk introduces Change Data Capture in SQL Server 2008, which records INSERTs, UPDATEs and DELETEs in simple relational change tables.