I still lack the time to blog about proper hardcore SQL stuff, but I do want to make a quick post to let you all know about a great conference that I’ll be attending and speaking at.

I’m talking about the Irish Microsoft Technology Conference, to be held in Dublin, Ireland later this week (June 7^th, to be precise). I am particularly excited about this conference, not only because it marks my first speaking engagement outside the Netherlands, but also because (unlike some other conferences I have attended) there is actually a pretty decent number of SQL Server related sessions.

• Simon Sabin (SQL Server MVP) will deliver a talk on using Service Broker to process work asynchronously,
• Alan Crowley has a presentation on Visual Studio for Database Professionals (The Artist Formerly Known As Datadude)
• And I even get the stage twice; my first session tries to help you understand how indexes can speed up (or slow down) query execution, and my other sessions explores the possibilities and impossibilities of CLR User-Defined Types.

The conference will be held in three rooms, so there are plenty of other sessions to choose from. But even if you are only interested in SQL Server, this conference is pretty good value for money – for only € 50, you have the chance to attend no less than four SQL Server oriented sessions (in the preliminary version of the agenda I received, none of them overlap). Plus, you get to experience the great weather of the British Isles! J

If you want to attend, book now – I have no idea how long you have left until they’re sold out!