Last month marked the 2 year point for my blog. At times like this I like to reflect on the past so I don’t forget it – even better to learn something from it.

Read on to hear about my last year in blogging!

Annual Recap of Blog Activity

Here’s a quick recap of my 2nd year:

• I wrote 29 posts over the past year. That is an increase of 38% from last year.
• I spoke at some SQL Saturday events
  • Charlotte 2017
  • Raleigh 2018
  • Los Angeles 2018
  • Houston 2018
  • San Diego 2018
• I participated in 6 T-SQL Tuesday blogging parties. If you are not familiar with this it is a monthly blog party where someone in our SQL Server community picks a topic and we all write about it. It is a great way to start blogging about SQL Server and a way to encourage cross-site traffic.
  • T-SQL Tuesday 96 – Inspire to Make a Difference
  • T-SQL Tuesday 97 – Setting Learning Goals for 2018
  • T-SQL Tuesday #99 – Dealer’s Choice With Passion
  • T-SQL Tuesday #100 – The Future of SQL Server 2026
  • T-SQL Tuesday #104 – Code You Would Hate to Live Without
  • T-SQL Tuesday #105 – Brick Wall
• SQL Server posts
  • Irregular Identifiers – Be Aware of Surprises. Some gotchas with using irregular identifiers.
  • Migration – How To Move SQL Server Database Files to a New Location. Here I show some techniques for moving database files.
  • SQL Server Database Corruption! Understanding and Diagnosing. My series on database corruption part 1
  • SQL Server Database Corruption! Fixing and Preventing. Continuing on with part 2
  • How to Move and Configure tempdb Files. Talk about moving and configuring tempdb. Please do not accept the defaults!
  • How to Insert Into a Table Using Excel to Write SQL. I’m not saying you need to break out a spreadsheet to query the database but there are some uses for generating SQL from Excel.
  • Working With Different Languages in SQL Server. Language setting can be tricky. But – you can also play a prank by changing an unlocked workstation to Russian. Enjoy!
  • SQL Memes. I love me some memes. I noticed there was a vacancy of good SQL Server memes so I created 57 to fill that void. More to come…
  • Stop and Think Before You Shrink – Shrinking a SQL Server Database. Somehow this is a controversial topic because I keep seeing people defend this practice. Yes there is a time and a place but outside of some rare exceptions it is a bad practice.
• Security posts
  • Knowledge Based Authentication and Data Breaches – Your Security Questions Are Belong to Us – this was RT by @TroyHunt and got some decent traffic
  • The Prisoners Dilemma of Defect Disclosure. Discussion about how to disclose security vulnerabilities.
• Privacy posts
  • Data Privacy Day 2018 – Awareness and Action. I am very interested in this topic. It is more and more important to the general population and not just technologists. I find it fascinating, contemporary, and becoming a critical issue for our future lives online.
  • Privacy Policies and Guidelines – Diagnosis With No Cure. Those privacy policies aren’t as concerned about your privacy as you might think.
• Other posts
  • My Project: Wired House for Ethernet Cat 6 – I wired Ethernet cables all through my house. I took tons of pictures and spell everything out as clear as I can. I am not a very mechanical person and I am not very good with home repairs; however, this was motivating enough to try. It worked out well!
  • Logitech Skype Webcam Gore – Destroyed. Read about why I had to smash my webcam and send the pictures to Logitech.
  • How to Survive the Office Bully. We all have at some point worked with a colleague we found difficult. It escalates to a whole new level if that person is your manager and is abusive. I give some tips to overcome.
• Certification
  • Achievement Unlocked: MCSA SQL 2016 Database Development – I picked up a new cert and tell about the experience.
• Top 5 All Time Posts
  • My Project: Wired House for Ethernet Cat 6
  • SQL Memes
  • Working With Different Languages in SQL Server
  • Using T-SQL to Insert, Update, Delete Millions of Rows
  • How to Learn SQL Server For Free Starter Pack
• Blog picked up 99 subscribers in total. So close to that 100 mark – have you considered subscribing?

Blog Promotions

I got linked a couple of times in SQL Server Central (subscribe to the email if you haven’t already). I got some big retweets from Brent Ozar, Troy Hunt, and Cory Doctorow that promoted the blog.

It turns out if you write enough that people may actually read it more. Promotions like this help me build a base of readers. I am appreciative of all the help I have received and am trying to give some back.

Why Blog?

Because blogging is a ladder.

It is true that teaching something makes you understand it better. I enjoy writing (and I hope you enjoy reading) so I keep it up. I have increased my network and activity by writing.

Like with most topics – there is nothing new under the sun. There are very few SQL Server posts, for example, that have not already been written about. But that is not as important because it is your voice that gives it continued meaning. If people wanted to learn about tempdb or corruption they could easily read MSDN documentation. Which begs the question – why does anyone blog?

So why does anyone read a technical blog? Because everyone has a different interpretation of reality and each learns their own unique way. More voices help communication.

Every blog post gives its own unique perspective

I don’t run ads or sell anything so I don’t make any money off the blog. But I do it because I think it is a long term investment that will pay off much better than yearly hosting and domain costs.

Thanks for reading the past year. I hope you will continue to follow along for another year.

If you liked this then you might like my post from last year about blogging!