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[Focus]

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Control Replication with ActiveX
When you use ActiveX controls along with the administration functionality that SQL-DMO provides, you can programmatically administer, customize, and control an entire replication topology.
 — Jeannine Hall Gailey

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[Features]

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Keep DTS Package Logs on Track
DTS package logs can provide valuable troubleshooting information--if you can keep them under control. By using this article's VBScript code with a scheduled SQL Server Agent job, you can manage both the size and number of text-file-based DTS log files.
 — Shane Dovers


The .NET Connection Pool Lifeguard
ADO.NET connection pooling improves the performance of .NET applications, but a busy application can sometimes accumulate connections, overflowing the pool and sinking performance. Here's how you can keep a watchful eye on your connection pools.
 — William Vaughn

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[SQL Server Savvy]

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Calling Visual Basic .NET from a Trigger
Do you need to call a Visual Basic .NET object from the INSERT trigger? Explore your options...
 — Brian Moran


Determining Tempdb's File Size
Learn how to find the size of the files in tempdb when SQL Server was last started.
 — Brian Moran


Tip: Avoid Auto-Growing Tempdb When SQL Server Starts
Many DBAs forget the performance impact of auto-growing files when managing space for tempdb.
 — Brian Moran

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[Editorial]

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Marking Milestones
SQL Server reached significant milestones in performance and overall market share this past year. But Microsoft faces the challenge of keeping SQL Server affordable and easy to use while adding advanced features aimed at the enterprise.
 — Michael Otey

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[SQL Seven]

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BLOB Access Technologies
Microsoft provides several tools for working with BLOB objects. Here are seven of the most important BLOB access technologies.
 — Michael Otey

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[Inside SQL Server]

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Inside Sysprocesses
This system (pseudo) table can help in your troubleshooting, but use it carefully.
 — Kalen Delaney

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[Mastering Analysis]

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Analyzing Money
Working with any OLAP solution can help you better understand the technology, but using data that has personal meaning can help you learn even more about OLAP. Here's a practice solution that uses data you'll care about--your personal finances.
 — Russ Whitney

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[Solutions by Design]

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Redesigning a Catalog
Catalog inventory management can be one of the most complex challenges for database designers and developers because inventory is constantly growing and changing. Here's a basic ERD model that can adapt to a company's changing inventory.
 — Michelle A. Poolet

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[T-SQL Black Belt]

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A Different Setup
When your query needs to find items with certain relationships, you can use relational division, or you can try these new tricks.
 — Itzik Ben-Gan

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[News Analysis]

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First Look: Reporting Services
By the end of the year, Microsoft will roll out a new SQL Server product called Reporting Services that will let you manage the entire reporting life cycle, from authoring, to management, to delivery.
 — Brian Moran

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[Letters]

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Letters, July 2003
Readers write in about DTS portability tips, selling OLAP's benefits, a query for analyzing set relationships, and more.
 — Various Authors

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[New Products]

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New Products, July 2003
Check out the latest SQL Server-related new and improved products.
 — Carolyn Mader