Is it Sequel or S Q L Server, Interview Gripes
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Well okay. :) Your Dilbert stuff is right on the money that's why I left corporate America and hope never to return. I've worked with the pointy-haired boss to many times. ILDASM is an interesting little too that *can* shed some light on some meddelsome (SP?) situations. I agree with you on everything you have to say about IL. If you don't need to go there (IL) then definitely do not. At some point down the road I'd tell anybody to check it out though. It's nice to know what's going on under the hood and Jeffrey Richter has a great book about going under the hood and into IL. The title escapes me but ... if you google Richter you'll find it for sure. Anyway, I totally relate to what you were feeling. It is sometimes nice to have a nice windy rant to make yourself feel better. I enjoy rants in any capacity as it reminds me that I'm not the only one in the world that has to suffer moronic situations. Misery likes company. :laugh: So back to SEE-SHARP I go. At first way back when I called it SEE-POUND. I still prefer pound over sharp but the cronies all call it sharp so it's sharp. :rolleyes:
If we all used the Plain English compiler every post in the lounge would be a programming question.:cool:
Welcome to CP in your language. Post the unicode version in My CP Blog [ ^ ] now.People who don't understand how awesome Firefox is have never used CPhog. The act of using CPhog alone doesn't make Firefox cool. It opens your eyes to the possibilities and then you start looking for other things like CPhog and your eyes are suddenly open to all sorts of useful things all through Firefox. - (Self Quote)
I could forgive someone for not knowing what ILDASM was. Now, if they didn't know what Reflector was, that would be a different matter ;-) Seriously, asking a C# programmer about ILDASM is like asking a C++ programmer about
dumpbin
. There are few circumstances where you need to look at the IL for a method, the same as there are few circumstances where you need to view the raw assembly generated by a native-code compiler. Being able to view something approximating the source of a method in a third-party library can sometimes be useful to work out why something isn't working, but you have to be careful not to rely on details of the implementation, otherwise you can cause yourself a compatibility headache. As for see-sharp vs anything else, Microsoft always said it was 'see-sharp'. In their own printed documentation they've tried to use the sharp character, U+266F[^] ('MUSIC SHARP SIGN'), but of course this isn't available in many fonts and isn't present anywhere on a computer keyboard. It may be available for you -> ♯ <- but may not. So everyone uses the # character instead, which Unicode calls NUMBER SIGN[^]. Stability. What an interesting concept. -- Chris Maunder -
Nishant Sivakumar wrote:
Pound
Nish mate, where in the world does # mean pound (£), or errr, do you mean pound as in pounds of weight :confused: Personally its; - seequel server - see sharp - hash include - hash using It may be insconsistent (a hash character but musical sharp), but hey, thats IT for you :doh: Phil Harding.
myBlog [^] | mySite [^]Phil Harding wrote:
Personally its; - seequel server - see sharp - hash include - hash using
That's exactly the same as I how say those words :-)
Phil Harding wrote:
Nish mate, where in the world does # mean pound (£), or errr, do you mean pound as in pounds of weight
Where they drop the 'u' in words like colour :-) Regards, Nish
Nish’s thoughts on MFC, C++/CLI and .NET (my blog)
Currently working on C++/CLI in Action for Manning Publications. -
I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
subject...
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I always thought "Spud" had a rather down to earth food-fight-in-progress feel to it. :laugh: Anna :rose: "Beware the Spuds of Wrath" Anna's Place | Tears and Laughter "Be yourself - not what others think you should be" - Marcia Graesch "Anna's just a sexy-looking lesbian tart" - A friend, trying to wind me up. It didn't work.
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
kennster wrote:
Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place.
In other words... the acronyms you use must be prounced as words... but other acronyms must be sounded out by letter or never use acronyms? Acronyms tend to be an either or situation, sometimes both, usually the most efficient pronunciation method. For instance EssQueueEl is actually phonetically longer than Sequal by a syllabel. Saying RAGE is easier as a word, than as R.A.G.E. or Real-time Advanced Graphics Engine. However items like VTR Virtual Test Range are often pronounced by letter. Then you get into letter counts, you do not CeeCeeCeeCeeEyeEssAre that would be a mouthful, even stringing it together with different vowels does not save you so you have C4ISR CeeFourEyeEssAre rather than C4EyeSir which sound more like you are giving the okay to blow something up. My point is, there is no real rule for acronyms, there is only common usage. If you feel like correcting everyone go ahead, just don't get upset when you find out you have been correcting someone the wrong way. :) _________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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Nishant Sivakumar wrote:
Pound
Nish mate, where in the world does # mean pound (£), or errr, do you mean pound as in pounds of weight :confused: Personally its; - seequel server - see sharp - hash include - hash using It may be insconsistent (a hash character but musical sharp), but hey, thats IT for you :doh: Phil Harding.
myBlog [^] | mySite [^]Phil Harding wrote:
do you mean pound as in pounds of weight
Right. In the US, the # symbol used to represent "lb". For example, 1# would be "1 pound". It's not used this way anymore (that I'm aware of), but we still call it a Pound. However, the US still refers to # as a Number Sign as well. For example, #1 would be "Number One". Check out the history on wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_sign[^]
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Joshua Quick wrote:
I say "Pound Include" and "Pound Using". Americans call the # on a phone "Pound".
So, do British folks say hash-include? Regards, Nish
Nish’s thoughts on MFC, C++/CLI and .NET (my blog)
Currently working on C++/CLI in Action for Manning Publications.Nish, I found some interesting info on # in wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_sign[^] An interesting read. I wouldn't have looked if you hadn't said anything. Thanks for bringing it up!
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
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I pronounce it SEQUEL... My director pronounces it "Squirrl".. drive me nuts... I always ask him "huh?" --- Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.
I come from a MySQL world so I say MySQL, and I say SQL Server... Some people at my company say Sequel dough... -------------------------------------------------------- My portfolio & development blog Q:What does the derived class in C# tell to it's parent? A:All your base are belong to us!
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
During the interview process, I always knew that I had a prospective problem child as an applicant when they mispronounced SQL Server so that it sounded like a subsequent movie. Just because some pointy-headed mad scientist type want to call it SEQUEL to start with, doesn't mean that you pronounce the acronym that way. SQL rhymes with SEE-KILL or SEE-KULL, depending on whether you're a fan of Robert E. Howard or not. I have the same problem with wacky folks who seem to think that tuple rhymes with pupil. IT DOESN'T!! Tuple rhymes with couple, people, please... :laugh: Of course, I also agree with the wise man who said that anyone who has a very strong opinion on anything is probably wrong... which may or may not include me. YMMV :cool:
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Sequel, because it's what other people say. I worked for some time with someone who insisted on calling C++ 'C double plus'. That always griped me. Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++
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While most people I know say Sequel Server, I've heard people say EsQueueEl Server too - specially in India. Does it really matter what they say? Most people say C-Sharp, a few say C-Hash, and maybe there are a few odd people who say C-Pound. On a related note, I always say Hash-Include for #include and Hash-Using for #using, but I bet most Americans say Pound-Include and Pound-Using. If someone decides not to hire me because my syntax pronunciation doesn't meet his expectations - I'll probably not give a damn! Regards, Nish
Nish’s thoughts on MFC, C++/CLI and .NET (my blog)
Currently working on C++/CLI in Action for Manning Publications.-- modified at 21:29 Tuesday 16th May, 2006
Nishant Sivakumar wrote:
Most people say C-Sharp, a few say C-Hash, and maybe there are a few odd people who say C-Pound.
C octothorp octothorp; (sometimes spelled) octothorpe 1. The official name for the numbers sign that looks like: # 2. The symbol # on a telephone or keyboard. 3. A typographic symbol having two vertical lines intersected by two horizontal lines. It is also called the crosshatch, hash, numeral sign and number sign; in the U. S. it is commonly called the pound sign; especially, to designate the symbol as used on digital telephone dials, but this can be confusing to Europeans who think of the pound sign as the symbol for the British pound. It is commonly used as a symbol for the word number; as in #36 = "number thirty-six". Often seen but seldom found in a dictionary The printer's traditional name for a very common mark, the #. You probably know this glyph by one of its other names: the number, numeral, or pound sign; or, if you're a developer, the hash. The word "octothorp" is so obscure that isn't even in the Oxford English Dictionary (1st or 2nd editions). "Otherwise known as the numeral sign. It has also been used as a symbol for the pound avoirdupois, but this usage is now archaic. In cartography, it is also a symbol for village: eight fields around a central square, and this is the source of its name. Octothorp means eight fields." Robert Bringhurst, The Elements of Typographic Style; 2nd edition, 1996; Hartley & Marks, Publishers, Point Roberts, WA; Vancouver, BC, Canada, p. 282. :) ---------- There go my people. I must find out where they are going so I can lead them. - Alexander Ledru-Rollin
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I pronounce it SEQUEL... My director pronounces it "Squirrl".. drive me nuts... I always ask him "huh?" --- Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
There are at least two types of programmers. Those who have a field of expertise applicable to a well-defined project, vs. those who can understand the problem being addressed and can then evaluate the tools and solutions which might be considerations in solving the problem. Your commentary seems to put you into the second category. You'd probably never fit in a company that worries about correct pronunciation of acryonyms, so getting past the swamp of sadness without getting sucked in should be considered a plus. I run an engineering department, and here is my caveat. (or C.V.T., no just kidding) Both types of people are needed, but the second type are much harder to find.
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I say "Sequel" Server. But I pronounce MySQL as "My-S-Q-L". When I talk about the SQL syntax itself, I call it "S-Q-L". I think the pronunciation depends on the context.
I use these terms interchangeably. Why be standard when you can be interesting :) I also sometimes say "vehr kehr" instead of "var char", since it is Variable Character. I find it funny how that one is deliberately mispronounced by almost everyone in the industry.
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
I've been using the MS product for quite some time (and Oracle and others before then), and I've always intentionally spelled it out when I say it (S-Q-L). The reason was/is simple to me: Sequel *was* a product at one point. To call SQL "sequel" is to imply that I'm talking about an actual product and not a structured query language. :-) Yes, so Sequel is a dead product... the principle still applies. ;-) BTW, do you say "asp net" or spell out "A-S-P dot net"?
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
I've always called it "Sequel Server". I call the SQL language "Sequel" also. I've seen this cause confusion with interviewers. If I put "SQL" on my resume they think I mean "SQL Server" when I mean "Standard Query Language". So I've instead said on my resume "SQL (Standard Query Language)" to distinguish from "SQL Server". ---Mark mmille10@comcast.net
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I have been developing applications using SQL Server for over ten years, and I have ALWAYS called it Sequel Server... not spelled out s q l server. Sequel is elegant, it rolls off the tongue. I read in a sidebar in one of my old database programming with VB 4 books a little history of the word and proper pronunciation, and the authors concurred that it was appropriate to call it 'sequel' as the original Sequel programming language was long dead. Every Microsoft employee I have ever met calls the product Sequel Server, and it is their damn product, if they don't know how to say it, who does? What does the rest of the community think? S Q L Server or Sequel Server? Whenever I hear someone say S Q L Server... I think 'Newbie'. In addition to saying Sequel, I also have a huge gripe with wannabes using an acronym in spoken English as opposed to saying what it is they are trying to say in the first place. I say all this because I had a telephone interview today for a position roughly 50% SQL DBA, the other half maintenance and development of new and existing C# web based applications. In the interview, I was struck by the amount of questions involving the use of said acronyms, instead of focusing on object oriented programming methodologies, use of best practices in coding, etc. Nothing about development methodologies, documentation, configuration management, just "Do you know what AWE Is?" "Do you know what IDLASM is?," and a bunch of other esoteric minutia, to which I simply replied, "Nope." I actually had a clue, but in the past when I have gotten these questions, it was because the person asking them didn't have a clue. The last straw in this interview: the majority of my ASP.NET development experience (about 4000-5000 hours worth) was spent developing IBuySpy Portal & DotNetNuke modules. The incumbent interviewer told me that at his particular company they didn't embrace such open source projects. Furthermore, they were in the planning stages of purchasing a 'real,' 'enterprise grade' CMS, and I would not be able to use such petty, insignificant tools in my role as lead ASP.NET web developer there. He didn't exactly use the words petty or insignificant, but he may as well have with his condescending tone. I was reminded of Scott Adam's writing in the Dilbert Principle where he discusses how to properly train ones replacement, in how it's very important to leave out that one important detail about ones job to ones replacement, such that when the s#$t hits the fan, everybody wistfully thinks back to w
I've been in the database industry for approaching 30 years and "SQL" has had mixed pronunciation since shortly after it came out of System R at IBM Research. I once asked Jim Gray about the original intent, but can't remember his answer. I think it was supposed to be S Q L. Certainly inside the SQL Server group at Microsoft (of which I'm a former General Manager and Architect) and amongst the many ex-Sybase (where the SQL Server name originated) developers I know the usage is almost always "sequel". I personally use an 90/10 mix of sequel and S Q L when referring to the language, but the product name should be pronounced "sequel server". Hal Berenson, President PredictableIT, LLC http://www.predictableit.com
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I've been in the database industry for approaching 30 years and "SQL" has had mixed pronunciation since shortly after it came out of System R at IBM Research. I once asked Jim Gray about the original intent, but can't remember his answer. I think it was supposed to be S Q L. Certainly inside the SQL Server group at Microsoft (of which I'm a former General Manager and Architect) and amongst the many ex-Sybase (where the SQL Server name originated) developers I know the usage is almost always "sequel". I personally use an 90/10 mix of sequel and S Q L when referring to the language, but the product name should be pronounced "sequel server". Hal Berenson, President PredictableIT, LLC http://www.predictableit.com