B. Kremer said
This book was my primary resource for passing the MCTS exam. I found the practice exams very useful. This book flows very well and is easy to read. I prefer this book over the Microoft Press books.
Naked Pagan said
I recently passed this MS example. They asked for 700, and thats what they got.
I used this book as one of my study guides to get going. It did help me get my studying organized, but as far as giving me anything really insightful or details that I really needed to get things done, it fell way short of the mark. The topics were there, just so vaguely covered as to be worthless.
The three primary sources that helped were the SQL Server 2005 administrators handbook, Measureup and MSDN. Honestly, the stuff is all there in Books on Line, and in enough detail to actually be useful.
MG said
Tom Carpenter has done a fine job writing this book for helping one prepare for the SQL 2005 exam. He covers some of the new features well and I will probably be using the book as reference material as well.
Michael Kesler said
I bought this book a few months ago, when my company offered me to pay for some of my certifications. I have several years of experience working with MySQL Databases and i knew about what a SQL database is, how it works and all the neat little things you can do, using SQL. So basically, i bought this book not so much to learn SQL itself, but to get to know Microsofts SQL Server, learn how to administrate it and to add more experience to my resume.
I bought this book and also installed an instance of MSSql on my system. This book helped me to understand the concepts behind MSSql and how it is set up. The only downside are the Excercises in the book: Most of the time, they look like:
"1) Start the program
2) Expand the Management Section the Object Explorer
3) Right Click another Option and select an option from the context menu
4) Go to another menu and click here
5) Enter another value
6) and so on..."
Don't get me wrong, they explain how to go through the menus just fine - but they don't have much Screenshots, to see what it actually looks like. I had MSSql installed on my system, so i could practice those actions hands on. But that's just me, i an just am a visual learner :). I took the exam about 2 Weeks after buying this book and passed without any problems.
Other than that, it is pretty straight forward and if you have worked with other Databases before, you should have no problem at all. If you have never worked with databases before, this book is still very helpful to learn, but i would strongly recommend to have a MSSql Installation running to actually get the look and feel and to get some hands-on experience!
Two more things, just to have that covered:
1) This book is a great guide on how to configure and administrate Microsofts SQL-Server. Even though it gives you a short insight of the SQL Language and provides you with the most important basics, it is not meant to teach you SQL itself!
2) If you are looking for a job as a database administrator, you might also want to look into O'Reillys Books like "High Performance SQL" and "Using SAN & NAS" to get an idea about how to create performant SQL queries and how to optimize not only the database, but also the hardware side of a database system itself. Just saying, that almost always scores big points in job interviews ;).
R. Sankala said
I have had it for a month and got thru only half of this book. Good for newbies with lot of detail oriented material. However there's lot of rubbish that one could skip. But its good with a soft copy of the book included in the CD to listen thru using reading software! One suggestion to author is to avoid repeating details and explaining useless scenarios in too much detail.
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