Steven said
What a life saver!
I'm a software developer in a small shop and our biggest client is a large law firm with LOTS of data and users hungry for easy to read reports reflecting said data. None of us have much experience with SQL Reporting Services as most of our experience for reporting is in Crystal Reports.
I've heard of SQLRS but until recently I didn't have much experience using it. Our client was in great need of a simple report so I went ahead and setup a report server and decided to give SQLRS a whirl. Thankfully Business Intelligence Development Studio (BIDS) was easy for me to grasp as I am a C# developer and I was already in comfortable territory (BIDS is really just a reporting solution in Visual Studio afterall).
I was able to create their report in a very short time and the users were comfortable using the Report Manager Website. Of course what happened next is predictable to anyone that has been in a similar situation - I became "The Report Guy" - for better or worse.
Of course our client started demanding more and more reports - increasing in complexity. I only scratched the surface of what SQLRS was capable of and during that time I thought a lot of their report specs may be impossible to realize using SQLRS. I began to worry. They wanted graphs, complex groupings, drill down style reports... I needed someone to throw me a life raft. Thank you Brian for throwing me that raft!
This book saved me. Even though this book is rather big weighing in at over 860 pages (including index) it was a breeze to work through. Brian has a clean, easy to read writing style and he injects a bit of humor throughout. I thought this book was going to take forever to work through but because Brian is such a good Author it really became a page turner. This book is one of the easier books to absorb. This book starts very simple and increases in complexity. Parts of the book were so relevant to my business needs that it almost seemed like he was right there telling me how to write my reports!
If there was ever a book that may have really saved my job then this is it. I now don't mind being the "Report Guy" - I feel like I can tackle just about any report spec they throw at me - all thanks to Brian Larson.
If you need to learn about SQLRS then I don't see how you can do much better then this book.
Nancy D. said
This book is an excellent resource for learning Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services. The author leads you step by step from easy examples to more complex examples. And, the examples work! I am on page 468 of the book, and have zero complaints. He covers easy to complex reports, exporting the report and the different formats, and then Report Serving (getting it out to the customers). His style of writing is easy to understand which is very important. I would highly recommend this book. I can't say enough good about it. It's great!
Cem Karaer said
If you want to learn SQL 2008 Reporting Services from scratch, this book is a good point to start. By using effective examples and metaphors, Mr Brian shows that he knows what to teach but also how to teach. Although having had the book only two and a half weeks ago, I feel courageous enough to enter into the reporting realm of SQL Server.
The most graceful aspect of the book is that you move on step by step but being informed why you take those steps. By giving chucks of technical information when necessary, the book gives the reader conceptual background for building practical reports. The only con of the book is the unavailability of its electronic form.
Keith S. Safford said
I also purchased Brian's book on SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services and moved up to 2008 and the book is an excellent step-by-step recipe book on how to create reports utilizing SQL Server 2008. It is an excellent book on stepping you through the numerous examples and examining how to create complex business reports.
Another great point is that when I was learning SSRS 2005 and had a problem, I emailed Brian, figuring I might hear back from him in a week or so. He replied to my email within the day and explained to me what I had to do to correct my problem. Best of all, it was right and I moved on.
His writing style is clear and concise and he doesn't miss any steps in his tutorials on creating the reports. This is one book that will be "dog eared" due to heavy use.
Carl Cook said
Most books I have sit almost untouched, but not this one. After starting the book I was drawn to my computer to start using what I was learning. The sample database and exercises are enticing and a bit of a challenge for me, never having used Reporting Services or SQL Server2008 or VS2008. In about 3 evenings I was able to download evaluation (free!) versions of all the software, the sample database, and make my first SSRS report (fast internet but 1.7GHz P4 w/ 1GB RAM). For me, this is a great way to learn- By doing. I am only half way to "Chapter 8: Beyond Wow: Advanced Reporting" which is in the middle of the book, so I have a lot left to learn :).
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