Voice of the DBA

Author: way0utwest

  • Leveling the Field

    Level Playing Field
    Cloud computing can level the field between large and small businesses

    I like small companies. If I had my choice, I’d prefer to work in a small company rather than a large one. I get to know more people, there’s less friction to getting things done, people can make decisions, and I get to do more cool stuff. My budget is smaller, but creativity is often encouraged when solving problems. As I read about some of the cool stuff that startups are doing, it reminds me of a few places I’ve worked.

    One of the challenges with small companies and their software has always been cost. A lot of companies look to Open Source products to cut down on their investments for this reason. However if there weren’t such a high price to the software, I think many companies would go with the “brands” of software that many of us work with every day.

    I remember working for a small company and being in charge of rewriting their inventory and sales system. As we were preparing to program the system, an SAP sales rep called our company and made a pitch to the owner. He was impressed and we spent a few weeks looking at SAP. We knew we couldn’t afford the full SAP software, much less purchasing the multiple servers it would take to run it, but SAP had just released a cut-down version of their software, running on one server, for small businesses. We didn’t buy it then, and I’m glad because we had a unique business model that really benefited from custom programming.

    These days all sorts of companies are looking to get started in new areas, or trying new ideas. Many of them don’t necessarily want to make large IT investments. It’s not only hardware and software, but also the IT expertise to manage the systems. If I were starting a business, or even working with a small business as a developer, I’d seriously consider cloud services. The breadth of offerings and features, the low investment cost, and lack of administration needed really level the playing field between what a small company and a large one can do with technology.

    There are opportunities here. If you’re looking to work with a small business, or start one of your own, look at cloud offerings. You might be surprised what you can get for very little initial investment.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

    We publish three versions of the podcast each day for you to enjoy.

  • Help others and enter to win a prize

    My home state of Colorado has been devastated by wildfires. My vacation this summer was semi-cancelled with a fire closing a local Boy Scout camp. We found another campsite for a few boys for a couple days, but the weeklong camp wasn’t available. There have been floods in the East as well that have killed power and ruined homes.

    The Red Cross does a tremendous amount of good for people in these situations, but they depend on donations. Brandie Tarvin is trying to help the Red Cross with donations and started a small contest. If you donate to their relief fund, and send Brandie a screen shot, she’ll enter you in a drawing to win some donated prizes.

    Take a moment and think about how lucky you are in your life. If you haven’t been through a disaster, think about what it would be like if you couldn’t go home tonight.

    If you think it’s worth donating to help others, take a moment and donate to the Red Cross and then enter Brandie’s contest. Whether you win or not, I’d like to think it was worth it.

    Brandie’s Contest

    Red Cross Disaster Relief Online Donation Form

  • Prepare for When Disaster Strikes

    Abstract:

    A talk on disasters and what you can do to prepare for them. I look for four types of disasters, and I briefly talk about the immediate response. However we then go back and look at the ways in which we can respond quicker or perhaps mitigate the disaster. We mostly talk about RTO and how we can reduce it as much as possible.

     

    Length: 60 minutes

    Slides: Prepare for When Disaster Strikes

    Code: No code

    Presentations

    You can view my complete speaking schedule here:  http://wp.me/P14wgJ-1tV

     

  • Security is Improving

    multiple locks
    Increasing security isn’t this easy in the digital world.

    I have written many times that we need to improve the security of our systems. We should be adhering to best practices, and limiting access where we can, and most of all, forcing all developers and DBAs to write better code that limits the security vulnerabilities, especially for SQL injection. Apparently we are getting better, according to a recent White Hat survey, which found a dramatic decline in the vulnerabilities that are on the sites they monitor. There are still issues, but fewer of them.

    I think that the increased press and attention given to attacks, as well as the focused efforts of hackers are forcing companies to pay more attention to security. I hope this translates into more testing, better training and more careful deployments rather than the haphazard, slap-dash approach that many companies have taken. It’s great that companies can change their look and feel, adding new features and flashy images, but they need to include secure coding efforts and careful review along with everything else.

    Personally, I’d like to believe that developers are getting better about coding in a secure manner, using the patterns and practices that will limit SQL injection or other vulnerabilities. They see the headlines and are spending time working on their coding skills, particularly in the security area. I hope that’s the case, and that we are maturing our industry into one that is making fewer and fewer mistakes as we build new applications.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

    We publish three versions of the podcast each day for you to enjoy.