SQL Server 2008 R2 November CTP Available

The next public CTP release of SQL Server 2008 R2 is available to all MSDN and TechNet subscribers. There are many new Reporting Services features, you can get the download links and details on the new features by going to Robert Bruckner's blog.

Gemini is now PowerPivot

At the Microsoft SharePoint Conference in Las Vegas this week Microsoft announced that the new Excel 2010 Self-Service BI technology that was code-named Gemini is now called PowerPivot.

Not sure what I think of this new name, but then Gemini was as strange code-name as well. Guess I will get used to over time, just sounds like some kind of messed up super hero name to me right now.

Colorado Springs SQL Server User Group Presentation

Here are the slides for the SQL Server Reporting Services: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow that I did for the Colorado Springs SQL Server User Group on Wednesday, October 21st.

Thanks to the Colorado Springs SQL Server User Group for inviting me to present at their meeting. Lots of great questions, hopefully I inspired more people to get into SQL Server Reporting Services!

SQL Server 2008 R2 August CTP and Gemini

Sorry for the lack of posts this summer, been crazy at work lately.

Microsoft has posted the SQL Server 2008 R2 August CTP bits for anyone that wants to see what this update has to offer. There are many great changes for SSRS coming in this release, including an all new Report Manager interface, Maps as a report item like graphs and charts and the best of all an AJAX enabled ReportViewer control! The ReportViewer control is not available for use in Visual Studio yet, but will be in the next beta of Visual Studio 2010 that gets released. Report Builder 3.0 is also available as a separate download (see links below).

SQL Server 2008 R2 August CTP (technet)

Report Builder 3.0 CTP

Visual Studio 2010 beta 1 and .NET 4.0 beta 1

The new ReportViewer control included in Report Manager will make this a must install upgrade as soon as it comes out in 2010!

For those that are also participating in the Office 2010 beta you can get the Gemini CTP as well, but Office 2010 is required since it plugs into Excel 2010. Gemini is also going to be part of SQL Server 2008 R2 when it comes out and is a self service Analysis Services technology that will work on the client desktop.

SQL Server 2008 R2 Gemini CTP (requires Office 2010 beta)

Denver SQL Server User Group Presentation

Below is my PowerPoint from the Denver SQL Server User Group presentation that I did on August 20, 2009.

Introduction to Reporting Services

For those that attended, thank you for coming and suffering through my Mac not cooperating. Sorry I was not able to do the SSRS 2008 R2 August CTP demo, guess that's what I get for trying to use too much beta software in one presentation (and switch between 2 virtual machines).

Make sure to let Marc Beacom know if you want me to do another presentation on just the R2 changes!

Tech-Ed 2009 BI Power Hour Demos

Microsoft has posted videos of all the demos that were presented at the BI Power Hour session, which was part of Tech-Ed 2009 that took place in Orlando earlier this month.

For those that have not attended any of the previous BI Power Hour sessions (this is the first one that I have missed), they are really fun sessions where you get to see the Microsoft BI tools used in ways that you probably would never have thought of. Previous demos included playing Monopoly in PerformancePoint Server, Hang-Man or Battleship in Reporting Services or even analyzing political speech content with Analysis Services.

If you ever go to a Microsoft convention and see BI Power Hour on the schedule, make the effort to attend, you won't regret it. And you may even get a t-shirt or other freebie out of it as well!

Update -- Just found out that Robert Bruckner has posted the Reporting Services demo from last year's BI Power Hour session at the Microsoft BI Conference! Get it here and enjoy!

DVSUG - May 2009 Lab Solution

Click this link to download my VS2008 solution file that I used in the Denver Visual Studio User Group Lab on May 15th.

Be sure to read the notes file included for requirements that must be installed first, including SQL Server 2008 (with Reporting Services) and Visual Studio 2008.

SQL Server 2008 SP1 Released

Microsoft has released SQL Server 2008 SP1 today. You can download the appropriate version from here.

There are no new features in SP1, but there is now the ability in Reporting Services to configure whether Report Builder 1.0 or 2.0 is available in the click-once link in Report Manager.

Robert Bruckner has a good post on his blog with other download links.

Microsoft's New BI Roadmap!

Late yesterday Microsoft announced their new BI roadmap. The big change is that PerformancePoint Server will no longer be sold/developed as a separate product. All of the dashboard, KPI and analytic functions of PerformancePoint Server will now be available in a SharePoint Server Enterprise license! There will still be a release later this year for PerformancePoint Server SP3, but that will be the last separate release for that product. It is unclear what will happen to the Planning fuctions that were previously part of the ProClarity tools and will be enhanced in the SP3 release. For more info, click on the link above, which has a link to a video from Microsoft's Director of BI, Guy Weismantel.

For those that have used PerformancePoint Server this is not a big surprise, since SharePoint Server was always a requirement to even install PPS. In the end this will make the product line easier to understand and explain, plus for most users it won't cost any extra to take advantage of these great tools. With this change and the further integration with Excel in the Gemini release, this will make Microsoft BI available to anyone that wants to use it.

Reporting Services MSDN Dashboard

Microsoft has setup a dashboard page that agregates all Microsoft information on Reporting Services. Use this link and make sure to bookmark this page!