SQL 2008 Launch Event was Yesterday

Well I just got back from the Launch event.  The event was excellent.  Microsoft was giving out a lot of really excellent information about all the products.  The turnout was just amazing.  I heard that about 5000 people registered, and that based on prior events about 3500 were expected to actually show up.  Somewhere around 6500 people actually attended so the show was very busy.

Tom Brokaw and Steve Ballmer both gave excellent speeches at the keynote speakers.  Because of the large number of people in attendance the check in process seamed to take quite a while for a lot of people.  The demos which were done were very interesting.  There was only one occasion of the “cooking show magic” where you go from the before to after without showing the changes with SQL Server Reporting Services Report Designer when adding a column.  Everyone seamed to know why we weren’t shown the work of adding a column to a report because it’s not as easy as they wanted it to seam.  We all got the gist of what they were getting at though.  Many of the sessions were packed so full that there were more people then could actually get into the session rooms.

Because of the extra people in attendance the lunch situation wasn’t the greatest, but it seamed that they were able to deal with it.  I didn’t see anyone going without lunch so I guess they were able to deal with it pretty quickly.

The only real complaints that I have are that the Microsoft pavilion was in a separate room from the main pavilion room so it was a little hard to find.  I didn’t even realise that there was a Microsoft pavilion until half way through the day, and by then I didn’t have time to go and check it out.

Because I was one of the first 1000 people to register for the event I was invited to the AMD / Microsoft party after the launch event.  The party was awesome to say the least.  The Barenaked Ladies performed a full set, and it was a great show.  Now I admit, I’m not the biggest fan of the Barenaked Ladies, but they put on a great show.  They appeared to be having a great time, and the music was great.  It was a top notch way to end a great day of learning.

Be sure to check out the event when it comes to a town near you.

I tried to take some photos, but my camera just didn’t cut it.  Some folks that I know took some pictures with me.  As soon as I get them, I’ll post them up on the site for all to see.

Denny