Re: consolidation of multiple rows

From: DA Morgan <damorgan_at_psoug.org>
Date: Sat, 08 Mar 2008 06:03:00 -0800
Message-ID: <1204984975.858753@bubbleator.drizzle.com>


Jerry Stuckle wrote:

> DA Morgan wrote:
>> Jerry Stuckle wrote:
>>> DA Morgan wrote:

>>>> Jerry Stuckle wrote:
>>>>> DA Morgan wrote:
>>>>>>>> If you know the names Date and Codd you should know who you are
>>>>>>>> addressing: Joe Celko.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Not a name I am familiar with.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Says much about your attitude toward our profession.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Enlighten yourself:
>>>>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Celko
>>>>>> http://www.dbmsmag.com/artin301.html#A000009
>>>>>> http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Wikipedia%22+and+%22Joe+Celko%22&btnG=Google+Search 
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Not necessarily.  There are a lot of top notch programmers and 
>>>>> DBA's who have never heard of Joe Celko.
>>>>

>>>> Well right now I can only name one. <g>
>>>>

>>>> Of course you are correct. There are top notch programmers that
>>>> don't know who Chris Date is. There are top notch programmers
>>>> that don't know who Dennis Ritchie and Ray Boyce are either no
>>>> doubt.
>>>>

>>>> Though I suspect you could put the names of those "top notch"
>>>> programmers on a 3x5 card.
>>>
>>> Quite incorrect.  Right off the top of my head I can probably name a 
>>> dozen I know personally who haven't heard of him.  He's well known in 
>>> some circles, but definitely not all.
>>
>> The operative phrase here is "top notch." If they ever took even a basic
>> class on normalization they could not have missed the name Boyce. If
>> they learned more in C than "Hello World" they'd know who Dennis is.
> 
> Not necessarily.  A lot of great DBA's know normalization but don't know 
>  Boyce.

I would disagree with your characterization of them as "great DBAs."

I know that might be your impression of them. And I've no doubt they can install, patch, and backup and restore without crashing and burning. But it takes more than that to be "great."

You don't know normalization if you don't know Boyce-Codd Normal Form. What you are describing is the competent self-taught ... not the "great."

All "great" lawyers go to law school.
All "great" surgeons go to medical school.
All "great" engineers to go college/university.
Only in our profession is great defined by the fact that so far the bridges you've built haven't killed anyone ... well lately.
-- 
Daniel A. Morgan
Oracle Ace Director & Instructor
University of Washington
damorgan_at_x.washington.edu (replace x with u to respond)
Puget Sound Oracle Users Group
www.psoug.org
Received on Sat Mar 08 2008 - 08:03:00 CST

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