# Related Sites > SqlCredit >  PASS 2008 - What are you looking forward to?

## rgarrison

I've mapped out my PASS schedule for this year, and I'm really looking forward to it.

Monday, I'll be at "Advanced T-SQL Querying and Programming". Tuesday is "SQL Server 2008 Features for Developers."

Wednesday's (expected) highlight: [AD-202] Big Data: Working with Terabytes in SQL Server.

Thursday's (expected) highlight: [AD-406] Test-Driven Development for Database Professionals.

Friday's (expected) highlights: [AD-206] The Dirty Dozen ... 12 Ways to Write Badly Performing T-SQL and [AD-204-S] [Anti]Patterns and [Mal]Practices: Learning to do Things Right by Evaluating How Others Have Done Them Wrong.

What are _you_ looking forward to?

----------


## rgarrison

Just got out of the second day of pre-conference classes.

Yesterday was Itzik Ben-Gan's "Advanced T-SQL Querying and Programming in Microsoft SQL Server 2005 and 2008". Itzik is a great teacher. Some of this covered pieces that I had already learned a bit about, but in an intensive, all-day session like this, he was able to dive deeper. I have a lot of follow-up items for when I return. Very good class.

Today was Bob Beauchemin's "SQL Server 2008 Features for Developers". The parts on MERGE and GROUPING SETS were really good. Much of the second half of the day focused on CLR, and that didn't interest me as much, but I was glad to finally sit in one of Bob's classes. The best part of this class, and a section that Bob is clearly excited about, is spatial data in 2008. This is something I will _definitely_ be looking into more. Another topic I will be looking into more is filtered indexes.

Two days down, three to go.

----------


## rgarrison

Well, I'm back at work after a great week in Seattle.

It's funny now looking back at my list of expected highlights.

The worst session I went to was what I had listed as "Wednesday's (expected) highlight": Big Data: Working with Terabytes in SQL Server. It was about "sliding window" partitioning and didn't go into anything new or give any recommendations. Very disappointing.

I didn't even attend Thursday's "(expected) highlight" (Test-Driven Development for Database Professionals) because I was in Michael Rys's talk on spatial indexes. _That_ was one of the best sessions of the whole week.

On Friday, I was very pleased with Gail Shaw's session, "The Dirty Dozen ... 12 Ways to Write Badly Performing T-SQL". That was followed immediately by "[Anti]Patterns and [Mal]Practices: Learning to do Things Right by Evaluating How Others Have Done Them Wrong." This one was a waste. Luckily I had to leave early to catch the train.Overall, it was a great week. The _real_ highlight? Microsoft's "Ask the Experts" tables. That was a _huge_ hit for me.

----------

