ORACLE: Using ROWNUM or SORT with UNION

[Pulled from dbforums]

If you want to use ROWNUM or SORT across the results of a UNION:

SELECT *
FROM (
    SELECT employee_id, last_name, first_name
    FROM   EMPLOYEES
    UNION
    SELECT department_id, 'DEPT', department_name
    FROM   DEPARTMENTS
)
WHERE ROWNUM < 100
ORDER BY last_name;

* I realize this is a brutaly contrived example, but hey, whaddaya expect?
** I have no idea how this performs.

ORACLE: Tidbits

I'm starting to read up on Oracle and figure the beast out. Naturally the first thing I do is to subscribe to the I Hate Oracle Club (IHOC). I'm still trying to figure out a way to order the mug or T-Shirt.

I figure I'll post whatever little tidbits I come across that I found useful. Mostly so I don't have to remember them myself.

[Listening to: Static-X - Cold]

Encrypting app.config configuration sections in Whidbey

Pulled from That Indigo Book: A nice easy way to encrypt an app.config (or web.config) configuration section. It's the little things.

[Listening to: Lisa Loeb - Dance with the Angels]

Catching up

It's long past time I started making my way through the "To Blog" queue. Here goes nothing...

Setting up a Development Environment with Virtual PC / Virtual Server

Armand du Plessis rebuilds his development environment using Virtual PC/Virtual Server. It sounds useful enough to blog here to trigger my failing memory when I might be tempted to do the same.

[Listening to: Nickelback - Where do I Hide?]

Primer to ConnectionStringBuilder in ADO.Net v2.0

Sushil Chordia puts together on the new ADO.NET 2.0 ConnectionStringBuilder class. Definitely a time saver (and maybe a trial-and-error eliminator.) Primer to ConnectionStringBuilder in ADO.Net v2.0 [Sushil Chordia]

[Listening to: Rage Against the Machine - Guerilla Radio]

Keep your Main simple

Jason Clark, over at Wintellect has a nice post on why you should keep your Main entry point nice and simple. Even better, he gives you a juicy boilerplate to use.

[Listening to: Oysterhead - Owner of the World]

Book: Customizing the Microsoft .NET Framework Common Language Runtime

Just found a reference to a potentially very useful book from Chris Sells here: Customizing the Microsoft .NET Framework Common Language Runtime by Steven Pratscher. This sounds like just the stuff I'd be looking for (at least once I got off my butt and did something.)

[Listening to: Flybanger - When are you? (Gonna Die)]

Access Control List Editing in .NET

From the March 2005 issue of MSDN Magazine, Keith Brown gives us a UI to
Edit Access Control Lists .NET. Boy, just for the sake of displaying ACLs this thing rocks.

[Listening to: Godsmack - Forgive me]

XSLTO -- XSLT's in C#

This is cool enough to break me out of my non-blogging-funk: XSLTO -- XSLT-like processing using C#. That definitely seems neat. Found via Craig Andera.

[Listening to: Sarah McLachlan - Witness]