President Bernie O’Connor selected as IBM’s Data Server Professional of the Year
President Bernie O’Connor was recently honored as IBM’s Data Server Professional of the Year, an extremely prestigious distinction earned as a result of his professional achievements as well as his volunteer accomplishments affiliated with IDUG. IBM announced this award on October 15 in Las Vegas as part of IBM Information on Demand Live 2007.
Among the criteria used for this award, Mr. O’Connor was specifically cited for his role in advocating and implementing WMX and WMX On Demand at his workplace, Anixter, Inc. Headquartered in Glenview, Illinois, Anixter is the world’s leading distributor of communications products, electrical and electronic wire and cable. Working with another organization, Click Commerce, Anixter successfully implemented a state-of-the-art solution to complex challenges of supply-chain networks. Key components of this solution deployment were DB2 and WebSphere.
O’Connor’s volunteer contributions to the DB2 user community also played a role in his selection as Data Management Professional of the Year. As a member – and now president - of IDUG’s Board of Directors, he was instrumental in several major initiatives benefiting DB2 users, including:
- Driving IDUG’s strategy to design and offer programs that promote the effective utilization of the DB2 product family
- Overseeing a significant market research and brand revitalization campaign aimed at growing IDUG audiences and extending IDUG program use
- Working in close partnership with IBM’s development labs in Silicon Valley and Toronto to create a DB2 Development Podcast Series
- Enhancing the synergistic relationship between IDUG and IBM research, sales and marketing, development in an effort to fulfill IDUG’s mission
In addition to his efforts on behalf of IDUG, O’Connor was a founding member of the Midwest Database Users Group, an organization that continues to be one of the most vital Regional User Group’s in existence.
Mr. O’Connor hopes this recognition will yield future benefits by way of inspiring others to advocate for DB2 and consider serving their professional peers in a volunteer capacity. “IDUG and the DB2 community have given me so much personally and professionally,” he said recently. “I’m grateful for this award and that IBM deemed me a worthy recipient on account of my contributions to Anixter’s and IDUG’s success. I hope this distinction will encourage others to seek out ways to leverage their knowledge, experience and effort to benefit fellow DB2 users.”
As one of the major beneficiaries of Bernie’s community contributions, IDUG members and our partners know very well how deserving this recognition is. Please join us in congratulating him on this most impressive achievement.
Paragraphs from the President
Many of us are here at IDUG 2007 – Europe, which runs from 5-8 November in Athens, with One-Day Seminars on 9 November. Excellent technical sessions and networking opportunities abound in a truly classical city. IDUG DB2 9 Deep Compression Challenge European winners will be announced at this event. And, looking ahead to next year, IDUG 2008 – Europe conference attendees will learn key technical information while enjoying the Eastern European charm of Warsaw.
Lest we forget budgets for key training and networking opportunities: Use this year’s budget to register for IDUG 2008 – Australasia Convention 5-7 March 2008; IDUG 2008 – North America May 18 – 22; IDUG Premier Membership; and IDUG Learning Center on-demand technical training.
IDUG offers training and networking for your Strategic Database Platform – DB2:
- IDUG 2007 – Europe – runs from 5-8 November in Athens, cradle of Western Civilization. Technical presentations, SIGs and the Exhibit Hall serve your professional needs. The popular One-Day Seminars are on Friday, 9 November. Learn what you need to succeed and grow technically, and network with fellow professionals in view of the Parthenon!
- IDUG Learning Center – On-demand streaming (audio/video) technical sessions are your opportunity to learn from 1-hour technical sessions on topics of your choice. As an IDUG Basic Member, you can enjoy several free sessions, including Bryan Paulsen’s award-winning “DB2 9 for z/OS – John Deere’s ESP Experience.” Purchase technical sessions from a menu that targets your interests, from DB2 9 Viper 2 for LUW to Planning Your Migration to DB2 for z/OS V8 and DB2 9. As an IDUG Premier member, you can get those benefits at a discount, and more – such as access to PDF files of recent conference. Take a look!
- IDUG 2008 – Australasia Convention – will be held 5-7 March 2008 at the Cliftons Education Centre in Sydney, Australia. It’s a key opportunity for DB2 Professionals in Australia, New Zealand, and neighboring islands in the Pacific. Plan on it!
- IDUG 2008 – North America – Come participate in the May 18 – 22 conference. Learn what you need to succeed at the 132 DB2 sessions, 28 IMS sessions 2 keynotes, spotlights, panels, and in the informative exhibit hall. The Hyatt Regency Dallas gives a centrally-located venue along with the technical training: Talk shop over a steak or seafood dinner with friends in the vibrant downtown, listen to classical or modern music, or catch up on news while watching the Texas Rangers take on the Houston Astros at 2:05 PM on Sunday, May 18. Technical Presentations vetted by an independent committee assure high levels of technical content, with no marketing. Special Interest Groups (SIGs) let you brainstorm around a specific topic. Network with peers, Independent Consultants, Independent Software Vendors, and IBM Developers for information and advice tailored to your specific need. Find Solutions Providers for your help in software and/or services. See the IDUG site to Register!
- IDUG will also serve DB2 Markets by sponsoring events in India and Brazil during 2008, in partnership with other companies in the local marketplace.
- DB2-L – is the key peer-to-peer support listserv and marketplace of ideas for assistance in your planning and troubleshooting.
- IDUG Solutions Journal – Your source for articles that give you insight into your profession. The current issue focuses on Backup and Recovery and Administration. Archived issues focus on DB2 for z/OS V8 Migration, DB2 9 for LUW features, Tips, and detailed discussions on topics of interest to you!
From Conferences and Events, to Premier and Basic Membership, to the IDUG Learning Center, DB2-L, Solutions Journal and more, IDUG continues to provide you, the DB2 Professional, with a community for networking, and with the technical knowledge to effectively utilize DB2!
All the best,
Bernie O’Connor
President, IDUG – International DB2 Users Group
Technical Library
Multiple podcasts were added to the library in the month of October.
- DB2 for z/OS distribution and correlation statistics
EMC’s Tom Moulder talks about the effect of DB2 for z/OS distribution and correlation statistics on the optimizer. Tom explains how to help the optimizer to make the best access path decisions so you can maximize the performance of your key queries.
- The DB2 for LUW Design Advisor
MHC’s Martin Hubel shares his experiences with the design advisor in DB2 9 for Linux, Unix and Windows. Join Martin and find out how to improve SQL performance and reduce DB2 resource consumption.
- Ten tips for tuning dynamic SQL on DB2 for z/OS
Thomas Baumann of Swiss Mobilar shares ten valuable tips for tuning dynamic SQL statements on DB2 for z/OS. Join Thomas on this whirlwind tour on how to address one of today’s major DB2 for z/OS tuning challenges.
- Tips and tricks for migrating to DB2 9 for LUW
IBM's Melanie Stopfer provides some tips and tricks for migrating to DB2 9 for Linux, Unix and Windows. Join Melanie as she shares some valuable experiences and insights on migrating to the new release.
This month nearly 20 new presentations have been added to the Technical Library; here are just a few to whet your appetite:
- NA06G13 – DB2 for z/OS and SOA:
Maryela Weihrauch
Weihrauch will give a short overview about Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and discuss the current ways in which DB2 fits into it. The main focus will be on topics like how DB2 customer can make their legacy application available in a SOA architecture, how does DB2 integrate with web services. In the long term, DB2 will acquire increased capabilities and become even more integrated into the SOA. The session will describe DB2 plans for deeper integration into a SOA.
- NA06G12 - Null and Void? Dealing with Nulls in DB2
Craig Mullins; Nulls are one of the most controversial aspects of SQL database systems. On the one hand they seem to be useful as means to record missing information; on the other hand, they introduce three-valued logic and other difficulties into our applications. This presentation will delve into the various aspects of nulls, show some of the problems presented by nulls, and give advice on how best to use/avoid them.
- NA0613 – What’s new in DB2 for z/OS connectivity?
Curt Cortner
As the premier remote connectivity mechanism for DB2 for z/OS, Distributed Data Facility (DDF) and the connector's that use it provide remote applications with security, availability, and high performance. This presentation reviews recommended connectivity setup for existing clients and discusses planned enhancements for remote applications.
Complete list of presentations posted to the technical library:
- Fred Sobotka NA06A12 - Open Source Monitoring Tools For DB2
- Roger Miller NA06C12 - New DB2 Improvements in Security
- Dwaine Robert Snow NA06E12 - Where Has My Memory Gone?
- Amy Chang NA06F12 - Federated Two Phase Commit
- Craig Mullins NA06G12 - Null and Void? Dealing with Nulls in DB2
- James Knisley NA06H12 - WebSphere/DB2 Connect: Dive into connection pools
- Steen Rasmussen NA06I12 - CA: Advanced Schema management / migration procedures
- Calisto Zuzarte NA06J12 - Optimizer Enhancements - Improve Query Performance (Part 1 of 2)
- Curt Cotner NA06A13 - What's New in DB2 z/OS Connectivity
- Daniel Luksetich NA06B13 - DB2 for z/OS Design & Tuning Tips for Complex VLDB
- William Favero NA06C13 - The perfect combination: zSeries, z/OS, and DB2
- Paul Turpin NA06D13 - Taming a 1 Terabyte Table!
- Kevin Beck NA06E13 - Viper Preview: Online Roll-in/Roll-out
- Xiaomei Wang NA06F13 - Build an optimal Websphere & DB2 environment
- Maryela Weihrauch NA06G13 - DB2 for z/OS and SOA
- Jim Wankowski NA06H13 - Managing DB2 Performance in a Heterogeneous Enviro
- Richard E. Barry NA06I13 - CDB Software: Optimizing your reorganization strategy
Calisto Zuzarte NA06J13 - Optimizer Enhancements - Improve Query Performance (Part 2 of 2)