Tech Talk with Toni

  Every day, we pay attention to things that keep our lives running smoothly, like making sure our phone battery is charged.  Today's post is inspired by a presentation I did with my team around KPIs, short for Key Performance Indicators.  I've created many dashboards in the past, but I hadn't fully understood the significance of KPIs. After questioning the significance of these numbers and taking a LinkedIn Learning course, I gained a clearer perspective on the topic.  Imagine pilots in a cockpit: If they focus only on one sensor, they could miss other crucial information and risk a crash. On the other hand, if they try to monitor every single indicator at once, they’d be overwhelmed and could make critical errors. You see, the reason why it's called a key performance indicator is that you must be intentional with your selection process so that you get the desired result. You get what you measure! After completing the course, I realized how essential it is to select...

  An index is analogous to the Table of Contents in a book.  Prior to exploring what indexes entail, I'd like to begin by discussing 'what SQL is.' SQL, often pronounced as 'sequel,' stands for Structured Query Language .  It is known for being declarative, enabling you to specify what you want without needing to focus on how to achieve it. However, beyond your initial query (SELECT * FROM menu WHERE food = 'burger'), the computer still needs to know how to go about finding those burgers, and that's where an Execution Plan comes into play. An SQL Execution Plan is a detailed outline or strategy devised by the database management system (DBMS) to execute a query efficiently, specifying the steps required such as scanning, filtering, and joining data to retrieve the requested information. Now, imagine scanning a table like flipping through pages in a book – the more pages, the longer it takes. So, keep in mind that scanning time is directly proportional ...