Ready, Set...GO!

My name is Noel. I created this blog to document and blog my way to becoming a DBA. I'm currently a Web developer. I develop primarily in Java (GWT Framework) for my current job (Well currently, I'm assigned to work on a .NET project, so I'm currently developing in C#), and I also enjoy doing front-end development and web designing during my spare time (HTML/CSS/jQuery). Check out my past works in my portfolio page at nre4ma.com.

In my 8 years of development, I have experience in developing front-end, server-side, and database. In other words I've already seen and worked on the full-stack. So what has made me think about becoming a DBA? I have no straight answer, but I guess it started about 5-6 years ago when I first started writing SQL scripts (Oracle DB) as part of my job function. I didn't have a clue about SQL, so I basically learned it while doing the job. I was fascinated at how you can manipulate the data and the different ways of accessing it. Since then I've been kind of obsessed about data. I remember I used to write little programs/web apps that does inventory, or some kind of record keeping apps back then for myself using free DBs like MySQL.

Now, at this point in my career, I really feel like it's about the right time to really take the plunge and become a full pledge DBA. I have to be honest, but the salary that a DBA job demands is also a huge part of the reason why I want to become one. I still love being a front-end developer but I'm looking for some new challenges.

So hopefully, this blog will allow me to have a deeper understanding in the many topics that I will encounter along the way and also share my knowledge to the world and other people like me who have started their journey to become a DBA. And also, I will use this as a reference/reviewer for my certification tests.

I have decided to take the SQL Server (Microsoft) route. Basically, just because there is a higher demand for in the job market where I live. And also, their site and certification seems more organized compared to Oracle.

Right now, I'm reading the Querying Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Training Kit. I'm only in the early chapters but in my next few posts, Hopefully after a couple of months I will be ready to take the Exam 70-461. I will be sharing some topics and try to teach some of the stuff that I learned from the book.