Archive
Microsoft hosts its first-ever Accessibility Summit in India to enhance technology access for people with disabilities
Continues its efforts to bridge technology divide and drive digital inclusion to empower people to achieve more
(From L-R)
Dr. Jitender Aggarwal, Founder & CEO Sarthak Educational Trust, Shri M. Jagadeeshwar, IAS, Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Telangana,
Shri Navreet Kang, Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India,
Shri Jayesh Ranjan, IT Secretary, Department of IT, Electronics & Communication, Government of Telangana,
Madhu Khatri, Associate General Counsel and Accessibility Lead, Microsoft India
… at the first-ever Microsoft Accessibility Summit in India that is focused on enhancing technology access for people with disabilities.
Hyderabad, 30 May 2017: Microsoft India today hosted its first-ever Accessibility Summit (#ThinkAccessAbility) in the country to enhance technology access for people with disabilities. The summit aimed at demonstrating the business value of accessible technology for organizations, the need for a collaborative effort as well as assessing policy’s role in creating an accessible India. The summit brought together leaders from the government, non-profit organizations, filmmakers, entrepreneurs and budding technologists to present their views and best practices around accessibility and technology’s potential in aiding inclusion.
Shri Navreet Kang, Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India said, “We believe that inclusion of persons with disabilities is imperative for India’s growth. It is therefore, critical that we empower them with equal access and opportunity. We look forward to public-private partnerships that can enable better social inclusion and help people with disabilities achieve more.”
Speaking at the summit, Shri Jayesh Ranjan, IT Secretary, Department of IT, Electronics & Communication, Government of Telangana said, “Our vision is to ensure that persons with diverse abilities have equal access to the physical environment, transportation, information and communication technologies, and to other facilities and services. The Microsoft Accessibility Summit provides an ideal platform to bring together policymakers and influencers to understand the policy environment and chart a direction for making life, experiences and opportunities accessible to all.”
A platform to discuss, imagine and bring new perspectives for innovative use of technology
Through a series of constructive sessions, the conference focused on the role of technology in creating accessible businesses, scalable and sustainable models for skilling youth with disability. It also examined how assistive technologies can help in treating Autism Spectrum Disorders and Special Learning Disabilities (SLD). There was a special focus on the need for regulatory policies for innovation on accessible technologies and inclusive hiring practices. These interactions also provided insights into regulations, specifications and standards in terms of accessibility along with an understanding of optimization of existing hardware and software configuration to drive accessibility. Shri M. Jagadeeshwar, IAS, Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Telangana also contributed to the discussions as part of the summit.
Technology innovations for driving accessibility
The summit featured unique technology-based projects that empower people with disabilities. These included innovations from non-profit organizations, assistive technologies developed by Microsoft partners as well as Microsoft solutions. A young team of three students from IIT Kharagpur showcased White Cane, a personal assistant device for the visually impaired, which they have developed as part of Microsoft Imagine Cup.
According to Dr. Jitender Aggarwal, Founder & CEO Sarthak Educational Trust, “Accessibility is one of the dire necessities for creating an inclusive environment. The difference between the able bodied and disabled is not so much because of physical challenges, as due to the fact that everything around us is designed from the perspective of able bodied people only. In such a scenario, accessible and adaptive technologies act as a support system to promote inclusion and empowerment of persons with disabilities.”
Speaking at the conference, Madhu Khatri, Associate General Counsel and Accessibility Lead, Microsoft India said, “At Microsoft we believe there are no limits to what people can achieve when technology reflects the diversity of everyone who uses it. We are committed to transparency, accountability, and inclusion in our products and our culture, and we are deeply inspired by the opportunity to work with others around the world to explore what’s possible. A market-driven ecosystem is the best environment for encouraging greater accessibility for all users. The Summit is a significant step forward in advancing our efforts towards sensitizing stakeholders and partners on the need for the business and social value of accessibility.”
Please find more information to Microsoft’s approach to accessibility on Microsoft Accessibility Website and see Microsoft India’s video on Empowering for Inclusion.
About Microsoft India
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Microsoft set up its India operations in 1990. Today, Microsoft entities in India have over 8,000 employees, engaged in sales and marketing, research and development and customer services and support, across 11 Indian cities – Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, New Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. Microsoft offers its global cloud services from local datacenters to accelerate digital transformation across Indian start-ups, businesses, and government agencies. In 2016, Microsoft opened one of its eight Cyber Security Engagement Centers in the country, to address security needs of both public and private sectors.
For further information, contact
Anindita Phukan
Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd.
Email: Anindita.phukan@microsoft.com
+919811402847
Dhairya Chaudhry
Edelman India
dhairya.chaudhry@edelman.com
+9199689 84563
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Microsoft India news: http://news.microsoft.com/en-in/
Log onto: http://microsoft.com/india/news
Follow us on: Twitter | Facebook
Preparing for Exam 70-761, Querying Data with Transact-SQL | Certification
This exam (70-761) will earn you MCP in SQL Server 2016 Querying Data with Transact-SQL. It is 1 out of the 2 exams to earn the “MCSA: SQL 2016 Database Development” certification.
I will discuss about the other “Exam 70-762, Developing SQL Databases” in my next post.
Training Kit Book:
For exam preparation you can use: Exam Ref 70-761 Querying Data with Transact-SQL
So, let’s go and understand this exam, links to study material and how to prepare for this.
–> This exam is targeted for students or professionals who want to learn about Transact-SQL or simply T-SQL, which includes:
1. Know about SQL Server and its components
2. Write single/multi table SELECT statements, with SET and Predicate logic
3. Apply Filtering, Sorting, JOIN, etc with SQL Queries
4. Write DDL, DML SQL Statements to Store and Retrieve data to & from Tables
5. Create Views, Stored Procedures, Functions, etc
6. Use inbuilt Functions and Transform data
7. Work with SQL Datatypes, Variables, Conditions, Loops and T-SQL code/scripts
The exam is divided into multiple modules:
1. Introduction to Microsoft SQL Server 2016
– The Basic Architecture of SQL Server [Architecture]
– SQL Server on-premise and cloud-based Editions and Versions [Editions]
– Getting Started with SSMS [SSMS]
2. Introduction to T-SQL Querying
– Introducing T-SQL with basic SELECT Statements [SELECT]
– Understanding Sets and SET based Queries in relational DBs
– Understanding Predicate Logic to Filter Data [WHERE clause, PREDICATES]
– Understanding the Logical Order of Operations in SELECT statements [Logical Order]
3. Writing SELECT Queries
– Writing Simple SELECT Statements, its structure and format [SELECT Queries]
– Eliminating Duplicates with DISTINCT clause [DISTINCT]
– Using Column and Table Aliases
– Writing Simple CASE Expressions [CASE]
4. Querying Multiple Tables
– Understanding Joins
– Querying with Inner Joins, Outer Joins, Cross Joins and Self Joins
5. Sorting and Filtering Data
– Sorting Data with ORDER BY clause
– Filtering Data with WHERE clause Predicates
– Filtering Data with TOP and OFFSET-FETCH
– Working with Unknown/Missing Values or three-valued logic (NULL)
6. Working with SQL Server 2016 Data Types
– Introducing SQL Server 2016 Data Types
– Working with Character Data
– Working with Date and Time Data
– Working with data types conversion
7. Using DML to Modify Data
– Inserting Data with INSERT and SELECT INTO statements
– Modifying and Deleting Data with UPDATE, MERGE, DELETE, and TRUNCATE statements
8. Using Built-In Functions
– Writing Queries with Built-In Functions
– Using Conversion Functions (CAST & CONVERT)
– Using Logical Functions
– Using Functions to Work with NULL
9. Grouping and Aggregating Data
– Using built-in Aggregate Functions
– Using the GROUP BY Clause
– Filtering Groups with HAVING
10. Using Subqueries
– Writing Self-Contained Subqueries
– Writing Correlated Subqueries
– Using the EXISTS Predicate with Subqueries
11. Using Table Expressions
– Using Views
– Using Inline Table-Valued Functions (TVFs)
– Using Derived Tables
– Using Common Table Expressions (CTEs) [CTE]
12. Using Set Operators
– Writing Queries with the UNION operator (and UNION ALL)
– Using EXCEPT and INTERSECT operators
– Using APPLY operators (CROSS APPLY and OUTER APPLY)
13. Using Windows Ranking, Offset, and Aggregate Functions
– Creating Windows with OVER clause with partitioning, ordering, and framing
– Exploring Window Aggregate and Ranking Functions
14. Pivoting and Grouping Sets
– Writing Queries with [PIVOT and UNPIVOT]
– Working with Grouping Sets, CUBE and ROLLUP Subclauses
– Using the GROUPING_ID function
15. Executing Stored Procedures
– Querying Data with Stored Procedures
– Creating Simple Stored Procedures
– Passing Parameters to Stored procedures
– Stored Procedures with output parameters
– Working with Dynamic SQL
16. Programming with T-SQL
– T-SQL Programming Elements (Variables, Batches, )
– Using variables in a Dynamic SQL Statement
– Controlling Program Flow (IF-ELSE condition, WHILE loop)
– Working with Synonyms
17. Implementing Error Handling
– Implementing T-SQL error handling with TRY/CATCH block
– Implementing structured exception handling with THROW keyword
18. Implementing Transactions
– Transactions and the database engines
– Differences between batches and transactions
– Controlling transactions with BEGIN, COMMIT, and ROLLBACK
– Error handling with the CATCH block
– Use of SET XACT_ABORT while handling Transactions
Microsoft official link to this exam: https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/learning/course.aspx?cid=20761
Book available as a Training Kit on Amazon, buy it.
SQL Server 2016 articles on my blog: https://sqlwithmanoj.com/sql-server-2016-articles/
Tabular Model Project does not load in Visual Studio – need SSDT
Today one of my colleague started got one Change Request to add few attributes to a Tabular Model already deployed from a previous project. He installed Visual Studio and connected the Repository. But when he tried to load the Project it was giving following error:
Unsupported
This version of Visual Studio is unable to open the following projects. The project types may not be installed or this version of Visual Studio may not support them.
For more information on enabling these project types or otherwise migrating your assets, please see the details in the “Migration Report” displayed after clicking OK.
– abcTabularCube, “D:\VSO\abcTabularCube\xyz.smproj”No changes required
These projects can be opened in Visual Studio 2015, Visual Studio 2013, Visual Studio 2012, and Visual Studio 2010 SP1 without changing them.
– abcTabularCube, “D:\VSO\abcTabularCube\xyz.sln”
I checked his Visual studio, opened a new Project and checked if the MS BI templates for SSAS, SSRS and SSIS are showing or not. You can check them below:
If those won’t show up then you need SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT), which you can install from here.
SQL Server 2016 Certification Path
Microsoft has made few changes to its Certification path for the new version of SQL Server i.e. SQL Server 2016.
And with this post I’m trying to collate and put all exams and certifications in concise and clear manner. Would be happy to accept any comments, changes and suggestions !!!
–> The MCSA i.e. “Microsoft Certified Solution Associate” level now contains the new “MCSA: SQL Server 2016” certification, and this replaces the older “MCSA: SQL Server 2012/14” one.
–> And the top MCSE i.e. “Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert” level now contains the new “MCSE: Data Management and Analytics” certification. This also replaces the following 2 existing certifications (but retains the underlying exams to earn this MCSE level, which I’ve explained below):
– MCSE: Data Platform
– MCSE: Business Intelligence
–> Here are the details of exams at both the levels.
Level 1. “MCSA: SQL Server 2016”: Now to earn this level you need to give either of the following certifications:
1. MCSA: SQL 2016 Database Development certification
– Exam [70-761], Querying Data with Transact-SQL [check details here]
– Exam [70-762], Developing SQL Databases
2. MCSA: SQL 2016 Database Administration certification
– Exam [70-764], Administering a SQL Database Infrastructure
– Exam [70-765], Provisioning SQL Databases
3. MCSA: SQL 2016 Business Intelligence Development certification
– Exam [70-767], Implementing an SQL Data Warehouse
– Exam [70-768], Developing SQL Data Models
Level 2. “MCSE: Data Management and Analytics”: Now to earn this level you need to first get an MCSA on either of the above 3 certifications, or “MCSA: Data Science”. Then need to pass anyone of the below exam:
– Exam [70-473], Designing and Implementing Cloud Data Platform Solutions
– Exam [70-475], Designing and Implementing Big Data Analytics Solutions
– Exam [70-464], Developing Microsoft SQL Server Databases
– Exam [70-465], Designing Database Solutions for Microsoft SQL Server
– Exam [70-466], Implementing Data Models and Reports with Microsoft SQL Server
– Exam [70-467], Designing Business Intelligence Solutions with Microsoft SQL Server
Current Visitors
StatCounter …since April 2012
Leisure blog: Creek & Trails
- An error has occurred; the feed is probably down. Try again later.
SQL with Manoj 