My first Oracle OpenWorld

September 16, 2011 Leave a comment

This year, I get to attend my very first Oracle OpenWorld. I’m excited, psyched and just a weeny bit overwhelmed.

It’s still two weeks away, but I’m already trying to work out how to clone myself in order to get to all the places I want to be!

It’ll be a multipurpose trip as I’ll be wearing many hats –  I’m there as a delegate, a DBA wanting to learn new stuff and I’ll also be there in my role as UKOUG VP, so I have meetings set up and I’ll be looking to see how things are done in comparison to our own conferences.

In addition to all that, I’ll also be there to catch up with old friends and hopefully meet some new ones.

One thing I’m not so keen on is that I’ve also been warned that San Francisco is a bit ‘hilly’ and there will be a lot of walking, so I’d best leave my signature stilettos at home.

 Anybody who knows me well will know just how much of a crisis this is for me. :)

So, if you see a short, blonde English girl that is quite clearly lost – please do stop and say hi!

Filed under Uncategorized

Exadata Special Event – have you registered?

April 13, 2011 4 Comments

The UKOUG is holding our first Exadata Special Event on Monday.

We’ve lined up an amazing agenda with fantastic speakers to ensure that the day is jam-packed with all you need to know.  There’s something for everyone, with all presentations being given by people with real first-hand experience.

It really is an event not to be missed, but don’t just take my word for it – see what Tanel Poder has to say about it, either on his blog, or in this article in ComputerWorld.

As if the agenda itself isn’t enough, we’re also holding a prize draw where 3 lucky delegates will get a free e-book copy of the brand new APress book ‘Expert Oracle Exadata’ co-authored by  Kerry Osborne, Randy Johnson and Tanel Poder.

I’m excited about the event, and not just because it will be my first time out of the house since breaking my leg!

Filed under Uncategorized

My new blog…

March 31, 2011 1 Comment

So I’ve finally got round to moving my blog over here, it’s just a shame I had to break my leg in order to find the time!

I’ve been meaning to do it for a while (move the blog that is, not break my leg) as I wanted an updated blog with a new look and feel and I also wanted somewhere I could post about all the things I am doing, not just the Newbie stuff.

So this is what I have. I like it, but feel free to send feedback if there is anything that isn’t working.

All the older posts have been copied over here, but I will be leaving the old blog up for a while too.

I’d like to say I did it all by myself, but I didn’t. I almost did, but there were a couple of things that for the life of me I just couldn’t figure them out. So I have to say a huge thank you to Tanel Poder for helping out with the tricky bits (well, I thought they were tricky!). It’s good to have friends that are willing to help out with technology in exchange for beer!

Filed under Odds & Ends

Exciting changes at UKOUG!

March 21, 2011 Leave a comment

First of all, a big Thank you to everyone who voted to keep me on the Board of Directors. I’m very grateful for all of the support and very pleased to be able to continue as a Director.

We had our first Board meeting on Thursday and were able to welcome two new Directors to the Board, Jeremy Duggan and Robert Stanton.

This board meeting was a very different experience for me as, due to a rather unfortunate skiing accident resulting in a fractured leg, I was unable to attend in person and instead participated via Skype video call from the comfort of my sofa!
I was disappointed to not be there but was glad to be able to still participate to some degree.

In addition to welcoming the new Directors, there were also a couple of big changes to the UKOUG Board this year.

Ronan Miles has stepped down as Chairman after 11 years in the role, although he will be continuing on the board as a Director.

Elections were held and Debra Lilley has taken on the role of Chairman and I have taken on the role of Deputy Chair.

I’m delighted to be taking on this role and am grateful for the support shown by my fellow Directors who voted me into the post.

It’s going to be a challenging year ahead, but I am very much looking forward to it. It’s going to be hard work but very much rewarding and I could not do it without the support of my employer and my peers.

I’d like to thank Ronan for everything he has done for the UKOUG and for the support and encouragement he has given me since joining the Board.

Filed under UKOUG

UKOUG Director Elections – Please Vote!

February 22, 2011 Leave a comment

>There’s only a few days left for voting in this year’s Director Elections, with the process closing on February 28th.

More information on the election process, including information on the role of Directors, and this years candidates can be found here.

Each UKOUG membership is entitled to one vote, with ballot papers being sent to the main contact for that membership, but if they have a colleague who may be better placed to make that judgement, such as an active SIG member or volunteer, then the vote can be passed to them.

I’m up for re-election this year and I’m really hoping to secure enough votes to allow me to continue as a Director.

My details, and those of other candidates can be found here.

As with any election, it’s important that each membership takes the opportunity to vote. So if you are a member of the UKOUG then please do vote, or liaise with the main contact for your vote, and hopefully vote for me!

Filed under UKOUG

From Oracle Newbie to Oracle ACE…

February 9, 2011 1 Comment

When I started this blog over 5 years ago, I never imagined that it would take me on a journey from an Oracle Newbie, to a Director of UKOUG and onto an Oracle ACE (even if I did go via some strange evenings in some strange pubs in Birmingham and a rather dodgy Panto!)

All I can say is that it has been a heck of a ride!

I’ve enjoyed every minute of it and for me, the best part of it has been the friendships that have been made along the way.

To each and every one of you that has supported and encouraged me along the way, I thank you.

And a big thank you to OTN and the ACE Program for the award and a special thank you to the person who nominated me as an Oracle ACE (they know who they are).

Filed under DBA, Odds & Ends, UKOUG

UKOUG Inspiring Presentation Awards – The Winners

December 3, 2010 Leave a comment

>This is the Conference Review Part 2, but I wanted to do a separate post for the IPA’s.

On Tuesday night at the conference, we had the first ever UKOUG Inspiring Presentation Awards.
The awards and the evening’s social event were very kindly sponsored by OTN, so a big thank you to Vikki Lira from the Oracle ACE Program for helping out and making it all happen.

The first four categories are for presentations given at the Conference in 2009, with winners decided by the feedback scores provided by delegates in the sessions. The Best Abstract awards were determined by the highest scores given to abstracts submitted for the 2010 event.

We had a great deal of fun with the awards ceremony with a large crowd there to cheer for the winners.

So without further ado, here are the winners of the first ever UKOUG Inspiring Presentation Awards!

Oracle Speaker:
Technology – Grant Ronald Modernizing Your Oracle Forms Investment: Google Maps, Carousels, Web 2.0 and Web Services
Apps – Clive Swan Keynote: Fusion Applications demonstrations

UK Speaker:
Technology – John Scott Building Scalable Applications with Oracle Application Express
Apps – Simon Tomey BI and the Reporting Road Map

Overseas Speaker:
Technology – Connor McDonald 11g features for Developers
Apps – Michael Rulf Using Oracle Application Integration Architecture Foundation pack to build a best-of-breed landscape

First Time Speaker:
Technology – Jan Navratil Building large scale mission critical systems with Oracle Application Express
Apps – Marcus Rogers Oracle E-Business Suite: Why do users hate Oracle?

Best Abstract:
UK Technology – James Morle Sane SAN 2010
UK Apps – Margaret Greenwood Advanced Collections – helping the council’s budget in these difficult times
Overseas – Christian Antognini Transaction Management Internals

Congratulations to all the winners!

We did have a photographer in attendance, I’ll get a link to the pictures as soon as I have them.
Thank you to everyone involved that helped make this happen and I hope it encourages more of you out there to get up and give presenting a go.

Filed under UKOUG

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