Professional SQL Server Reporting Services [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

~ (Author), Todd Bryant (Author), James Counihan (Author), George McKee (Author), Dave DuVarney (Author) "SQL Server Reporting Services is an amazing offering from Microsoft that will change the way you create and deploy reporting solutions..." (more)
Key Phrases: report server database, programmatic rendering, cached reports, Visual Studio, End Sub, Private Sub (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

What is this book about?

Professional SQL Server Reporting Services can be used by C#, VB, and ASP.NET developers, as well as SQL Server developers who are looking to develop customizable reports for the end user. Professional SQL Server Reporting Services is filled with detailed examples on building reports and designing report solutions, as well as hands-on deployment strategies for interacting with a variety of latforms.

What does this book cover?

This book covers all of the fundamentals of working with Reporting Services. It begins by explaining reporting services architecture and business intelligence. You learn the fundamentals of designing reports and planning considerations, and then move on to advanced report design and filtering techniques. The book also includes saving, retrieving, and rendering reports.

You will discover the specifics of the following: 

• Programming reports
• Reporting service namespaces and the object model
• Report scripting
• Rendering scenarios
• Consuming and providing data in the .NET framework
• Browser compatibility considerations
• Designing reporting solutions and deployment strategies

From the Back Cover

SQL Server Reporting Services is the customizable reporting solution for report designers and programmers. This hands-on guide will get you up to speed quickly. You can create powerful reports without programming knowledge and extend reporting solutions using VB, C#, and ASP.NET.

Packed with detailed examples of building reports, designing report solutions, and developing deployment strategies for interacting with various platforms, this book prepares you to take full advantage of a revolutionary new tool.

What you will learn from this book

• Details of programming reports and report scripting
• Advanced report design, including drill-down reports, nested lists, drill-through, links, and dynamic content
• How to manage reports using Report Manager or program code
• High-level strategies for business support systems
• Rendering reports using .NET code, .NET IO namespace classes, and URL rendering
• Deployment strategies to handle hardware, software, and platform considerations, licensing issues, and scaling options

Who this book is for

This book is for developers and report designers using VB, C#, and ASP.NET who need to tie into SQL Server to build customized reports or to integrate reports into Windows or Web-based applications.

Wrox Professional guides are planned and written by working programmers to meet the real-world needs of programmers, developers, and IT professionals. Focused and relevant, they address the issues technology professionals face every day. They provide examples, practical solutions, and expert education in new technologies, all designed to help programmers do a better job.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 624 pages
• Publisher: Wrox; illustrated edition edition (May 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764568787
• ISBN-13: 978-0764568787
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #471,859 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Advanced Reporting Services, August 10, 2004

By	S. Hanna "Maven / Connector" (Charlotte, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

There are 2 RS (Reporting Services) books out right now, this one, and Brian Larson's book. Larson's book is good if you are a newbie to RS, but the examples he uses are very minimal.

How to Choose:
1. If you're a solid SQL Server user and are comfortable setting up RS and have a little C# or VB.NET experience; go with this book.
2. If you're moderately clueless but really want to learn; use Larson's book "Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Reporting Services," {and maybe pick-up Murach's C# (.Net Developer)}

You may have to do what I did and go through both RS books. I started out clueless and the WROX book would have been too much to start with. Larson's book was a good starter for me, "an advanced newbie" but left me wanting much more.

This review will eventually be out of date, but I think I'll stand by the WROX book (though it has errors). Larson's book is going to get beat out as the entry level book pretty quickly. (as soon as someone publishes another one)

WARNING: If you have never installed SQL Server, this is not the place to start. Reporting Services is not Word. It takes a moderate level of Server knowledge to even get started.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This one is just right!, December 2, 2004

By	Daniel Williams "PhD, MCSD" (Boulder, CO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have looked over a number of books about SQL Server Reporting Services (RS), and after comparing them decided that this one is best for my needs.

The book starts with a clear overview of just what RS is, what its components are, and how they work together. This seems to be the part that many other books just miss. Other books seem to get caught up in the hype but fail to deliver a direct, no-frills or buzzwords, account of the actual architecture.

I also like that the books assumes that the reader already knows SQL, .NET programming (although you don't have to be a professional to understand their examples), and SQL Server. This enables them to avoid repeating material which is better covered on other books, and allows them to focus on explaining just what Reporting Services can do, and lets the reader get started using RS right away.

My one beef is that their code examples are in both VB.NET and C#, which takes up unnecessary space in the text. But that's a minor complaint when they otherwise do a great job explaining this fascinating and powerful product.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AweSome Book, May 11, 2004

By	NoneYa (Memphis, TN) - See all my reviews

This book is not only a great introduction to Reporting Services, but has increased my knowledge of both XML and the .NET data access technologies. Most of the examples were in both languages. I found this to be helpful since my company is migrating to C#.