SQL Server 2005 and Team System
For arguably the first time ever, DBAs have a stable Microsoft development environment with integrated source control.
There's a chapter in the upcoming Wrox Press book "" on this very topic. It serves as an introduction to some source control and project management features available to DBAs using SQL Server 2005.
There's lots more information available online about Team System - I find most of my information on blogs:
There is also a Wrox Press book due out in February entitled "".
"Why should we care about Visual Studio, Andy?" I'm glad you asked. If you haven't yet tinkered with the new SQL Server 2005 development environments, you may not know this: When you develop SQL Server applications in SQL Server 2005, one of the tools available to you is the Visual Studio 2005 environment. In fact, if you develop business intelligence applications (Analysis Services, Integration Services, etc.), you utilize a tool called the SQL Server Business Intelligence Development Studio (BIDS), which is a version of Visual Studio with tools for developing SQL Server business intelligence applications.
If Visual Studio is a new environment for you, learning about it will make you a more effective DBA when you move to SQL Server 2005.
If you don't use a source control product currently - or even if you do - I encourage you to examine the new version of Visual SourceSafe (2005) and Team System.
:{> Andy