Database development and administration tools company Devart (the artist formerly known as Core Lab) has launched its dbForge Data Studio for SQL Server v.2.0 product this week.
Aligned for the needs of application developers working with SQL Server, this second version release claims to be a "worthy alternative" to SQL Management Studio for developers tasked with creating database-intensive applications who want to improve their working efficiency.
NOTE: Worthy alternative or not, is it perhaps worth noting that Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio Express (SSMSE) is available as a free graphical management tool for managing SQL Server 2005 Express Edition and SQL Server 2005 Express Edition with Advanced Services.
Devart says that it has taken account of users' needs and integrated the functionality of SQL Complete Express Edition into dbForge Data Studio for SQL Server. New enhancements include:
- Context-sensitive code completion and object suggestions for SELECT, DML, DROP, EXEC, SET, and USE statements
- Smart filtering of the suggestion list based on user input
- Parameter information for functions
- Quick object information available from SQL editor
- SQL formatting with rich options (limited to the set of statements mentioned above)
According to Devart, developers and data pros using the Visual Query Builder can create INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE statements. There has been an extension of the "types" of edited queries possible and the general usability of the tool has been improved with features such as automated data report delivery to enable users to control report generation and delivery setup from the command line. This provides an opportunity to use Windows scheduler for regular reports generation.
New data export to SQL statements functions provides the ability to export data to INSERT, UPDATE, and MERGE statements. Users can export data from a table or data grid using a wizard and quick export from a data grid without opening the wizard.
Finally, the data compare function allows for extended data reports and custom query result comparison (i.e., the results of specific queries can be compared). Objects can be included into comparisons by mask, which is useful when comparing groups of tables as well as improved analysis of comparison results and data synchronization.
