In this chapter, we looked at T-SQL's new CONCAT and FORMAT functions. We saw how OFFSET and FETCH allow you access to just one block of your result set and how SEQUENCE can give you the functionality of IDENTITY but take it to a whole new level. Then we saw how TRY CATCH blocks have been improved to allow simpler, neater error handling. After that we looked at an example of how to use the handy new FileTable table to access the underlying file system.
These are useful and welcome additions to Transact SQL and we recommend you familiarize yourself with them and add them to your toolkit of programming skills. They are advantageous to have at hand and we are confident they will soon become a major part of your everyday programming use.
Finally, we looked at SQL Server Data Tools, which replaces the well-loved BIDS development environment and works across all versions of SQL Server from 2005 onwards.
In the next chapter we will be looking at the new features in Analysis Services, which...