New SQL Azure lab available (How to move data to SQL Azure)

The SQL Azure labs site is a great place to explore and play with SQL Azure! You are probably already using SQL Server and may be working with or wondering about SQL Azure. Often when I want to explore a technology, I find reading a blog post or MSDN article isn’t enough to make me comfortable. I need something more tangible to help me grasp a new tool or offering. The SQL Azure team provides a series of videos and labs to help you explore and master different SQL Azure technologies.

There are a number of labs on the SQL Azure site, but I just want to take a minute to point out one in particular that just went live this week.

The Microsoft Codename “Data Transfer” Lab provides an easy-to-use Web application for importing data into SQL Azure or Blob storage. Learn how to transfer structured data and files into Azure using any standard modern browser. One of the goals for this lab is to take the complexity out of typical operations, such as loading structured data in CSV and Excel files into SQL Azure. The lab service provides simple parsing, type discovery and conversion over files in a wizard-like experience.

This is a new lab, and the SQL Azure team wants to learn from you! They will use your feedback to shape the service in the future! So if you get a pop-up questionnaire please take the time to answer, you could identify a feature to include in the next release! You can also post on the SQL Azure Labs Support Forum to give feedback as well.