Figuring Out Fabric: Learn Fabric in 30 minutes.

Simon Sabin talks about how SQL Bits picks sessions when the data world keeps splintering into more tools. We talk about the tension between Fabric and the older stack people still use at work, and why session selection has to cover both. We also talk about why discernment is the skill you need with AI, since the model is an "automated idiot" and you have to catch when it's wrong. Power Query's declarative engine comes up too, along with the pub quizzes and board game nights SQL Bits runs so introverts can actually meet people.
Resources
SQLBits
Feedly
Power BI MCP server
Ben Gribaudo's Power Query training
FabCon Vienna

Sandeep Pawar talks about Python notebooks in Microsoft Fabric and why Power BI developers should learn them. We talk about semantic link as the entry point for Power BI developers into Python, and how notebooks open up solutions for orchestration, monitoring, and administration that are hard to do any other way. We also talk about PySpark, and why understanding Spark internals matters just as much as writing the code.
Links
Semantic link (Microsoft Fabric Python library)
Dunder Data (Python and Pandas tutorials)
Delta Lake: Up and Running (O'Reilly)
fabric.guru (Sandeep Pawar's blog)
Streamlit

In this episode, Shannon Lindsay from the Microsoft Community team joins me to talk about, well, community! We talk about her trajectory from non-profit space, to Power BI developer, to Microsoft employee. We go over how social media is fragmented and the joy of finding your friends.
Dunbar's number
Understand translytical task flows
Data Witches
Microsoft Fabric Community

In this episode, Shabnam Watson talks about dealing with Fabric overwhelm and how her bureaucratic experiences with Azure and Synapse motivated her to learn Fabric. She talks about how it's important to focus on finding a way that works with the tool instead of finding the "best" way. In general, the best lesson is to find ways to tie your new learning. We also touch on the DP-600/DP-700 certifications.
Analytics Engineering with Microsoft Fabric and Power BI (O'Reilly, early release)
The Analytics Engineering Podcast (dbt Labs)
Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen
What is Copy Job in Data Factory
Microsoft Exam Replay

In this episode, Microsoft MVP Prathy K talks about her journey into Microsoft Fabric from her MSBI background. She explains how Fabric felt like "coming home" since she could map SSIS, SSRS, and SSAS concepts to new tools. We discuss how medallion architecture is really just rebranded data warehousing layers and why Fabric can feel overwhelming if you haven't kept up with the big data world.
Microsoft documentation on medallion architecture
What is a lakehouse? (Databricks, 2020)
Big Data or Pokemon? (circa 2013)
Fabric Capacity Metrics app
Fabric benchmarking loading CSV