TechEd is always too big for me. I don't just mean the site, although there's a lot of walking to be done, nor the sheer number of people, although there's a lot of them, not all of whom have, shall we say, any kinesthetic sense. TechEd just has too many choices of how to spend time, too many shiny technologies to explore, too many terrific speakers to see.

So I need to plan. I need to prioritize. I need to anticipate where the good stuff is that I don't want to miss. I can't be in two places at once, although the availability of the conference DVDs takes a little of that challenge away.

This year, the 800 lb. gorilla is SQL Server 2008. I need to soak up as much information on the new product as I can. So I should fill my schedule with Katmai presentations, right? Not so fast. I've already attended some very in-depth training earlier this year, and I'll be attending a pre-conference session on SQL Business Intelligence. I've also spent a lot of my time in the past few months reading, testing, presenting sessions and even teaching classes on the new product.

So I'm going to try something different this year. I'm going to focus outside my comfort zone (with some exceptions), and spend as much TechEd time as I can on "ancillary" technologies that I am interested in, or that I see becoming more important to me as a SQL guy. Namely, Sharepoint and PowerShell.

Here are some of the sessions that have caught my eye:

• OFC250 Introduction to Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Windows SharePoint Services 3.0: An Overview - this may be pretty basic, but might help me get the big picture.

• MGT253 Introduction to Windows PowerShell - again, perhaps basic (especially if I'm able to attend Thomas Lee's MCT-only TTT on Monday), but I don't want to overlook this.

• MGT54-ILL Advanced Windows PowerShell Scripting - hopefully this won't be over my head.

• MGT58-TLC Windows PowerShell Basics: Come Ask About the PowerShell Interactive Script and Language - this might be a good session if I'm lost after the Advanced one. It also might be interesting to listen to the questions asked by others attending.

• DAT361 Advanced Microsoft SQL Server PowerShell Tips and Tricks - for me, this is where the rubber meets the road, and why I care at all about PowerShell.

• OFC362 Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007: Administrative Architecture, Deployment, and Operations Fundamentals (Part 1 of 2) - I definitely need an infrastructure overview. I get ovewhelmed by all the moving parts, despite the excellent Mindsharp poster on my wall!

• BIN356 Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 Technical Overview - PerformancePoint Server as a SQL Server and SSAS client is something I need to get more familiar with.

• DAT51-TLC Automating Microsoft SQL Server Administrative Tasks with Microsoft PowerShell - rubber, meet road. Road, meet rubber.

• OFC363 Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007: Administrative Architecture, Deployment, and Operations (Part 2 of 2)

• OFC374 High Availability and Disaster Recovery for Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies - for me, this is key: how to protect the SQL Server repositories for SharePoint.

• SVR454 Advanced Windows PowerShell Scripting - I hope the parties the night before will allow me to soak this up!

• BIN355 Dissecting Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 Planning

That's a pretty compelling list. And, of course, there are quite a few compelling-looking SQL Server sessions. But I'll leave that for another post.