Stop Trashing My SQL Query Diagram Layout!

Spending quite a bit of time working with SQL Server Management Studio 2005 lately. I’m still learning SQL and how to just write it by hand, so I’m still a bit reliant upon the designer mode for building and editing queries.

The problem at hand then is that I wish Microsoft did a better job on the user-interface design of SQL Server Management Studio 2005. It doesn’t remember any of the settings to their query editor window.

When you open it it’s all jumbled up, so you spend some time getting things structured out and organized so it’s easier to manage and visually see in front of you.

Image: Screen grab from SQL Server Management Studio 2005

Then you close it and see how your query works and if you got everything you need. You discover you left out a couple of things or want to tweak one of your query filters. You open the Query Designer back open and you see this again.

Image: Screen grab from SQL Server Management Studio 2005

That’s irritating folks. Microsoft are you listening?

Other simple things it doesn’t remember are:

• table layout structure (as mentioned)
• window size and position
• pane visibility

On the surface these items don’t appear to be that big of a deal do they? But when you’re in and out of these windows and using this tool throughout the day, these are quickly becoming very annoying "burps" in the process.