Product update 2/27/24

[aheckmann]

Today we're pleased to announce the launch of two key new features: Sort Issues and our SQL Terminal.

Sort Issues

If your team is like most others who deal with databases and spreadsheets every day, you are regularly finding inconsistencies in your data. So starting today, you can report, discuss, assign and track data integrity problems using Sort Issues for any of your databases on Sort.

With Sort Issues it's easy to tell your coworkers and collaborators about trouble you see in your dataset - simply open a new Issue to start a conversation. Notifications are immediately sent to your team so they can participate.

Categorization

To help improve discoverability of your Issues, you can optionally apply Labels to them. Labels are a great way to categorize your Issues into groups like "Bugs", "Questions" or "Fixes". A default set of Labels are available for each of your databases but you can always customize these and even create completely new ones to suite your team's preferences.

Ownership

With Sort Issues also comes the need for Issue resolution, so to help you with that we're introducing Issue Assignees. Assignees allow you to associate Issues to team members. Adding an Assignee works the same way as adding a Label; simply add Assignees during Issue creation or after the Issue is created, whenever you're ready.

Search

What good are Issues if you can't find them later? All database Issues are searchable from their Issues page. You can search using full text, status (open or closed), labels or assignees. Here are some examples to get you started:

• Issues with the label "Data:addition"
• Issues with "jasonz" assigned
• Issues which are "open"
• Issues which are "closed"

Give Issues a try today and let us know what you think!

SQL Terminal

The second big feature we are announcing today is our SQL Terminal. Up until now you've been able to navigate your databases with our Data Explorer. Starting today, you can also query your databases with SQL!

Try out the SQL terminal for yourself by clicking this link and then pressing the "SQL" button. After the SQL terminal opens, type in the following and press "Run Query".

select * from public.requests r
join public.seats s on r.program_name = s.program_name

You'll see some results below the terminal. OK, now it's time for you to write your own query. To help you along, the terminal offers full auto-complete of all tables and columns. Try adding some column names or adding a LIMIT.

Enabling the SQL Terminal on your database

Opt-in to the SQL terminal feature by adding a read-only connection to your Organization.

NOTE: We require a read-only connection because we do not want anyone accidentally dropping databases or tables. Additionally, we are working on a new feature which will make common data improvements a snap. Stay tuned!

Adding a read-only connection is easy. Navigate to your Organization -> Settings -> Connections page, choose the connection you want to make read-only, click on "Advanced Settings" and then check the box to enable the SQL Terminal. You'll be asked to fill in the read-only connection settings. After that, you're all set to query your databases via SQL.

We're listening

We're always ready to listen to your feedback. Give Sort Issues and the SQL Terminal a try today and let us know what you think!