SQL Server 2008 - A first look

I took some time to look at the ''nifty" features in SQL Server 2008. There is a long list of new features shown in this webcast, but I doesn't look like all of them are already implemented in CTP3.

Here are some of the new features that are in this build and are quite nifty:

• MERGE, a very powerful statement to combine insert/updates and even deletes in a single statement
• Multiple values INSERT (eg. INSERT INTO myTable VALUES (1, 'SQL Server 2008 Rocks'), (2, 'It really does') - the example in the BOL seems to be incorrect)
• FORCESEEK query hint
• Table-valued parameters enables you to pass table variables to stored procedures or functions
• ALTER DATABASE SET COMPATIBILITY_LEVEL isof sp_dbcmptlevel
• Policy based management, this is an awesome feature that allows you to set policies on many configuration options and even naming conventions for your objects in a very flexible way (Declarative Management Framework)
• Change Data Capture, a built-in auditing mechanism
• Some new dynamic management views (sys.dm_os_memory_brokers, sys.dm_os_memory_nodes, sys.dm_os_nodes, sys.dm_os_process_memory and sys.dm_os_sys_memory)

There are probably many cool features and I'll keep you informed when I stumble upon them.

*EDIT*
A great list of new features can be found here.