Next version of SQL Server will start deprecating SQL in favor of XQuery
Based on the recent industry research figures which show that up to 80% of database programmers will use XQuery over the next two years, the SQL Server team has decided to start deprecating support for SQL and to solely focus on top-level XQuery support starting with the next SQL Server version (after 2005 that is) code named “Nirvana”. The normal deprecation schedule will be applied. An undisclosed source inside the programming language community has also heard rumours that XQuery will be extended with procedural features and will be replacing VB and C# as the main .Net language in a future - yet to be named - release of the .Net language framework (given our latest communications, I doubt this however).
Industry observers are not necessarily surprised that SQL Server is making this move, but they are surprised at the speed this occurs, given that SQL Server 2005 is only adding a subset of XQuery and that the W3C standard is not expected to be finalized until Q1 of 2006.
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I hope you enjoyed this year's April Fool's joke :-). Obviously we are NOT deprecating T-SQL anytime soon. Although top-level XQuery would be nice in addition, if you ask me...
[Update 2005-04-09: Removed link on request. Added resolution as April Fool's joke]