SQL Queries for Mere Mortals: A Hands-On Guide to Data Manipulation in SQL - Softcover

Hernandez, Michael J.; Viescas, John L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0201433362 ISBN 13: 9780201433364

Publisher: Addison Wesley, 2000

Synopsis

Now there's a practical, hands-on guide to SQL for millions of beginning-to-intermediate database users who desperately need to create fast, accurate, effective queries -- whether they have formal database training or not. The authors begin by introducing the fundamental concepts underlying relational databases and SQL. They then introduce the absolute basics of SQL, including the SELECT statement, creating expressions, and applying filters. Next, they introduce techniques for solving one of the most common problems database users encounter: drawing data from multiple tables at once. The book includes detailed coverage of grouping, totaling, and summarizing data; using SQL to update, insert, and delete data; and more. In the final section, Hernandez and Viescas introduce "thinking out of the box" techniques that allow users to solve a wide variety of complex SQL problems. Most chapters end with sample problems, solutions, and result sets -- all based on a library of five real-world databases included on the accompanying CD-ROM.

About this title

Review:

To those people accomplished in its use, Structured Query Language (SQL) is a highly capable, eminently flexible, even beautiful way of describing the data you want from a database, or the changes you want to make to a database. For the rest of us, though, SQL is a first-class nuisance that we do our best to avoid by relying on relatively user-friendly--but usually less powerful--tools. SQL Queries for Mere Mortals aims to bring SQL-phobics closer to the first camp by carefully tutoring them in what SQL can do.

The authors recognise that SQL queries usually come about as a result of questions from human beings, and usefully spend a fair bit of time showing how to convert, for instance, "What cities do our customers live in?" into "Select city from the customers table" and finally "SELECT city FROM customers" in SQL. They call this the "translation and clean up" process, and it's a fine approach. They don't press it too far, though, and are equally adept at presenting straight explanations of SQL syntax elements in prose. They spend a lot of energy graphically diagramming aspects of SQL syntax in a format that requires some up-front study. A particular reader might prefer text capsules to this arrow-intensive format, but other learners may like the graphical syntax diagrams. --David Wall

From the Back Cover:

In the past few years, SQL has evolved from a language known only to computer specialists to a widely used, international standard of the computer industry. The number of SQL-compatible databases shipping each year now totals in the millions. If you are accessing corporate information from the Internet or from an internal network, you are probably using SQL. SQL Queries for Mere Mortals will help new users learn the foundations of SQL queries, and will prove an essential reference guide for intermediate and advanced users. The accompanying CD contains five sample databases used for the example queries throughout the book, plus an evaluation copy of Microsoft SQL Server version 7.

0201433362B04062001

About this edition

• Publisher: Addison Wesley
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0201433362
• ISBN 13: 9780201433364
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 528