Learning SQL (Learning) | Alan Beaulieu | Programmers, please read!

Learning SQL (Learning) | Alan Beaulieu | SQL 101

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Learning SQL (Lear...

	Learning SQL (Learning) Alan Beaulieu O'Reilly Media, Inc., 2005 - 306 pages average customer review:based on 23 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Programmers, please read!

If you're writing any type of database driven code and you think that you don't need to understand SQL, read this book. You do need to understand it, and this book teaches it very well.

Man, I'm so tired of cleaning up bad SQL code. Code that makes hundreds of queries when one would suffice. Or tables that have no primary keys. Or code that never makes use of joins. SQL is not horrible. It's worth understanding and knowing how to write well.

This book is well written, well illustrated, and makes learning SQL as pain-free as it can be. Please, please, please, read this book.

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SQL 101

Over the past 30+ years programming languages (popular ones) have come, gone, and new ones seem to appear every couple of years or so. FORTRAN, COBOL, Pascal, C, C++, Java, and now C#... the question isn't IF the next big language is going to come but WHEN. While the way we program has changed, the de facto standard for talking and creating databases hasn't changed much since the early 70s when SQL was created. While refined and standardized several times since its inception, SQL remains the tried and true backbone way of communicating with all databases, whether they are Oracle, SQL Server, MYSql, Access, etc.

For this reason, it is not only important, but I believe ESSENTIAL for all developers in this day and age to come quickly up to speed and learn what SQL is because no matter who you are, at some point (probably sooner than later) you will have to use SQL in your development career. Back when I was introduced to SQL in the mid 90s I knew nothing of what SQL was, thrown into it by immediately looking at SELECT queries, INSERTS, and so on. I would have loved some overview teaching guide to help me get my feet wet, instead learning the hard way.

Have no fear, those days are over.

With 'Learning SQL', Alan Beaulieu gives a great overview of what SQL is and what makes it so important in the world today. More than any other programming language, databases are what keeps the world moving on a daily basis, whether it's the financial sector, health care, government, etc. No matter where you using a computer, you will be accessing a database and for that data to be grabbed and manipulated, you will need to use SQL to make your calls/updates.

O'Reilly has a storied tradition of making great "Learning" books, and the same can easily be said here as well. I find it amazing that it took so long for a Learning SQL book to come out, but sometimes it's better to wait and let the finished product be even better with age.

Highlights include:

History of SQL (background)
Creating and populating a database
Using SELECT statements to get data
Filtering data with conditions
Querying multiple tables at once
Working with sets (UNIONS et al)
Data generation, conversion, manipulation
GROUP statements
Creating subqueries
JOINS in detail
Adding conditional logic
The importance of Transactions
Performance gains via Indexes and Constraints

For anyone that isn't a SQL expert, this is a great refresher for all. For anyone that is new or an amateur in their SQL careers, this book is absolutely a gem.

This should be required reading for all database 101 students, and I give it an A+ for not only the content within but the simplicity with which it is to read.

***** HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION

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An easy read for those new to SQL

I found this book to be an easy read in the classic O'Reilly style. It was like the author was there with me, walking me through SQL step by step. I have never took to programming easily. It took me 2 tries for each on my 3 programming classes in college. Sad, I know. Thanks to this book, I was able to show up to my new application support job at (A very large company Healthcare company) with enough knowledge of databases to get through training without a hitch.

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, page 5

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