Learning SQL: Master SQL Fundamentals 2nd Edition

I've just finished my first enjoyable pass through "Learning SQL"; and I must report how delighted I am with this book. To put this in context, I ought to report that I first learned SQL way back in 1984, as part of a project team that was implementing a major relational database with SQL/DS as a first release program product. Coming then from a procedural background, (Fortran and PL/1), I was puzzled at SQL syntax and really the point of view of relational databases. Subsequently, I was trained up in logical data modeling and relational database design. With this, the ideas of relational database and the firm mathematical foundation on which they are built became ultimately second nature to me. Revisiting now the power and expressive nature of the SQL language was for me a both a wonderful trip down memory lane and an affirmation of all that I've learned in terms of design over the many interceding years.This book is absolutely wonderful and essential in terms of its straightforward, yet challenging, approach. The material is taught to the interested reader in clear and concise chapters. We might even call them "bite size", for they are tasty, in a manner of speaking. And the "test your knowledge" questions at the end of each chapter are truly remarkable. It is a thrill to affirm the knowledge you've just gained in the chapter absorbed through attaining real answers applying the SQL on the sample database. And yet the excercises, particularly in the chapter on sub-queries, are really quite challenging.We strongly recommend this book to anyone who would gain a mastery of the SQL language. God bless.

Learning SQL does an excellent job of providing a strong foundation for understanding & programming SQL. The Author meticulously explains both the theory and practical use of the language, while balancing ease of comprehension with his friendly and accommodating tone.Would definitely suggest for first-time learners or those who are already familiar with the language needing a quick refresh!

This book was recommended by my brother who works with a database expert. This book explains well all the SQL you are likely to be hit with on an interview.The problems people have with the example database are easy to avoid. I downloaded the full MySQL56 for my Windows laptop. Forget the book and just load it all using the MSI (I downloaded the latest 5.6.19 CE - this will download the Workbench as well. Just follow the directions. I had no problems.Then, on the Workbench, click on Create New Schema and call it bank. Then, what you REALLY need to do is go to Edit | Preferences | SQL Queries and uncheck the "Safe Queries" checkbox! Their explanation of 'Safe Query' is there. The example database breaks this. Also I set the collation to latin1. Else it will use your computers default (UTF-8 for me). Not sure this matters.Then go to the authors page and copy the sql. After setting "bank" as the default schema (right click 'bank'), create a new query and paste the author's sql in. Then hit the lightening bolt and watch. The database will be set up and populated correctly with no errors whatsoever. Easy.The addition of a workbench (very similar to SQL Server's) really makes this simple. I did this also on my Mac Mini. Also easy but you need to download the Workbench separately.

The book delves quickly into how to select, input, and update an existing database. Well and good. But if one is starting with datasets that will be incorporated into a new database, the book gives pretty limited details on how to do this (the commands and syntax) or what the considerations might be in determining table layouts and how to relate the tables. Discussion of foreign keys and constraints is very limited. The examples make me think I need to use a specific incantation of SQL keywords, but the I look at the MySQL reference manual and see something very different that seems to work anyway. Or at least it complies. :^)So if you're willing to use the specific database examples in the text the book works OK. My learning style is to read some and then try it with my projects which have different problems than the simple bank example database in the text. The bootstraps to do this just aren't covered sufficiently.

This book is focussed on MySQL and focus on basis of SQL. It helps in establishing the database and system. Though they had recommended to use CMD to run the SQL's I found it much easier to achieve the same through MySQL Workbench. I would recommend the book to anyone who wants to get introduced to SQL.

Very good book. Having no IT background and coming to SQL straight, this book has been a blessing. In the first few chapters itself, the author has managed to demystify SQL; made me confident about learning it further.

This book is great if you want to just look up how to do things. The index at the front consists of a lot of common tasks and you just jump quickly to the section of interest and see how it's done.Also the book contains examples in all of the major sql language variants.Just browsing the book can give you ideas for obscure sql syntax and techniques. For example: how DO you create a pivot table?

I've had very little SQL background and like the content of this book from the preview. I was excited that they were going to help me setup a test database to run through examples while going through the book. I got to chapter two which is supposed to help you install and setup the test DB. The book is too out of date and I could not setup the sample content so I returned it. I was able to use the DB knowledge I already have and create the Bank DB but when running their SQL script to create the tables and data in the DB it was nothing but errors so it seems the author couldn't write a proper SQL script. I'm looking at other alternatives as i'm a hands on learner and being able to do examples along with the book is important to me