Unless you are working at a very advanced level, this is the only SQL book you will ever need. The authors have taken the mystery out of complex queries and explained principles and techniques with such clarity that a “Mere Mortal” will indeed be empowered to perform the superhuman. Do not walk past this book!
–Graham Mandeno, Database Consultant

SQL Queries for Mere Mortals provides a step-by-step, easy-to-read introduction to writing SQL queries. It includes hundreds of examples with detailed explanations. This book provides the tools you need to understand, modify, and create SQL queries
–Keith W. Hare, Convenor, ISO/IEC JTC1 SC32 WG3–the International SQL Standards Committee

I learned SQL primarily from the first edition of this book, and I am pleased to see a second edition of this book so that others can continue to benefit from its organized presentation of the language. Starting from how to design your tables so that SQL can be effective (a common problem for database beginners), and then continuing through the various aspects of SQL construction and capabilities, the reader can become a moderate expert upon completing the book and its samples. Learning how to convert a question in English into a meaningful SQL statement will greatly facilitate your mastery of the language. Numerous examples from real life will help you visualize how to use SQL to answer the questions about the data in your database. Just one of the “watch out for this trap” items will save you more than the cost of the book when you avoid that problem when writing your queries. I highly recommend this book if you want to tap the full potential of your database.
–Kenneth D. Snell, Ph.D., Database Designer/Programmer

I don’t think they do this in public schools any more, and it is a shame, but do you remember in the seventh and eighth grades when you learned to diagram a sentence? Those of you who do may no longer remember how you did it, but all of you do write better sentences because of it. John Viescas and Mike Hernandez must have remembered because they take everyday English queries and literally translate them into SQL. This is an important book for all database designers. It takes the complexity of mathematical Set Theory and of First Order Predicate Logic, as outlined in E. F. Codd’s original treatise on relational database design, and makes it easy for anyone to understand. If you want an elementary- through intermediate-level course on SQL, this is the one book that is a requirement, no matter how many others you buy.
–Arvin Meyer, MCP, MVP

Even in this day of wizards and code generators, successful database developers still require a sound knowledge of Structured Query Language (SQL, the standard language for communicating with most database systems). In this book, John and Mike do a marvelous job of making what’s usually a dry and difficult subject come alive, presenting the material with humor in a logical manner, with plenty of relevant examples. I would say that this book should feature prominently in the collection on the bookshelf of all serious developers, except that I’m sure it’ll get so much use that it won’t spend much time on the shelf!
– Doug Steele, Microsoft Access Developer and author

Over the last several decades, SQL has evolved from a language known only to computer specialists to a widely used international standard of the computer industry. The number of new applications deployed each year using SQL now totals in the millions. If you are accessing corporate information from the Internet or from an internal network, you are probably using SQL. This new edition of SQL Queries for Mere Mortals helps new users learn the foundations of SQL queries, and is an essential reference guide for intermediate and advanced users.

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Although MySQL’s source code is open in the sense of being publicly available, it’s essentially closed to you if you don’t understand it. In this book, Sasha Pachev — a former member of the MySQL Development Team — provides a comprehensive tour of MySQL 5 that shows you how to figure out the inner workings of this powerful database. You’ll go right to heart of the database to learn how data structures and convenience functions operate, how to add new storage engines and configuration options, and much more.

The core of Understanding MySQL Internals begins with an Architecture Overview that provides a brief introduction of how the different components of MySQL work together. You then learn the steps for setting up a working compilable copy of the code that you can change and test at your pleasure. Other sections of the book cover:

Core server classes, structures, and API
The communication protocol between the client and the server
Configuration variables, the controls of the server; includes a tutorial on how to add your own
Thread-based request handling — understanding threads and how they are used in MySQL
An overview of MySQL storage engines

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Relational databases hold data, right? They indeed do, but to think of a database as nothing more than a container for data is to miss out on the profound power that underlies relational technology. A far more powerful way of thinking lies in relational technology’s foundation in the mathematical disciplines of logic and set theory.

Databases contain truths or propositions describing some area of interest such as a business. Those truths are organized into sets. Operations from logic and set theory can be applied to existing sets of truths to derive new sets of truths. Applied Mathematics for Database Professionals introduces you to this way of thinking, to the logic and set theory that underlies relational database technology. All this may sound abstract now, but there are profound benefits from the deeper understanding you’ll gain from this book. You’ll learn to
Become a better database designer. You’ll make fewer mistakes, and your designs will be more flexible in response to changing data needs.
Use the expressive power of mathematics to precisely specify designs and business rules.
Communicate effectively about design using the universal language of mathematics.
Develop and write complex SQL statements with confidence.
Avoid pitfalls and problems from common relational bugaboos such as null values and duplicate rows.

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