Customer Reviews

Inside Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008: T-SQL Querying

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just went yesterday to a famous bookstore here in town to check this one before order it online and left a bit disappointed, with no desire at all to buy it. Don't get me wrong, Itzik is an awesome writer, a genius on his field, but I do not share the previous 5 start opinions and I will explain why.

I do not consider myself an TSQL expert but got some SQL DBA years on my belt and a MCTS cert too. Having said that and after almost finish reading Microsoft SQL Server 2008 T-SQL Fundamentals (PRO-Developer), same author, I found this one very difficult to follow, flooded with tons of theory and math that for a TSQL book is in my opinion too much. Yes, SQL language has strong logic and math background but that is not what DBAs or developers are looking on a technical book and this is not a college book either; people are looking for practical books which can be quickly be applied on daily job activities.

Chapter #2 for example is full of logic and math stuff that I honestly skipped immediately. Nice as bonus information but not "straight to the point" T-SQL stuff. You can easily take that chapter out and keep the book lighter in my honest opinion. Same for Chapter#3, more logic and math stuff, related to T-SQL, yes, but no the real stuff.

Chapter 1, 7 and 10 are taken of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 T-SQL Fundamentals (PRO-Developer), which by the way, is an outstanding book. Those chapters are about SELECT, JOINS and DML, information that like I said, can be found on the Fundamentals book but in an easy to read style, even with exercises so you can evaluate your own skills.

Chapter #4 is probably the more interesting chapter of the whole book, is about query performance. I must accept Itzik dominates the material but introduces so many complex query concepts and statements that you will get lost in no time. He even mentions he wasn't so sure about where to put this chapter, end of beginning, because the way he's using complex DMVs. But I believe you still can explain query performance without being so technical. This chapter is just full of complex query techniques that make even more complex the explanation of performance tuning strategies. I prefer SQL Server 2008 Query Performance Tuning Distilled by Grant Fritchey; a book just dedicated for that topic but delightful and easy to follow, without being a "dummy book".

In order to be fair and make justice though, the book is really full of theory about logical query processing, set theory and algorithms, foundations of what SQL language is. If you have a really strong background of TSQL query (I mean, really strong TSQL skills), math and the enough time to digest and understand that, this book is for you.

But to me, this book can be out of your book shelve and be easily replaced by this combo instead: SQL Server 2008 Query Performance Tuning Distilled+Microsoft SQL Server 2008 T-SQL Fundamentals (same author) Both will teach the same in a better and easy to follow approach, skipping all the logic, math and boring sql language foundation which to me, are unnecessary on this kind of books especially if you are not in college anymore, but working as a full time DBA.

I have really enjoyed this book from the begining to the end.

The new chapters from Steve and Dejan:

- Set Theory and Predicate Logic
- Algorithms and Complexity
- The Relational Model

are a very good complement. Having these topics is handy and refreshing, not to mention a must in this discipline.

Itzik's cover about the new T-SQL features introduced with SQL Server 2008, is insightful and very well guided. No doubt that he is an educator by nature.

If you are new to T-SQL, I strongly recommend that you first read Itzik's book "Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 T-SQL Fundamentals", prior to diving into this series (T-SQL Querying and T-SQL Programming).

Thanks to all the authors for such wonderful book.

Alejandro Mesa
SQL Server MVP

I'm new to T-SQL, but not new to database programming. I found this to be an excellent reference for the advanced programmer. The examples are well thought out and well organized. He often gives several different examples of how to solve a problem along with the pros and cons of each solution.

A true gem. I can't think of a single other book that I've learned so much in-depth and practical information. It' not the easiest to read, but it is well worth the effort. The 3 chapters on Set Theory, the Relational Model and Algorithms + Complexity are more theory than anything, but not required reading to benefit from the rest of the book. I'm really looking forward to his other book on T-SQL programming.

Excellent resource and learning material for experienced professionals. The book follows a systematic approach to querying processing technique. Basic T-SQL/Discrete Math knowledge is most definitely required before jumping to advanced topics. very well written. I would recommend this book to my co-workers who would like to dive into advanced query processing and performance tuning.

This book is not for beginners. I have worked with SQL Server since version 7 and still learned much from this and its sister volume, "T-SQL Programming." The first four chapters are heavily spread with math, theory and server operations. It is essential knowledge, but advanced and assuming. That said, this is a terrific book. Exactly what I needed for expert level querying and technique moving forward. Buy it! Read it! Use its information! It won't let you down.

Most multi-author technical texts suffer from repetition, problems with consistent naming, or even areas of frank disagreement. This book is superbly edited, and one hears the different voices of the authors, but there is a careful coordination of content. I used the book, in combination with the lead author's "fundamentals" book, to gain a rapid introduction to the field. The discussion of set theory and predicate logic is superior, and the authors' do a superior job of gently leading you down the introductory road to the product. I liked the fact that they consistently draw a distinction between extensions of standards SQL and T-SQL.

One of the very good reference books I followed. As such, there is no doubt that Itzik Ben-Gan is one of the great T-SQL experts in the industry. With this book, he has categorically described the various querying features provided in SQL Server 2008. I would recommend this book for any beginner to medium level developers who has an intention of understand how SQL Server query engine works besides all the T-SQL enhancements that SQL 2008 brings. Chapter 8 goes in detail about Aggregating and Pivoting the data set which will be an essential tool for power business users working with SQL Server.

The book also provides a good explanation of Query Tuning, Index architecture and usages, tools for query tuning such as profiler, execution plans for mid level programmers. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in T-SQL features in SQL Server 2008

As usual books from Itzik Ben-Gan give me better understanding of hard-to-grasp concept related to set theory and SQL query.