Murach's SQL Server 2008 for Developers (Murach: Training & Reference) (Paperback)

by Bryan Syverson (Author), Joel Murach (Author)
Key Phrases: table designer, login properties, user mapping, Management Studio, Visual Studio, Books Online (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This book is designed to teach application developers all of the skills they need to use SQL to work with a Microsoft SQL Server 2008 database. But it's also a great first book for developers who are on the path to becoming a DBA.

Unlike most SQL Server 2008 books, this one starts by showing you how to use SQL queries to extract and update the data in a database, because that's what every application developer needs to know first. Then, it shows how to design and implement a database, how to use powerful backend database features like views, stored procedures, functions, triggers, cursors, transactions, locking, security, and how to work with BLOB and XML data. Finally, it shows how to use the CLR integration feature to create database objects using a .NET language such as C# or Visual Basic.

From the publisher

The SQL book that most developers don't even know they need that's how I think of this book.

To be an effective application developer, you need to master SQL for the database you re going to be using. But many developers get by with the SQL they know, never realizing how much they're missing out on.

So this is first of all a book for developers who use Microsoft SQL Server as their DBMS (though it can help you if you want to master standard SQL, too). No matter how much SQL experience you have, you'll find new features that you haven't been taking advantage of.

In section 1, you ll learn the concepts and terms you need for working with any database. You ll also learn how to use the Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Management Studio to work with queries and databases. At that point, you ll be prepared for rapid progress as you learn SQL.

In section 2, you ll learn all the skills for retrieving data from a database and for adding, updating, merging, and deleting that data. These skills move from the simple to the complex so you won t have any trouble if you re a SQL novice. And they present skills like using outer joins, summary queries, and subqueries that will raise your SQL expertise if you do have SQL experience.

In section 3, you ll learn how to design a database and how to implement that design using either SQL DDL (Data Definition Language) statements or the Management Studio. When you re done, you ll be able to design and implement your own databases. But even if you re never called upon to do that, this section will give you perspective that will make you a better SQL developer.

Section 4 presents the skills for working with database features like views, stored procedures, functions, triggers, cursors, transactions, and security. It teaches you how to use SQL features to work with XML data. And it shows you how to use the 2008 FILESTREAM storage feature to work with binary large objects (BLOBs) such as image, sound, and video files. These are the features that give a DBMS much of its power and that give you an extra edge in your SQL skills.

To complete your SQL Server skills, section 5 shows you how to use the CLR integration feature. This feature allows you to create database objects like stored procedures and user-defined types using a .NET language like C# or Visual Basic.

About the Author
Joel Murach has been writing and editing books about computer programming for over 10 years. During that time, he has written extensively on a wide range of Java, .NET, web, and database technologies. When he's not programming or writing books about programming, he can be found surfing or writing music.

Product Details

• Paperback: 748 pages
• Publisher: Mike Murach & Associates; 3rd edition (November 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890774510
• ISBN-13: 978-1890774516
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 8 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #28,447 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Format for Programming Book, January 20, 2009

By	John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In this book, Murach has applied their unique, "paired-pages" layout style to teaching the SQL Server 2008 skills that developers need to create database applications. In this style, each subject is given two pages of description. One page is a technical description of what a particular function does; the facing page is an illustration of that feature being used. As such, this combines the tutorial and reference formats into a single book that I find to be the easiest way to learn how to use a software package.

As I said, the subject of this particular Murach title is the 2008 edition of Microsoft's SQL Server. It is a combination of a book on programming in SQL, which can be looked at as though it is a fully functional programming language in itself, and on using Microsoft tools like the Management Studio, which make Microsoft's SQL significantly easier to use than most other big time database systems.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent technical reference for SQL Server 2008, January 3, 2009

By	J. Huang "A humble programmer" (Mobile, AL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

After spent the past few years as developer/DBA for Oracle databases, SQL server is required during my recent projects. I find myself often spending too much time on simple issues such as how to perform a date and/or date time search. Microsoft SQL/T-SQL syntax is a little bit different from Oracle PL/SQL syntax.

This book really saves me time and effort. This format of this book is like a technical how-to manual or cook book. I extremely love this kind of format because I can quickly refer to a particular issue. The topic is usually concise and easy to understand.

This book is for developers not DBAs. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn SQL Server 2008. Of course, basic programming skills are the pre-requisites. In addition, it is very useful as an excellent technical reference book for more experienced programmers.

5.0 out of 5 stars Best SQL Server Text I have come across, June 17, 2009

By	Daniel A. Joseph "RITMISProf" (Pittsford, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am an MIS professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology and I consult in the MIS area on a regular basis. My consulting has included work using SQL Server and writing/modifying SQL Server Scripts. This text is by far the best introductory text I have come across for SQL Server and I have reviewed and used many. It is not only good for use in class but it is an excellent reference for anyone who is writing or altering SQL Server Scripts.