SQL Fundamentals (3rd Edition) [Paperback]

John J. Patrick (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0137126026 | ISBN-13: 978-0137126026 | Publication Date: September 12, 2008 | Edition: 3

SQL for the Real World

 

Don’t just learn “generic” SQL. Learn SQL to get results with the world’s top database platforms–Oracle for the enterprise and Microsoft Access for the desktop. Based on John Patrick’s hands-on SQL course at the University of California, Berkeley Extension, this book shows exactly how to retrieve the data you want, when you need it, in any application–from ad hoc reports to the data warehouse. Thoroughly updated for the newest versions of Oracle, Access, and the SQL standard, this book contains more exercises, techniques, and solutions than ever before. You’ll learn exactly how to write SQL queries that are easy to understand, verify, modify, and extend–even if you’ve never worked with databases before.

 

SQL Fundamentals,Third Edition, teaches you how to

• Build simple statements to retrieve, store, or modify data
• Craft complex queries that draw information from multiple tables
• Sort and summarize your data just the way you want it
• Create and edit your own tables
• Protect the integrity of your data
• Create more efficient, high-performance queries
• Work with unions, subqueries, self joins, cross joins, inner joins, and outer joins
• Use the Oracle Data Dictionary

About the Web Site

 

The accompanying Web site, http://groups.google.com/group/sqlfun, contains all the SQL code and tables from the book, including the full databases for several versions of Access and code for building the corresponding Oracle databases. It also provides solutions to many of the book’s problems and an open area for discussions with the author and other readers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

SQL Fundamentals deserves praise because it documents the implementation of Structured Query Language (SQL) in Oracle databases and Access databases simultaneously. Readers find out how to do simple single-table queries, more complicated multitable queries, table creation, joins, unions, and calculations in both environments in a variety of circumstances. For those who've never worked with SQL before and plan to use one of the two covered platforms, this book will make a fine starting point, since it explains elementary SQL concepts too.

Here's the approach: Author John J. Patrick sets out a task--for example, writing a statement that yields a left outer join of two databases. Then he proceeds to accomplish the task in both Access and Oracle, presenting the platforms' respective SQL statements side by side. The differences between the two implementations of SQL are obvious, making it easy for someone familiar with one of the two environments to adapt to the other. The reader will also find the numbered and highlighted key passages, which include details on the facing page, very helpful.

Patrick, who based this book on a university course he teaches, knows the value of practical experience--he's loaded SQL Fundamentals with exercises in addition to the tasks he completes himself. He leaves most of these to the reader but provides solutions to some of the more interesting ones. Databases for the illustrations and exercises are included on the companion CD-ROM. --David Wall --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

SQL for Oracle, Access—and the real world!

• The hands-on, real-world SQL guide for every business and IT professional
• Master SQL for the world's two top databases: Oracle and Microsoft Access
• How to write SQL queries that are easy to understand, verify, modify, and extend
• Covers everything from basic SELECT statements to complex joins
• CD-ROM: extensive library of sample databases and code

Don't just learn "generic" SQL: learn SQL to get results with the world's top database platforms-Oracle for the enterprise, and Microsoft Access for the desktop! Based on John Patrick's hands-on SQL course at the University of California, Berkeley, this book shows exactly how to retrieve the data you want, when you need it, in any application-from ad hoc reports to the data warehouse. From the simplest SELECT statements to the most sophisticated joins, Patrick shows you exactly how to write SQL queries that are easy to understand, verify, modify, and extend. SQL Fundamentals, Second Edition teaches you to:

• Write simple statements to retrieve, store, or modify data
• Build complex queries that draw information from multiple tables
• Create your own tables
• Summarize your data: basic and advanced techniques
• Understand and ensure data integrity
• Work with unions, subqueries, self joins, cross joins, inner joins, and outer joins

CD-ROM INCLUDED

The accompanying CD-ROM contains all the SQL code and tables from the book, Microsoft Access databases, and code for building the corresponding Oracle databases.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 832 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall; 3 edition (September 12, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0137126026
• ISBN-13: 978-0137126026
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,660 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #87 in Books > Computers & Technology > Microsoft > Development > SQL Server

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent choice, November 19, 2002

By 

Carlos Santiago (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: SQL Fundamentals (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

Choosing one particular SQL book out of the dozens available was not an easy task. Here are the reasons that made me choose this one over the others:

* Book organization - Chapters are very well structured with very descriptive sections, making it easy to find what you want. The first page of every chapter lists the contents by section

* Ease of reading - Everything is explained and described with tables or diagrams. Chapters are summarized at the end with the most important points covered. SQL code is explained in detail using numeric references that are explained separately from the code. Other books clutter the code with explanations making them hard to read and follow

* Oracle and Access code examples - Two of the most widely used DBs are covered, allowing the reader to see the slight, but nevertheless important differences in coding requirements for each platform. Command results are also presented for every example to allow the reader to compare them with their results

* Topics covered - From What is SQL to How to use Oracle and Access, the book is detailed and specific without being overkill

* CD - It contains all the examples in the book, plus all the tables and data. The CD is compatible with 98/ME/XP/2000 and NT. The Oracle code can be used with Unix and their flavors

Some examples could have been more realistic though, instead of using lunches, fruits and colors in many of them. But this is a very personal opinion that will not affect the evaluation.

I have no regrets in choosing this book, it has made me understand the SQL virtues and also its limitations. The book was definitely created with a wide audience in mind, written with no silly jokes and no fancy graphics or fonts to show off. This is a very straight, solid SQL foundation book for people with not much time for distractions.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for SQL first timers, December 7, 2001

By 

Jennifer Fowler (Plainfield, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: SQL Fundamentals with CDROM (Paperback)

This is a *very* useful book. It explains the SQL language in a very clear and concise manner, covering the language in detail and offering excellent explanations. The book is also organized extremely well. The countless diagrams and screen shots are invaluable while working thru the examples.

Having come to a point where I needed to learn SQL (and understand it), and fast, I picked this book out of 4 I was considering. I whole-heartedly believe I made the right decision. Not only did I learn SQL, but I understood it too.

The book covers both MS Access and Oracle so if you're using either of those, and you need to learn the SQL language, this book is a great start! Heck, even if you won't be using Access or Oracle but have access to them for the purpose of the examples (I used Access for the examples but I needed to learn SQL for use with MySQL and MSSQL), this book should benefit you greatly.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for Learning SQL!, January 31, 2011

By 

Hakuna Matata (Baltimore/Washington, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SQL Fundamentals (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

The entire layout is very clean and the phrasing is concise. I was able to understand and grasp the concepts outlined in this book with little effort. I really like the way the author organizes the book because it felt like I was being taught by someone rather than just reading things from a book. Everything is approached logically and carefully, which made for a good learning environment.

You definitely need to follow along and use some sort of SQL application to get the full benefit from this. I was afraid at first that I would be limited to Oracle or Access, but it seems like the information here is probably applicable to most SQL systems. I personally used a free iPad application called Empress SQL Master and had no problems. The examples were simple and not very realistic, but definitely showed proof of concept.

The only problems I had with this book were very minor and mostly had to do with aesthetics. Sometimes the font was too small, or difficult to read (Large blocks of boldface console text). Although, the previous statement may be more of a testament to my poor eyesight. As well, the book is in black and white, which may be a pro for some, con for others.

Overall I would say this is a no-nonsense approach to quickly and efficiently learn SQL commands and their limitations.