Managing and Using MySQL (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Randy Jay Yarger (Author), Tim King (Author)
Key Phrases: performance tuning, database security, band name, Record Label, User-Defined Functions, San Francisco (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

MySQL is a popular open source database product that supports key subsets of SQL on Linux and Unix systems. If you want to build database-backed web pages or other database applications, Managing & Using MySQL, 2nd Edition has everything you need to get started. It takes you through the whole process from installation and configuration to programming interfaces and database administration. Also included is an introduction to SQL and to relational databases. This second edition has a greatly enhanced administration chapter, and new chapters on security and extending MySQL. Ample tutorial material is included throughout. Managing & Using MySQL, 2nd Edition contains chapters on the programming language interfaces for C/C++, Java, Perl, Python, and PHP, as well as a complete reference section with specific function calls for each language. The reference section also includes details of the SQL language, as well as MySQL system variables, programs, and utilities. New to the second edition is a reference chapter describing the internal MySQL tables.

About the Author

George Reese is the founder of two Minneapolis-based companies, enStratus Networks LLC (maker of high-end cloud infrastructure management tools) and Valtira LLC (maker of the Valtira Online Marketing Platform). Over the past 15 years, George has authored a number of technology books, including MySQL Pocket Reference, Database Programming with JDBC and Java, Java Database Best Practices, and the upcoming Web Architecture and Programming in the Cloud. Throughout the Internet era, George has spent his career building enterprise tools for developers and delivering solutions to the marketing domain. He was an influential force in the evolution of online gaming through the creation of a number of Open Source MUD libraries and he created the first JDBC driver in 1996-the Open Source mSQL-JDBC. Most recently, George has been involved in the development of systems to support the deployment of transactional web applications in the cloud. George holds a BA in Philosophy from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management in Evanston, Illinois. He currently lives in Minnesota with his wife Monique and his daughters Kyra and Lindsey.

Yarger is a senior solution developer at US Web/CKS in Southfield, Michigan.

Tim King is a semi-retired corporate finance specialist whose interest in cooking dates back to high school. Since then he has traveled to all 50 states, most of Europe, much of Asia and most of Mexico, always on the lookout for the next great restaurant and dish. This recipe collection numbers in the hundreds. For years family and friends have lobbied for a book containing his favorites. Beyond Scrambled Eggs is that book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 442 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 2nd edition (April 23, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596002114
• ISBN-13: 978-0596002114
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #671,783 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book covering a lot of topics, September 9, 2002

By	C. M. Lowry (Columbia JUG, Columbia, SC USA) - See all my reviews

The title is not all together indicative of what the authors try to accomplish in this book. The book attempts to be both a tutorial and a reference for programmers and administrators. The book consists of four major parts. The first part is the Introduction, which contains chapters on MySQL in general, installation on Unix and Windows, SQL for MySQL, and general Database Administration. This is accomplished in less than eighty pages which makes for brief explanations, limited illustrations, and examples. The second part is the MySQL Administration. This part has chapters on Performance Tuning, Security, and Database Design. The third part is MySQL Programming. The chapters' topics include general database applications, Perl, Python, PHP, C API, Java, and extending MySQL. Part four is the MySQL Reference. SQL syntax for MySQL, MySQL data types, Operators and Functions, MySQL PHP API Reference, C Reference, and Python DB-API are the chapter topics included in this part.

The authors do not assume that the reader is knowledgeable about relational databases in general, SQL, or the related topics. For example, the chapter on SQL on MySQL does not just describe the subset of SQL-92 that MySQL supports, but rather it contains a tutorial on the SQL for the commands that MySQL supports. Chapter seven on Database Design contains a tutorial on taking a database to third normal form complete with Entity-Relationship diagrams, unique identifiers and relationships. In part four, the PHP chapter contains a mini-tutorial on PHP and a complete PHP application. While the level of thoroughness is nice in the sense that you do not have to refer to other volumes to comprehend the subject, it makes for some very intense reading because of the size of the book versus the topics covered.

Overall, I like the book as a general tool, however there are certain omissions, for example: there is no reference phpMyAdmin or WinMySQLadmin. These tools are very easy to use and helpful in working with MySQL. In addition, the topic of creating InnoDB or BDB tables for transaction support is not addressed. The explanation of granting privileges in MySQL was a little confusing. Some supporting illustrations or diagrams would be well received there. The book is fairly successful in covering its broad topic domain. In conjunction with the MySQL manual, the book should meet most of my needs, but if I were a full time database administrator, I would probably want a dedicated reference book.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Introduction to MySQL - But Only an Introduction, November 5, 2003

By	Warren J. Dew (Somerville, MA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is clearly and succinctly written, and provides an excellent introduction to MySQL. It starts with a few pages on the history and philosophy behind MySQL, which is useful if you want to understand the advantages and disadvantages of MySQL relative to other options such as PostgreSQL or Oracle. It then follows with chapters on installation, with specific instructions for Solaris, Linux, and Windows; on MySQL's dialect of SQL (Structured Query Language); and on basic administration tasks such as configuration, startup and shutdown, logging, backup, and recovery. That's really all you need to get a basic database up and running, and it's all in the first 80 pages of the book.

Part II of the book covers more advanced administrative tasks, with chapters on performance tuning, security, and database design. This section of the book is weaker than the first section; while there's some useful introductory material on each of these topics, depth is lacking. For example, the discussion of putting a database into second normal form is misleading because it uses a table with only one field as the unique identifier, making it impossible to clearly illustrate the removal to a smaller table of fields that are dependent on only part of a (typically multifield) unique identifier. Also, some of the more advanced MySQL features which might be appropriate for this section are omitted.

Part III of the book, entitled "MySQL Programming", has sections accessing MySQL from Perl, Python, PHP, C, Java. These sections are mostly limited to information specific to MySQL that might not be found in general purpose documentation of these languages. For example, the PHP section documents the relevant function calls, since PHP uses different functions to access MySQL than it does to access, say, ODBC databases, while the Java section focuses on JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) driver configuration since the JDBC API is database independent.

Finally, there is a reference section and a good, complete index.

If what you want to do is get a small database up and running in a minimum of time with a minimum of hassle, this is the book for you. If you want more than an introductory level of detail and depth, though, you might look at other books; Leon Atkinson's "Core MySQL", for example, has more complete coverage, though the writing style is not as clear and direct.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reference But Not Much On Managment, September 17, 2002

By	J. Whittenburg (Marietta, GA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is an excellent reference book for MySQL. In fact I'd rate it the best MySQL reference out there when using MySQL as a coder. But if your looking for this book to tell you how to manage MySQL look on, this book is not for you! It's pretty weak in that area (as is the official MySQL documentation). But again, as a programmer I've found this book invaluable as a resource and would never be without it. I'd recommend it for novices and advanced users.