<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <meta content="text/html;charset=ISO-8859-1" http-equiv="Content-Type"> </head> <body bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000"> Hi, everyone,     I'm going to add my voice to recommending SQL for Smarties.     I've been reading Joe Celko's columns since I first encountered them, years ago in DBMS magaxine (now folded into Intelligent Enterprise).     SQL for Smarties will help you learn everything you need to know about SQL, what it is, where it came from, how it works, and eventually how to construct queries that do exactly what you need them to do.  However, be advised.  The book is not cheap.  Nor is it an easy to read pamphlet that promises to teach you everything you ever needed to know about SQL in 20 minutes.  It's going to take work.  But it will be worth it.     I agree with Clay.  I've had the book for years and still find myself looking things up regularly.  I've been working with SQL (principally SQL Server, but also Sybase, and some MySQL) for about 5 years.  About once a month I encounter a problem or a bit of someone else's code that shows me something new about SQL.  And when I look it up in the book to understand what's going on, the answers have (so far) always been there.     Worse, Mr. Celko has recently written a revised version of the book which is about 50% thicker and which I'm probably going to buy despite its cost.     He's probably the next best thing to reading Dr. Codd's original papers on relational databases in terms of the quality, accuracy, and depth of the content -- and he's a hell of a lot easier to understand. -- Frank Clay Dowling wrote: <blockquote cite="mid4798.12.37.120.99.1143473881.squirrel@mail.lazarusid.com" type="cite"> <pre wrap="">Andy Lee said: </pre> <blockquote type="cite"> <pre wrap="">I concur with the others that books are not really necessary for learning SQL, but if you need a book, SQL for Smarties is the best learn SQL from scratch book I've seen. That said, start with googling SQL tutorials to see how it looks. You'll likely be amazed at how simple SQL is, at least to get off the ground with what most people do. </pre> </blockquote> <pre wrap=""> SQL for Smarties is indeed an excellent investment, whether you're just learning SQL or you've been using it for years but want to improve your capabilities. I started using databases in 1996 and I still refer to this book. I discusses how to handle a lot of complex things that aren't immediately obvious unless you're an absolute guru. I'm not, so this book saves me. Clay </pre> </blockquote> <pre class="moz-signature" cols="72"> *================================================================* * Frank Dolinar <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:frank.dolinar@comcast.net">frank.dolinar@comcast.net</a> * * PO Box 886 517.351.1899 * * East Lansing, MI 48826-0886 * *----------------------------------------------------------------* * Dream big, aim high, & learn everything you can along the way. * *================================================================* </pre> </body> </html>