I want to play with mySQL a bit, starting by setting something up on my PC. I’ve got an old reference manual, and I’ve looked at mySQL.com, but the former is unclear and the latter really is meant for large users and wants you to buy the Enterprise edition.
Does anyone have a link to some step by step instructions, so I don’t have to use trial and error? They don’t have to be simple, I’m not afraid of command lines.
Step by step instructions for what? Do you have the server installed already?
You can download the Web Developer Server Suite for a pretty useful local install on Windows. This bundle includes PHPMyAdmin, a GUI for interacting with the database, which is useful for learning if your intended use of MySQL is in a dynamic website backend. As Friedo says, you’ll have to give more info about your intended use for a more specific answer.
That. You shouldn’t have any trouble installing the MySQL server and client on windows or any other popular system, and that’s basically it as far as MySQL is concerned. If you want to build some software on top of it, many languages (php, perl, ruby, java) come with either build-in or well-supported extensions that let you do that with minimal amount of fuss, but you’re not giving us any info on what you actually want to achieve with it or how you expect to achieve it.