# Please recommend an ebook on SQL **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 6, 2015, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949 "2015-04-06T08:49:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Port\_Royal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Port\_Royal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Port_Royal)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/1 "2015-04-06T08:49:47Z")
Dear mods, please move if a different forum is more appropriate! Hi all, I am doing an SQL subject. The end result is to be able to extract data, not to the extent of being able to build and maintain databases. However, I really like to try to understand the background of things I do (but in simple terms, I am not a programmer!) I have had a look on Amazon, and there are just so many titles that I do not know where to start. Can anyone recommend anything for a beginner, please? ---
**Author:** ![JerrySTL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e274bd/32.png) [@JerrySTL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerrySTL)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2015, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/2 "2015-04-06T15:10:35Z")
I’m not into the e-book thing as I prefer paper still. If you were going into database design, I’d recommend Database Design for Mere Mortals. There’s a Kindle version on Amazon. It has a lot of SQL info in it. There’s also SQL Queries for Mere Mortals out on Amazon. I haven’t read it but it might be just what you are looking for. Would you happen to be using Microsoft Access database? If so create a query in the design grid then go to SQL view. You can see what you dragged and dropped in the grid and what the SQL looks like. Wikipedia has a good article: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SQL](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SQL) There’s a few different flavors of SQL out there and most major database companies have their own ‘enhancements’. However the basic “Select \* From Table;” will work on all. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Librarian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_librarian/32/402_2.png) [@The\_Librarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Librarian)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/3 "2015-04-07T18:04:22Z")
If you are working with ms sql there is no more usefull source than msdn. It is the definite source for documentation and the examples are very comprehensive. The books I found were all pretty much useless, especially if you consider the price. ---
**Author:** ![CinnamonBabka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bbce88/32.png) [@CinnamonBabka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CinnamonBabka)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/4 "2015-04-07T18:21:59Z")
I used [this](http://www.amazon.com/Learning-MySQL-Seyed-Saied-Tahaghoghi/dp/0596008643/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1428430795&sr=1-8&keywords=mySQL) book to get started; I found it pretty helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Port\_Royal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Port\_Royal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Port_Royal)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2015, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/5 "2015-04-07T20:24:46Z")
Hi guys! thanks heaps for the info. I should have said we are using postgreSQL. JerrySTL, we used Access last semester, I will go back and give your suggestion a try. Very remiss of me to not think of wikipedia - I had been goggling specific functions to get a bit more info, but forgot that source. The Librarian, I did stumble across msdn when googling, I will go back and have a more structured look, even though not using MySQL, it seems I will get some general information. CinnamonBabka, than you for the book recommendation, the table of contents looks pretty comprehensive. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2015, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/6 "2015-04-08T13:25:59Z")
Select [this book](http://www.amazon.com/SQL-Dummies-Allen-G-Taylor/dp/1118607961/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1428499578&sr=1-1&keywords=sql+for+dummies) From Amazon Where your skill level is beginner Having a budget of less than $20. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/7 "2015-04-08T14:08:35Z")
Online Postgres is good, [PostgreSQL Tutorial](http://www.postgresqltutorial.com/) For instance [this](http://www.postgresqltutorial.com/postgresql-having/)shows where **msmith537** went wrong. 🙂 [Manuals](http://www.postgresql.org/docs/9.3/static/tutorial-select.html) We started using a Postgres database a few years ago but none of us have used anything but google to solve syntax problems. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-an-ebook-on-sql/716949/8 "2015-04-08T14:14:52Z")
Here is the online resource I use: [http://www.w3schools.com/sql/default.asp](http://www.w3schools.com/sql/default.asp)