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Subject:Re: If you were going to learn... From:peter <pnewman1 -at- optonline -dot- net> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Thu, 07 Mar 2002 17:07:04 -0500
On Thursday 07 March 2002 04:05 pm, Chris La Porte wrote:
> Learning database technology is certainly a worthwhile endeavor. How deep
> do you want to go? By working with a tutorial type book you can get the
> basics of Access, which is as good a database as any to start with. I have
> had past success with the "Step by Step" series books by Microsoft Press
>
> If you want to get into the programming of databases or delve deeper into
> them, you might want to learn SQL or Visual Basic, for which taking a class
> might be valuable. Then, there are Oracle, and internet databases, and,
> and...ad infinitum.
To learn something about database design, takes some time and effort. In the
Techie world neither Access nor FoxPro are considered true DBs. VisualBasic
can be used as a front end for SQL. It too is not a database. It uses a
database engine, though. There is a developers version of SQL Server
available free from MS. It is known as MSDE. Also, you can download a free
copy of Oracle to play with. from Oracle. Remember, SQL is the language used
to set up database queries. You must learn it to do any serious work. Like a
lot of other things in life, SQL comes in many flavors. Take one, learn it
and then if necessary you can adapt to the flavors. Believe it or not, SQL
for Dummies is a pretty decent introductory text. It will give you a good
flavor for DB work and you can decide how, or whteher you want to progress
further.
Peter
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