Master the foundations of T-SQL with the right balance of conceptual and practical content. Get hands-on guidance—including exercises and code samples—that show you how to develop code to query and modify data. You’ll gain a solid understanding of the T-SQL language and good programming practices, and learn to write more efficient and powerful queries.
Discover how to:
Apply T-SQL fundamentals, create tables, and define data integrity Understand logical query processing Query multiple tables using joins and subqueries Simplify code and improve maintainability with table expressions Explore pivoting techniques and how to handle grouping sets Write code that modifies data Isolate inconsistent data and address deadlock and blocking scenarios
Itzik Ben-Gan is a mentor and cofounder of SolidQ. A Microsoft MVP for SQL Server since 1999, Ben-Gan teaches and consults internationally on T-SQL querying, programming, and query tuning. He is the author of Microsoft SQL Server T-SQL Fundamentals and coauthor of Inside Microsoft SQL Server: T-SQL Querying and Inside Microsoft SQL Server:T-SQL Programming. He has written numerous articles for SQL Server Magazine and MSDN, and speaks at industry events such as Microsoft TechEd, DevWeek, PASS, and SQL Server Connections.
Comments about oreilly Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 T-SQL Fundamentals:
This eBook was provide to me by the San Diego Tech Immersion Group.
Overview T-SQL Fundamentals is an excellent book. The text is direct and easy to understand. Complex subjects are conveyed well. The organization is clear and logical. I highly recommend this book.
Comments on Organization • This book is a "good read" straight through. Subjects are presented in a logical sequence. • It is also a good reference book. Specific information is easy to find and can be read out of context. • I like the mixture of theory and command references. I have another T-SQL book that basically just lists the commands and their options. But that presentation is very dry and does not invite the reader to greater understanding • The examples help illuminate the descriptive text. It is often easier to understand via an example. • I found the exercises beneficial in cementing my understanding. • I loved the practical tips and tricks provided. I employed two of those tricks straight away o Computing First and last day of a month I used this trick in an SSIS job to transfer data on a monthly basis without ever needing to specify date parameters o Cross-Join to normalize related data columns (e.g. phone1, phone2, phone3) We have several occurrences of such column groupings I was able to create several views to present the data in a normalized fashion as appropriate for some applications
Content I Enjoyed • Background to T-SQL Querying and Programming o This introductory section provides a great background o I particularly enjoyed the section about Set Theory. • Elements of the SELECT Statement in Single-Table Queries o This section helps explain why T-SQL behaves the way it does and why it has certain limitations. • Pivot & Unpivot o These commands still seem kind of clunky to me o But at least I understand them better • Set Operations o I usually only deal with basic operations like union o Good to know that there are several other operations available out of the box
Content Lacking from My Perspective • I wished there had been more coverage of User-defined Functions and Stored Procedures o There are short sections on both in Chapter 10 o But we use SPs and UDFs extensively in our environment o I would have appreciated more tips and tricks, usage examples, limitations & gotchas, workarounds, etc. • I would have liked to see more information about database tuning and monitoring o More about setting up indices and key relationships o More about monitoring tools o More about debugging tools available • More details about working with SQL Server Management Studio would have been helpful o I realize that not all database developers use SSMS o But, I know that it has many capabilities of which I am unaware.
