MySQL and mSQL

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MySQL and mSQL

By Tim King, George Reese, Randy Yarger

Publisher: O'Reilly Media

Final Release Date: July 1999

Pages: 502

MySQL and mSQL are popular and robust database products that support key subsets of SQL on both Linux and Unix systems. Both products are free for nonprofit use and cost a small amount for commercial use.Even a small organization or web site has uses for a database. Perhaps you keep track of all your customers and find that your information is outgrowing the crude, flat-file format you started with. Or you want to ask your web site's visitors for their interests and preferences and put up a fresh web page that tallies the results.Unlike commercial databases, MySQL and mSQL are affordable and easy to use. If you know basic C, Java, Perl, or Python, you can quickly write a program to interact with your database. In addition, you can embed queries and updates right in an HTML file so that a web page becomes its own interface to the database.This book is all you need to make use of MySQL or mSQL. It takes you through the whole process from installation and configuration to programming interfaces and basic administration. Includes reference chapters and ample tutorial material.Topics include:

Introductions to simple database design and SQL
Building, installation, and configuration
Basic programming APIs for C, C++, Java (JDBC), Perl, and Python
CGI programming with databases in C and Perl
Web interfaces: PHP, W3-mSQL, Lite, and mSQLPerl

Getting Started with MySQL and mSQL
1. Chapter 1 Introduction to Relational Databases
  1. What Is a Database?
  2. What Is a Relational Database?
  3. Applications and Databases
  4. MySQL and mSQL
2. Chapter 2 Database Design
  1. Database Design
  2. Normalization
  3. A Logical Data Modeling Methodology
  4. Physical Database Design
3. Chapter 3 Installation
  1. MySQL
  2. mSQL
4. Chapter 4 MySQL
  1. Design
  2. Installing MySQL
  3. Running MySQL
  4. Database Administration
  5. MySQL Utilities
  6. Performance Tuning
5. Chapter 5 mSQL
  1. Design
  2. mSQL Versions
  3. Installing mSQL
  4. Running mSQL
  5. Database Administration
  6. mSQL Utilities
6. Chapter 6 SQL According to MySQL and mSQL
  1. SQL Basics
  2. Creating and Dropping Tables
  3. SQL Datatypes
  4. Indices
  5. Sequences and Auto-Incrementing
  6. Managing Data
  7. Queries
  8. Extended Functionality
7. Chapter 7 Other Mid-Range Database Engines
  1. What Is “Free”?
  2. What MySQL and mSQL Lack
  3. PostgreSQL
  4. GNU SQL
  5. Beagle
  6. Making Comparisons
Database Programming
1. Chapter 8 Database Application Architectures
  1. The Client/Server Architecture
  2. Data Processing
  3. Object/Relational Modeling
  4. The Three-tier Architecture
2. Chapter 9 CGI Programming
  1. What Is CGI?
  2. HTML Forms
  3. The CGI Specification
  4. Important Considerations for CGI Scripts
  5. CGI and Databases
3. Chapter 10 Perl
  1. DBI
  2. An Example DBI Application
  3. Msql.pm
  4. MysqlPerl
4. Chapter 11 Python
  1. Basic Connectivity
  2. Dynamic Connectivity
5. Chapter 12 PHP and Other Support for Database-driven HTML
  1. Alternatives for Dynamic Content on the Web
  2. W3-mSQL
  3. PHP
  4. Embedded Perl
6. Chapter 13 C and C++
  1. The Two APIs
  2. Object-oriented Database Access in C++
7. Chapter 14 Java and JDBC
  1. What Is JDBC?
  2. Simple Database Access
  3. Dynamic Database Access
  4. A Guest Book Servlet
Reference
1. Chapter 15 SQL Reference
  1. MySQL SQL
  2. mSQL SQL
2. Chapter 16 MySQL and mSQL System Variables
  1. MySQL System Variables
  2. mSQL System Variables
3. Chapter 17 MySQL and mSQL Programs and Utilities
  1. MySQL Utilities
  2. mSQL Utilities
4. Chapter 18 PHP and Lite Reference
  1. PHP
  2. Lite
5. Chapter 19 C Reference
  1. MySQL C API
  2. mysql_affected_rows
  3. mysql_close
  4. mysql_connect
  5. mysql_create_db
  6. mysql_data_seek
  7. mysql_debug
  8. mysql_drop_db
  9. mysql_dump_debug_info
  10. mysql_eof
  11. mysql_errno
  12. mysql_error
  13. mysql_escape_string
  14. mysql_fetch_field
  15. mysql_fetch_field_direct
  16. mysql_fetch_fields
  17. mysql_fetch_lengths
  18. mysql_fetch_row
  19. mysql_field_seek
  20. mysql_field_tell
  21. mysql_free_result
  22. mysql_get_client_info
  23. mysql_get_host_info
  24. mysql_get_proto_info
  25. mysql_get_server_info
  26. mysql_info
  27. mysql_init
  28. mysql_insert_id
  29. mysql_kill
  30. mysql_list_dbs
  31. mysql_list_fields
  32. mysql_list_processes
  33. mysql_list_tables
  34. mysql_num_fields
  35. mysql_num_rows
  36. mysql_ping
  37. mysql_query
  38. mysql_real_connect
  39. mysql_real_query
  40. mysql_reload
  41. mysql_row_tell
  42. mysql_select_db
  43. mysql_shutdown
  44. mysql_stat
  45. mysql_store_result
  46. mysql_thread_id
  47. mysql_use_result
  48. mSQL C API
  49. msqlConnect
  50. msqlSelectDB
  51. msqlQuery
  52. msqlStoreResult
  53. msqlFreeResult
  54. msqlFetchRow
  55. msqlDataSeek
  56. msqlNumRows
  57. msqlFetchField
  58. msqlFieldSeek
  59. msqlNumFields
  60. msqlClose
  61. msqlListDBs
  62. msqlListTables
  63. msqlListFields
  64. msqlListIndex
6. Chapter 20 Python Reference
  1. Module: MySQL
  2. Module: mSQL
7. Chapter 21 Perl Reference
  1. Installation
  2. DBI.pm API
  3. Msql.pm API
  4. Mysql.pm API
8. Chapter 22 JDBC Reference

Colophon

Tim King

Tim King has been working with computers since the early 1980s, when he programmed games on his Commodore 64 computer and founded a computer club in his high school. He earned a bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Minnesota Institute of Technology in 1991. While there, he taught Unix and vi classes and was the leader of a rag-tag group of vi devotees called the "VI Zombies." Presently, Tim is a software consultant in San Francisco, CA, specializing in database and web technologies. His favorite activity is snowboarding, but he also enjoys photography and reading. You can reach him at kingt@verio.com

View Tim King's full profile page.
George Reese

George Reese has taken an unusual path into business software development. After earning a B.A. in philosophy from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, George went off to Hollywood where he worked on television shows such as "The People's Court" and ESPN's "Up Close". The L.A. riots convinced him to return to Maine where he finally became involved with software development and the Internet. George has since specialized in the development of Internet-oriented Java enterprise systems and the strategic role of technology in business processes. He is the author of Database Programming with JDBC and Java, 2nd Edition and the world's first JDBC driver, the mSQL-JDBC driver for mSQL. He currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with his wife Monique and three cats, Misty, Gypsy, and Tia. He makes a living as the National Practice Director of Technology Strategy for digital@jwt in Minneapolis.

View George Reese's full profile page.

Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The animals featured on the cover of MySQL and mSQL are kingfishers. This type of bird can be found all over the world, including North America, Europe, Africa, and New Zealand, with the greatest numbers being found in southeast Asia. There are over 80 species of kingfishers, which range in size from five to eighteen inches and which cover a broad spectrum of color. These typically long-billed birds pair for life and are considered to be very territorial. Their nests are long and tunnel-shaped, and are often found in exposed tree roots or water banks.Most kingfishers live along the banks of rivers or lakes, as the primary staple of their diet is fish. To catch its prey, a kingfisher will perch on a branch above water, watch for a fish, hover for a moment, and then dive headfirst into the water, grabbing the fish in its beak, and heading back up to the surface. The process takes about a third of a second. The kingfisher's diet also consists of spiders, insects, and small amphibians. Jeffrey Liggett was the production editor for MySQL and mSQL. Robert Romano and Rhon Porter created the illustrations using Adobe Photoshop 5.0 and Macromedia Freehand 8.0. Mike Sierra provided FrameMaker technical support. Claire Cloutier LeBlanc provided quality control. Editorial and production services were provided by Rashelle Perez and David Leiser at Electro-Publishing. Becky Peveler was the copyeditor. The index was written by Electro-Publishing, with assistance from Seth Maislin.Edie Freedman designed the cover of this book, using a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. The cover layout was produced by Kathleen Wilson with QuarkXPress 3.32 using the ITC Garamond font. Whenever possible, our books use RepKover, a durable and flexible lay-flat binding. If the page count exceeds RepKover's limit, perfect binding is used. The inside layout was designed by Alicia Cech based on a series design by Nancy Priest. The layout was implemented in FrameMaker 5.5.6 by Mike Sierra. The text and heading fonts are ITC Garamond Light and Garamond Book. This colophon was written by Nicole Arigo.

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Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews

oreillyMySQL and mSQL

1.8

(based on 10 reviews)

Reviewed by 10 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-10

12/31/2001

1.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Ian Smith

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

Reasonable for a grounding, but not up to usual ORA standards.

Knowing nothing about database design or coding, I spotted errors in the SQL examples (things like the text saying the database under discussion will have a particular field, but no mention of that field in the example code fragment). This makes me distrust the rest somewhat - and it's a pain to try and read the book in parallel with a printout of the errata. (Incidently - why so few confirmed errata? Some of them are patently obviously true, such as the discrepancies between text, tables and code fragments, but they're still languishing in 'unconfirmed'.)

In places it reads like each author wrote a different chapter, and they can't agree with each other. For example, in one chapter we're told that installing from source is best (if you have teh required compiler etc.) because it is more customisable, but in the subsequent MySQL chapter we're told that the vast majority of users should obtain a binary distribution.

On balance, it was worth me buying this book - but only because I got it half price in a stock clearance sale. In its current state it's just too sloppy. If the unconfirmed errata were addressed and the discrepancies between chapters cleared up it would probably be just about worth full price, but it's still not the gem that most ORA books are.

9/6/2001

3.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Rich Furman

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

I've been using this book for my forays into mysql and have found it met me needs. I wish it spent more time discussing SQL syntax in the the mysql environment, and can do without all the dross about the other languages; but I've gotten questions answered here, and that's what I ask.

7/29/2001

1.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Bob Little

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

I didn't want to pile on with the "let's beat up this book" group, but I have to.

Books like this don't need anything at all about installation. You probably already have the product installed before you bought the book. At the very least, the README's that come with a download, are much more relevant than what's in a book on the subject.

I was expecting more in the tutorial area, but was disappointed. Maybe I misread the back cover's "ample tutorial material" statement. If you are expecting a step-by-step how-to, then look elsewhere.

The first part on database theory moderately helpful, a bit too long. It was a hundred pages or so before I started noticing anything specifically about MySQL.

This book needs some further editing. I found the Perl chapter to be riddled with typos that, when copied, would not compile.

Drop the msql part too. Who needs it? It's like carrying on about DOS in a book about Windows 2000.

It was a mistake for me to buy this book. As expensive as computer reference books are, I don't want to make to many more mistakes like this one.

2/7/2001

2.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Duncan Drury

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

I bought this book with office money thinking it would help me learn SQL and MySQL. Now having delved into it, I find it annoying for the following reasons:

It says in the back it contains ample tutorial material.

This is simply not true!

The book is not written sequentially meaning you have to skip ahead several chapters in order to understand what is said at the beginning!

I think that this book was poorly edited. It reads like it was cobbled together from a number of short articles.

Further more the book is a bit old, and you are far better off following the installation instructions on the mySQL site than following what is in here.

The only plus point is that the book mentions in a couple of footnotes problems that occur in some binary distributions.

I bought this book because I wanted a book on mySQL. However I have found myself using the web anyway, and the book just sits there!

1/30/2001

1.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Steffan Henke

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

If I had read the reviews first, I would not have bought the book, but it's too late now.

Anyway, here are my comments:

This is the worsest O'Reilly book I own, and I have quite a lot of them.

The introduction to SQL and RDBS is somewhat OK, but to read on the back of

the book PHP, W3-mSqL, Lite, and mSQLPerl is really a

strong exaggeration of what is included about PHP in the book.

The so-called "chapter" about PHP is disappointing and full of bugs.

What is included, though, is a simple called "PHP Reference", taken from

the web, including ALL the PHP functions - big deal, I can find that on the web myself and don't need that in print in a book about databases.

But the authors get quantity by printing the reference. Not much work to

cut&paste from the web, I assume.

The last thing goes about the "examples". At least the perl examples better

fit in the "obfuscated perl contest" than in a book about MySQL&msql.

The book about installation of MySQL: I suppose it could be left out because

you should probably have installed your MySQL and/or msql if you are

going to buy the book, but that's a personal opinion.

Short: Don't buy this book.

Printer out of paper while printing the errata.

12/2/2000

3.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Michael Armbrecht

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

For me as nearly a complete novice to SQL and RDBMS this book was quite helpful

for understanding the basics of how to design a database, but unfortunately

not more.

I agree with reviewers who stated already that this book should be split in

two.

I could not find the many typing errors, but I probably got e revised version...

Best part is the SQL reference, which covers my needs and prevents the book from

getting covered with dust on the top shelf.

Michael

10/1/2000

2.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Roman Blöth

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

This book should be divided into 2 or else solely focus on MySQL (who uses mSQL anyway?) and then be re-written to be more complete. The book-as-is doesn't really follow any single topic into depth.

The normalizing chapter could be more detailed, the insalling chapter seems to be the most complete, using the tools isn't much more than what "tool --help" delivers...

This book could be much better, but it isn't...

But then again there doesn't seem to be another book covering MySQL out there?!

9/6/2000

3.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Ken Hansen

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

I was *encouraged* to read this book by my Instuctor, since it was the course textbook, and I found it quite useful.

If I had to point to one thing that I liked best, that would be the *extremely* focused examples in the back - there were many 10-15 line programs that did exactly what I wanted to try out.

A good book, but I came to it with a bit of Relational DB exp., from DB2 and Oracle usage a few years back, so my needs from this book were different from, say, a newbie...

Ken

8/30/2000

1.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Jeff Fulmer

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

This book should have been divided in two. Juxtaposition of MySQL and mSQL leads only to less understanding of both. If you plan to cover two applications in one book, then divide the coverage in half. Pages 1 - 200 cover MySQL, pages 201 to 400 cover mSQL.

5/24/2000

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

1.0

MySQL & mSQL Review

By Joseph Eddy

from Undisclosed

Comments about oreilly MySQL and mSQL:

After reading the other reviews, I am glad to see that most of them agree with me.

I don't know how ANYONE could POSSIBLY praise this as a decent book. There are so many typos in the text and (especially) in the sample code that it's rediculous!

O'Reilly should be embarassed to have such a book in their lineup.

Although it explains nicely how MySQL and relational database systems actually work, it doesn't really give you much information on how to use one.

I also take a little bit of umbrage at the fact that the book assumes the reader is running the server he's using and has root privileges.

Bleurgh. A pile of stinky ----

Displaying reviews 1-10

Immediate Access - Go Digital what's this?

Getting Started with MySQL and mSQL

Chapter 1 Introduction to Relational Databases

Chapter 2 Database Design

Chapter 3 Installation

Chapter 4 MySQL

Chapter 5 mSQL

Chapter 6 SQL According to MySQL and mSQL

Chapter 7 Other Mid-Range Database Engines

Database Programming

Chapter 8 Database Application Architectures

Chapter 9 CGI Programming

Chapter 10 Perl

Chapter 11 Python

Chapter 12 PHP and Other Support for Database-driven HTML

Chapter 13 C and C++

Chapter 14 Java and JDBC

Reference

Chapter 15 SQL Reference

Chapter 16 MySQL and mSQL System Variables

Chapter 17 MySQL and mSQL Programs and Utilities

Chapter 18 PHP and Lite Reference

Chapter 19 C Reference

Chapter 20 Python Reference

Chapter 21 Perl Reference

Chapter 22 JDBC Reference

Colophon

Tim King

George Reese

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