Taylor - SQL All-in-One For Dummies

SQL All-in-One For Dummies

by Allen G. Taylor

SQL All-in-One For Dummies

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Copyright 2011 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2011922795

ISBN: 978-0-470-92996-4

Manufactured in the United States of America

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About the Author

Allen G. Taylor is a 30-year veteran of the computer industry and the author of more than 25 books, including SQL For Dummies, Crystal Reports 2008 For Dummies, Database Development For Dummies, Access 2003 Power Programming with VBA, and SQL Weekend Crash Course. He lectures internationally on databases, networks, innovation, astronomy and entrepreneurship. He also teaches database development through a leading online education provider. For the latest news on Allens activities, check out both his blog (at www.moontube.wordpress.com) and his Web site (at www.DatabaseCentral.Info). You can contact Allen at allen.taylor@ieee.org.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to Joyce Carolyn Taylor, my partner in life.

Authors Acknowledgments

First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge the help of Jim Melton, editor of the ISO/ANSI specification for SQL. Without his untiring efforts, this book and indeed SQL itself as an international standard would be of much less value. Andrew Eisenberg has also contributed to my knowledge of SQL through his writing. I would also like to thank my project editor, Paul Levesque, and my acquisitions editor, Kyle Looper, for their key contributions to the production of this book. Thanks also to my agent, Carole McClendon of Waterside Productions, for her support of my career.

Publishers Acknowledgments

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Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development

Senior Project Editor: Paul Levesque

Acquisitions Editor: Kyle Looper

Copy Editor: Kathy Simpson

Technical Editor: Robert Schneider

Editorial Manager: Leah Cameron

Editorial Assistant: Amanda Graham

Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case

Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com)

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Publishing for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele , Vice President and Publisher

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Debbie Stailey , Director of Composition Services

Introduction

S QL is the internationally recognized standard language for dealing with data in relational databases. Developed by IBM, SQL became an international standard in 1986. The standard was updated in 1989, 1992, 1999, 2003, and 2008. It continues to evolve and gain capability. Database vendors continually update their products to incorporate the new features of the ISO/IEC standard. (For the curious out there, ISO is the International Organization for Standardization, and IEC is the International Electrotechnical Commission.)

SQL isnt a general-purpose language, such as C++ or Java. Instead, its strictly designed to deal with data in relational databases. With SQL, you can carry out all the following tasks:

Create a database, including all tables and relationships

Fill database tables with data

Change the data in database tables

Delete data from database tables

Retrieve specific information from database tables

Grant and revoke access to database tables

Protect database tables from corruption due to access conflicts or user mistakes

About This Book

This book isnt just about SQL; its also about how SQL fits into the process of creating and maintaining databases and database applications. In this book, I cover how SQL fits into the larger world of application development and how it handles data coming in from other computers, which may be on the other side of the world or even in interplanetary space.