Lessons 1: Introduction

• Are You a Mere Mortal?
• How to Use This Course
• Reading the Diagrams Used in This Course
• Sample Databases Used in This Course

Lessons 2: What Is Relational?

• Types of Databases
• A Brief History of the Relational Model
• Anatomy of a Relational Database
• What’s in It for You?

Lessons 3: Ensuring Your Database Structure Is Sound

• Why Is this Lesson Here?
• Why Worry about Sound Structures?
• Fine-Tuning Columns
• Fine-Tuning Tables
• Establishing Solid Relationships

Lessons 4: A Concise History of SQL

• The Origins of SQL
• Early Vendor Implementations
• “… And Then There Was a Standard”
• Evolution of the ANSI/ISO Standard
• Commercial Implementations
• What the Future Holds
• Why Should You Learn SQL?
• Which Version of SQL Does this Course Cover?

Lessons 5: Creating a Simple Query

• Introducing SELECT
• The SELECT Statement
• A Quick Aside: Data versus Information
• Translating Your Request into SQL
• Eliminating Duplicate Rows
• Sorting Information
• Saving Your Work
• Sample Statements

Lessons 6: Getting More Than Simple Columns

• What Is an Expression?
• What Type of Data Are You Trying to Express?
• Changing Data Types: The CAST Function
• Specifying Explicit Values
• Types of Expressions
• Using Expressions in a SELECT Clause
• That “Nothing” Value: Null

Lessons 7: Filtering Your Data

• Refining What You See Using WHERE
• Defining Search Conditions
• Using Multiple Conditions
• Nulls Revisited: A Cautionary Note
• Expressing Conditions in Different Ways
• Sample Statements

Lessons 8: Thinking in Sets

• What Is a Set, Anyway?
• Operations on Sets
• Intersection
• Difference
• Union
• SQL Set Operations

Lessons 9: INNER JOINs

• What Is a JOIN?
• The INNER JOIN
• Uses for INNER JOINs
• Sample Statements

Lessons 10: OUTER JOINs

• What Is an OUTER JOIN?
• The LEFT/RIGHT OUTER JOIN
• The FULL OUTER JOIN
• Uses for OUTER JOINs

Lessons 11: UNIONs

• What Is a UNION?
• Writing Requests with UNION
• Uses for UNION

Lessons 12: Subqueries

• What Is a Subquery?
• Subqueries as Column Expressions
• Subqueries as Filters
• Uses for Subqueries

Lessons 13: Simple Totals

• Aggregate Functions
• Using Aggregate Functions in Filters

Lessons 14: Grouping Data

• Why Group Data?
• The GROUP BY Clause
• “Some Restrictions Apply”
• Uses for GROUP BY

Lessons 15: Filtering Grouped Data

• A New Meaning for “Focus Groups”
• Where You Filter Makes a Difference
• Uses for HAVING

Lessons 16: Updating Sets of Data

• What Is an UPDATE?
• The UPDATE Statement
• Some Database Systems Allow a JOIN in the UPDATE Clause
• Uses for UPDATE

Lessons 17: Inserting Sets of Data

• What Is an INSERT?
• The INSERT Statement
• Uses for INSERT

Lessons 18: Deleting Sets of Data

• What Is a DELETE?
• The DELETE Statement
• Uses for DELETE

Lessons 19: “NOT” and “AND” Problems

• A Short Review of Sets
• Finding Out the “Not” Case
• Finding Multiple Matches in the Same Table

Lessons 20: Condition Testing

• Conditional Expressions (CASE)
• Solving Problems with CASE

Lessons 21: Using Unlinked Data and “Driver” Tables

• What Is Unlinked Data?
• Solving Problems with Unlinked Data
• Solving Problems Using “Driver” Tables

Lessons 22: Performing Complex Calculations on Groups

• Grouping in Sub-Groups
• Extending the GROUP BY Clause
• Getting Totals in a Hierarchy Using Rollup
• Calculating Totals on Combinations Using CUBE
• Creating a Union of Totals with GROUPING SETS
• Variations on Grouping Techniques

Lessons 23: Partitioning Data into Windows

• What You Can Do With a “Window” into Your Data
• Calculating a Row Number
• Ranking Data
• Splitting Data into Quintiles
• Using Windows with Aggregate Functions

Appendix A: SQL Standard Diagrams

Appendix B: Schema for the Sample Databases

Appendix C: Date and Time Types, Operations, and Functions

Creating a Simple Query

Getting More Than Simple Columns

Filtering Your Data

Thinking in Sets

INNER JOINs

OUTER JOINs

UNIONs

Grouping Data

Filtering Grouped Data

Updating Sets of Data

Inserting Sets of Data

Deleting Sets of Data

“NOT” and “AND” Problems

Condition Testing

Performing Complex Calculations on Groups

Partitioning Data into Windows