|
|
Message from Dean - May 8th 2007
I am currently testing out a new version of the APF Bridge Component - If you notice any errors within this demo store please drop me a line.
Rating:  -
While I'm very familiar with working with relational databases, my MySQL skills are weak. This book was exactly what I needed while building a new web application that uses MySQL. For every question I had, I found the answer in this book. Highly recommended.
Rating: -
Visuals
Good. Page numbers and section title can be found on the bottom of every page.
Audience
From the book: "This book should be useful for anybody who uses MySQL, ranging from individuals [...] to professional database and web developers."
That is a pretty broad range, basically from introductory to advanced. Nevertheless I would have to say that the book meets this challenge well. This book should be of use to anybody who uses MySQL.
Practicality:
I have to say that I have fallen for Cookbook style books. While I still thoroughly enjoy more theory heavy books, cookbooks can really deliver in the immediate practicality department.
The MySQL Cookbook is a good example of this. This book has dozens upon dozens of recipes that will likely have some measure of application in whatever MySQL dependent system you are working on.
Each recipe contains a brief "Problem" scenario, followed by an often equally brief "Solution", and finally a more lengthy discussion that shows how to actually implement the solution.
Overall
I am very pleased with this book. Mr. DuBois and O'Reilly did a great job. For instance, one of the things I especially like is that often multiple solutions are offered. For example if you were to look up Section 6.6 "Extracting Parts of Dates or Times" you will find the solution lists 3 possible options. The discussion section contains 5 pages of examples of how you might use those options to extract the desired data.
If you fit in to the intended audience of "anybody who uses MySQL", I would highly recommend this book.
Rating:  -
If this was a quick reference book, then the information contained would be useful. This, unfortunately is a big book containing a little book's amount of useful info. Save your money and print out the mysql users guide that is available online for free. I found myself using the online guide as a reference even when the book was in front of me.
Bottom line: A wide range of methods for doing things you probably already know how to do if you are using mysql.
Rating:  -
The MySQL Cookbook weighs in at over 940 pages and will help you find quick answers to everything from beginner-level basics up through dba and software developer tricks.
The book is a collection of real-world tasks and compliments Paul's DuBois' other MySQL books very well. It goes beyond basic use and admin-level goodies - it has loads of code examples as well. As a software developer using MySQL for many projects, I find the MySQL Cookbook indispensible.
Rating: -
If you deal with MySQL on a daily or weekly basis then this book is a perfect go-to. So many scenarios (recipes) are covered, from simple to fairly advanced.
This second edition is almost twice as thick as the first, but that doesn't mean it's too much to handle since you wouldn't entirely read it from cover to cover because you'll want to go try out so much of it.
This really is worth space on a shelf (digital or not). I would prefer the digital edition since it'd be a breeze to search through.
|
Amazon Store