5 comments about MySQL Certification Study Guide.

1. This book is not only an excellent source for prepping for the Core and Professional exams, it's also great for teaching good MySQL usage in general. This should be no surprise: Paul DuBois is the main author, and anyone even remotely in touch with MySQL know his reputation.
   
   Now that I'm certified, I will soon be teaching courses in MySQL. I plan to use this book as course material, and I would strongly encourage other instructors to do the same.
   
   Many authors and publishers never follow up on a book once it has been published. Not so here: In the best of Open Source tradition, the authors are extremely keen on following through on the book and have published thorough errata (in the few places it has proved necessary) for the book on the MySQL web site. This shows a commitment to their work rarely seen in other places.
   
   Other reviewers have pointed to a lack of sample data. This is not correct. True, some data is missing but for the most part the data used is the "world" database freely available for download from the MySQL web site. This fact is admittedly somewhat hidden in the introductory pages, and easy to miss.
   
   Some also complain that the exercises are not in the same (multiple-choice) format as you will see on the exam. At first it does look strange, but after completing my studies I fully support the authors' choice in doing what they did. You get a much better knowledge of the subject areas with the format chosen, and learn a lot more about the many inticacies of working with the software.



2. I got this book because I wanted to prepare for the MySQL Core Exam. I found the book to be very useful in studying for the exam and would recommend the book to others that are attempting to pass either exam.
   I also found the section of the book dealing with the Professional Exam to be very worth my reading even though I am not planning to take that exam. As a programmer I found a lot of good information on improving the performance of my queries and making the database work better.



3. This book is perfect for preparation for the MySQL Core Certification exam (I haven't taken the Professional exam - yet). If you are looking to get certified, this is the book. There were a few areas that I felt should have been covered in more detail. The one thing that bothered me (and the main reason I can't give this title 5 stars) were several topics where the text just mentions certain (relatively obscure) features, saying more information would be presented about the feature in the exercises at the end of the chapter. Of course, the exercises are the mock exam questions, and while the correct answers are all well-explained, it seems odd to mention a topic, only to say that it will be covered in the questions without preparing me with adequate information up front.
   
   MySQL seems to consider the passing criteria as a trade secret. I could find nothing that told me what percentage I had to get right on the exam to pass. When I took the exam, I received feedback that I had passed, but no score. Of course, this makes it somewhat difficult to use the practice tests to guage your progress. If I was getting 85% correct answers on the practive test (which I was), what does that mean? I finally just bit the bullet and took the test, and it all turned out fine. But it sure would have helped my self-assessment to know where I was.



4. This book is clearly written. It guides you through all the essential things you should know when preparing for the MySQL exams. The exercises at the end of each chapter are very useful in understanding what each chapter is about. These exercises give the reader a good insight to what extent he or she understands what has been dealt with in the book.
   Perhaps one minor point of criticism. The many examples in the book make use of several databases and tables. It should have been convenient if the SQL-queries to make these databases were listed in the book.



5. It is a good book for learners but not for examination. A lot of questions cannot be found from this book. For example, select 1/0.
   
   The questions on each chapter is useful. However you will not find any one in your examination. Except MC, some fill-in the blank questions are available. In addition, you do not allow to review all the questions due to time limit.
   
   Thus focus your effort on
   1. JOIN (how to rewrite into subqueries)
   2. Email address of Mysql support.
   3. No of OS is available for mysql
   4. Syntax on SELECT e.g IN/ON, GROUP vs HAVING vs WHERE
   5. What is transaction
   6. What mysql features can use in transaction
   7. implicit data conversation (e.g. INT, STRING)
   
   A lot of questions has over 1 answers. Pay attention on it. Finally, the examination fee is too high. I think MYSQL AB needs to lower the price to promote the product if she wants to capture Microsoft market.
   
   Thomas Leung
   Hong Kong

No comments about Professional Perl and MySQL.

3 comments about Mastering MySQL 4.

1. While I am not new to databases, I am new to mysql and always spend the most time learning new syntax, processes and "features". The MySQL manual is very clear but left some questions unanswered for me. Mastering MySQL left me with no such gaps, and the numerous in-depth examples (including output) in this book help clarify commands and proper syntax. The book covers everything from installation to administration and includes syntax and function/operator references. These references are clearly detailed and contain a generous number of examples as well.

   The book is written from a hands-on point of view which is how I learn best. One very nice aspect of the book is that it provides information for Windows and UNIX environments as opposed to focusing on one or the other.

   There are very handy sections on several of the programming APIs, including PHP, Perl, Python, Java, C, ODBC and .NET.

   Database beginners will find the sections on Understanding Relational Databases, Database Normalization and Database Design very helpful in understanding database terminology and functionality.

   Finally, there is a very detailed index in the back of the book - I really dislike not being able to locate a topic in an index, especially when I know I read it somewhere in the book.

   This is a very good overall book for the MySQL database and I'd recommend it to anyone looking to learn about MySQL.




2. I like the tool coverage in this MySQL book -- it covers a lot of features which I haven't read about elsewhere, and appears to focus on practical solutions. Based on the three weeks I have been referring to this book, I would say it is the best MySQL book available.

   Since it ostensibly covers version 4, the author should have covered secure socket connections in greater detail and given examples of its use. I would also have liked to see references to the text in the otherwise valuable appendix B. Overall, it seems very free of fluff and the examples seem to focus on the case in point.

   Excellent book.




3. I found this book to be my very best friend when I started doing a lot of MySQL, and I use it often as a reference now.
   
   The book is a great A-Z of everything MySQL 4.
   
   It is a great technical read with lots of examples, clear concise reflection, and a fantastic appendix.

No comments about Building Bioinformatics Solutions: with Perl, R and MySQL.

1 comments about MySQL 5.1 Cluster DBA Certification Study Guide.

1. This is the comprehensive guide to the MySQL 5.1 Cluster Certification. The book is well formatted, written, and provides lots of guidelines that are hard to pick up by just RTFM-ing the manuals. The book starts with a discussion of what is high availability and what is not that is great for those new to the subject. Then it gets very heavily into the NDB aspects of MySQL Cluster.
   
   This is not a book for those wanting to start administering MySQL databases as it is very cluster specific. But many of the general topics would be of value to any DBA.

4 comments about MySQL Phrasebook (Developer's Library).

1. It's a very light book, slightly taller than your average paper back, weighing in at only 181 pages. In those pages the authors have managed to cram in lots of different types of information: From a basic introduction to the relational database model, to basic administration information, to query design and code examples in C, PHP & Perl. That's a lot of information for such a tiny book, so necessarily the coverage is brief. Fortunately the authors managed to hone in on the information from each section that would be most useful to the reader, and concentrate on that.
   
   The "phrases" the book introduces deal are basically short little answers to questions that come up frequently when working with MySQL (I might say that a Phrasebook Sam's pocketbook version of O'Reilly's cookbooks). Starting off with basic things like select queries, and moving up to cross table queries (incidentally I finally understand the difference between an inner and outer join). It also goes into performance tips, server administration, and backups.
   
   If you're already well versed in the world of MySQL, this isn't the book for you. However, if you're anything like me, someone who uses MySQL a lot for a few basic things but doesn't really know much beyond that, this book will be a good addition to your reference library. If you're just getting started with MySQL this book isn't going to teach you everything you know, but will help answer some questions for you along the way.
   
   Overall I'd recommend this book to most of my friends.



2. I got my hands on several copies of the new Phrasebook series from Developer's Library back in April 2006 but as they were intended as handouts at my conference talks, I could not hold onto them long enough to review them. I've since managed to hold onto a copy of the MySQL Phrasebook long enough to review it and consider it worth the wait.
   
   The MySQL Phrasebook makes a useful companion for a beginning MySQL administrator or developer looking for a guide that can be carried along wherever they happen to be coding. It comes with a useful overview of the MySQL architecture followed by useful information organized by use-case.
   
   There are useful chapters on APIs, advanced queries and troubleshooting that I found particularly nice. As an occasional developer, having a simple sample PHP script is usually all I need to reference when developing and I was happy to see that the included example was written against the mysqli provider instead of the older mysql provider.
   
   In addition to being quite useful, the price is certainly right at at list of $14.99 (less on Amazon). At just over 150 pages in pocket format I wouldn't expect to pay much more, but I'm happy to see that the price is reasonable.
   
   This phrasebook, along with its PHP and Apache companions, will certainly accompany me on future coding trips where other reference materials would prove too bulky.



3. This book should be titled Mysql Short Tutorial instead. I am no mysql expert myself with only 1 month experience, but I find the phrases and subjects covered to be very basic! The book does cover a wide variety of subjects with a systematic presentation such that it reads more like a short tutorial rather than a reference book. Just because you make the book small doesn't make it a good reference book! Also, the paper quality is poor - very thin and easily torn! I recommend looking at the o'reilly pocket references/ guides instead.



4. This book is pretty nice. It's fairly handy. However, I'm inclined to group it in the beginner-intermediate range (not that it's advertised otherwise).
   
   The majority of the times that I've picked it up to investigate things that I wasn't sure about/had never attempted, I failed to find them in the index. Thumbing through the book to find various things I find a proliferation of information that any experienced user (note--I've only been using MySQL for a year now) will almost certainly not need to look up.
   
   Don't get me wrong, it is a very useful book; it's just that most of the times I reach for it, I find myself disappointed and getting another book or looking online.

No comments about Beginning PHP 6, Apache, MySQL 6 Web Development.

2 comments about PHP with MySQL Essential Training.

1. I'm very happy with this training video, and it walks the user through the basic php codes including working with variables, loops, conditions, etc. The one thing I will say, is that if I had known that Lynda.com had a subscription based membership I would have gotten it there. If you subscribe, you can join for $[...]/month. I would say overall I'm very happy with this cd-rom. I just wish I hadn't paid so much for it.



2. Kevin Skogland does a fantastic job laying out the foundation in working with PHP and MYSQL to build dynamic web sites. The videos are clear; the audio is in excellent tone and rhythm for learning. Kevin gives clear instruction and creative challenges from start to finish to insure your understanding of PHP and MYSQL in a practical way.
   
   Kevin will take through the setup of APACHE, PHP, MYSQL and phpMyadmin on Windows and Mac before journeying into the nuts and bolts of tying them all together. From the fundamentals, to creating a Content Management System, Kevin will have you well on your way to mastering dynamic web sites.
   
   Whether you are using this as an introductory course or a refresher course, you will not be disappointed. Highly recommended.

5 comments about MySQL Bible with CDROM.

1. Very good book. I'll recomend it to anyone learning MySQL.

   Some examples did not work in my server but after contacting the author we/he resolved the problem. Problem was related to new release of PHP. The CD-ROM does not include the examples so be ready to do some typing.

   The pictures in the book are hard to see.

   Book content *****
   Book layout ***
   CD-ROM **
   Author's support *****




2. I purchased this book with great anticipation of expanding my knowledge of mySQL and making great us of the section on perl. Overall, I'm very dissapointed. The book itself goes into great detail about certain things that need not such a vast description, yet only privide single examples for some important things.
   The CD-ROM is useless. I was expacting it to have code from the book, whereas it's a collection of mySQL apps and programs that you can get free elswhere.
   Having explored the perl chapter of the book in greatest detail, it provides inadequite examples with a lot of inneficient coding.
   I give the book credit, however, for covering as much ground as it does, mySQL with perl, PHP and ODBC. Overall, however, not worth the money.



3. Don't waste your money on this. The book and reviews claim to include binaries and source of MySQL database but the CD-ROM contains neither. Bogus.



4. I have to disagree with many of the reviews of this book.
   
   The MySQL Bible would benefit from more than a simple layout change. Since the advent of the win installer for ver. 4.1.6 gamma of MySQL, the first 5 chapters of this book become useless. There are few explicit example of code (especially regarding how to interact with mysqladmin) extracted from the impossible "dark grey on black" screen captures that are used.
   
   As for the comment that some reviewers have made, that some of the codes provided (when they can be read) are inaccurate or ineffective, I would add only that I have yet to find a snippet of code in the book that actually works.
   
   Maybe there is something usefull in this book, but I haven't found it yet... I only hope that this book has a major revision for 5.0, and that someone in the editorial dept. at Wiley actually looks at pages before they are published.



5. Unfortunately, time and development have passed this book by. It is for MySQL 4.0, which has been FAR surpassed by the newer 5.0 version.
   
   As mentioned by some other reviewers, one of the main problems with the book is the illustrations. They are so dark as to be illegible. Not sure what the people that got the press proofs were thinking when they let that out the door.
   
   The author does a reasonable job on certain areas (hey, can't be all bad if he has a dedication to Eddie Van Halen).
   
   Might want to try the third edition of MySQL by Paul DuBois as a good reference book that is much more up-to-date.

No comments about Dreamweaver CS3 Dynamic Development.