A Practical Introduction to Databases

Christopher Painter‑Wakefield, Colorado School of Mines

Table of contents

• Preface

• 1. SQL
  • 1.1. Basics
  • 1.2. Data retrieval
  • 1.3. Expressions
  • 1.4. Queries on multiple tables
  • 1.5. Modifying data
  • 1.6. Data types and table creation
  • 1.7. Keys and constraints
  • 1.8. Subqueries
  • 1.9. Grouping and aggregation
  • 1.10. Set operations
  • 1.11. Advanced topics
• 2. DATA MODELING
  • 2.1. Introduction to data modeling
  • 2.2. Entity-relationship diagrams
  • 2.3. Converting ERD to a relational model
  • 2.4. ERD alternatives and variations
• 3. RELATIONAL DATABASE THEORY
  • 3.1. The relational model of the database
  • 3.2. Relational algebra
  • 3.3. Normalization
  • 3.4. Differences between SQL and the relational model

• References

• Appendix A: Example datasets used in this book
  • Dataset descriptions
  • Data collection notes
  • Getting the data
• Appendix B: SQL reference
  • Data types
  • Operators and functions
  • Aggregate functions

• Index

• Search Page

• Acknowledgments

Cover photo

Photo of the library of Trinity College by Henry Be on Unsplash.

License

A Practical Introduction to Databases by Christopher Painter‑Wakefield is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Version

This is release 0.1.2 of A Practical Introduction to Databases, committed 2023-08-26.

You have attempted of activities on this page