MariaDB Crash Course - Ben Forta [3]
Monty and his team created a fork (offshoot) of the MySQL codebase and named his new DBMS MariaDB. The stated goals for the new MariaDB DBMS include
• Create a DBMS that is so compatible with MySQL that it could be used as a drop-in replacement (you could uninstall MySQL, install MariaDB, and your programs should continue to run as is). This is accomplished by building MariaDB on the MySQL codebase.
• Improve the source code to make MariaDB far more reliable and stable.
• Add features (and community contributions) at a faster rate.
• Develop a new underlying database engine (don’t worry if that sounds obscure for now) named Aria to improve performance and reliability.
What Is MariaDB Crash Course?
This book is based on my best-selling Sams Teach Yourself SQL in 10 Minutes. That book has become one of the most-used SQL tutorials in the world, with an emphasis on teaching what you really need to know—methodically, systematically, and simply. But as popular and as successful as that book is, it does have some limitations:
• In covering all the major DBMSs, coverage of DBMS-specific features and functionality had to be kept to a minimum.
• To simplify the SQL taught, the lowest common denominator had to be found—SQL statements that would (as much as possible) work with all major DBMSs. This requirement necessitated that better DBMS-specific solutions not be covered.
• Although basic SQL tends to be rather portable between DBMSs, more advanced SQL most definitely is not. As such, that book could not cover advanced topics, such as triggers, cursors, stored procedures, access control, transactions, and more, in any real detail.
And that is where this book comes in. MariaDB Crash Course builds on the proven tutorials and structure of Sams Teach Yourself SQL in Ten Minutes, without getting bogged down with anything but MariaDB. Starting with simple data retrieval and working on to more complex topics, including the use of joins, subqueries, regular expression and full text-based searches, stored procedures, cursors, triggers, table constraints, and much more. You learn what you need to know methodically, systematically, and simply—in highly focused chapters designed to make you immediately and effortlessly productive.
Who Is This Book For?
This book is for you if
• You are new to SQL.
• You are just getting started with MariaDB and want to hit the ground running.
• You want to quickly learn how to get the most out of MariaDB.
• You want to learn how to use MariaDB in your own application development.
• You want to be productive quickly and easily using MariaDB without having to call someone for help.
It is worth noting that this book is not intended for all readers. If you are an experienced SQL user, you may find the content in this book too elementary. Similarly, if you have existing MySQL experience, you’ll likely find this book to be less useful (as noted, MariaDB is based on MySQL). If you own my MySQL Crash Course, I do not recommend that you buy this book, as much of the content is similar, and your existing MySQL knowledge will easily transfer as is to MariaDB.
But, if the preceding list describes you and your needs relative to MariaDB, you’ll find this MariaDB Crash Course to be the fastest and easiest way to get up to speed with MariaDB.
This book is also useful if you are new to MySQL, as most of the content also applies to that DBMS. For you, this book has an extra benefit in that it helps demonstrate some reasons to consider switching to MariaDB.
Companion Web Site
This book has a companion Web site online at http://forta.com/books/0321799941/. Visit the site to access
• Table creation and population scripts used to create the example tables used throughout this book
• The online support forum
• Online errata (should one be required)
• Other books that may be of interest to you
Conventions Used in This Book
This book uses different typefaces to differentiate between code and regular English,