October 7, 2001 at 9:14 pm
I'm currently finding out information about a possible apprenticeship in SQL/Server and I was wondering if anyone can provide me with a brief description about what SQL does apart from being a database program.
My email is doug_is_@hotmail.com
October 9, 2001 at 5:20 pm
Doug, its hard to sum up in a few word - or even if a few books! SQL Server (and Oracle) are a bit different from some databases (Access, maybe Foxpro) in that with programs like Access all the work is done on your computer - SQL Server runs on a different machine and is designed to handle many users at once.
As far as learning SQL, there are really two paths - you can be a Database Administrator (DBA) who maintains the software, tunes it, handles backup, etc, or you can be a developer who uses SQL Server as a place to store/access information. Lots of hybrids of those two paths out there. I'd suggest you search for DBA here on the site, you'll find some interesting articles and discussions.
Beyond that, I'd recommend you pick up a beginner SQL book and do some reading, see if it interests you.
Hope that helps.
Andy
October 10, 2001 at 12:04 pm
With SQL Server 2000, you also have DTS which facilitates the movement of data between two different places. Neither of these have to be SQL Server, they can be Excel, text files, Oracle, etc.
You also get Analysis server which allows you to build cubes of denormalized data for Decision Support Systems.
SQL Server also has a scheduler which can be used to run any command line programs as well as sql commands.
Other than that, it is a data management platform. I agree with Andy, pick up a book, or better yet, get a subscription to our IQReference products (see our products section) and read a bunch of books online.
Steve Jones
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