Rating: 
Summary: Advanced SQL Programming!!!!
Review: I have been programming database applications since 1984. I started using SQL in 1989. Since that time, I thought I had mastered SQL. Well ... I was wrong. Joe's book helps pin point the finer things concerning SQL ... how it really works. Anyone who is an ADVANCED user of SQL will find this book full of the little things that all most all developers will overlook. For example, how does a SQL statement really execute (pg 174 to 181) explains this in great detail. Many advanced developers are not just satisfied with knowing how to do something; but, want to know every little detail about how something really works. I found the chapters on normalization and Armstrong's Axioms to be the most useful concept in the entire book. Database design concepts are critical in performing a good, solid, and efficient query and this chapter brings it out very well. I have found this book to be my only source for advanced SQL concepts (besides Joe's puzzle book...). Good job ... and thanks.
Rating: 
Summary: Smarties or oldies?
Review: I have browsed at this book in bookstores for years, always wondering if the info in it would be of use to me.
I write queries all day, in SQL Server, Sybase 5.5, ASA 7, Oracle 9i, MS Access, and SQL/400. I like writing queries and find it fun and rewarding.
But I did not get alot out of this book. Less than halfway through it I stopped reading and started browsing for useful things. Unfortunately, the book is dated, and a bit too theoretical for me. He devotes pages to SQL-92 standards that he admits are not implemented in many dB engines, if any! That's not very useful.
The book is old. It does not cover SQL Server 2000, nor any other recent database versions. Although I'll keep it on my shelf in the off chance that one day I'll need to use Cenko's Third Median, I doubt that I'll get much more use out of it.
Rating:
Summary: More Care Required
Review: I knew of Joe Celko from his contributions to database-related magazines and had great expectations of this work.However, while there is much in the book that is worthwhile, I found it terribly sloppy, not only in the practical solutions supplied but in all aspects of the book. Nearly every sample piece of code, even quite short snippets, has a bug in it; the descriptions of the problems he is attempting to solve and the explanations of the solutions are full of unstated assumptions; and much of the general text is imprecise or vague and skims over areas that could do with more detailed explanations. Some parts I have read several times over without being able to make any sense of them. In fact, I have come to the point where, if a section of text or a practical example seems wrong or difficult to follow, I don't know any more if it's Joe's fault or mine. To Joe's credit, I can say that I have corresponded with him and he was quick to reply and was willing to continue the discussion when I followed up. He generally comes across as a "great guy", and he did accept my criticism of the solution he'd given to a problem and produced a satisfactory alternative, but every point I made to him had to be explained in detail and I still felt at the end that he wouldn't get the solution 100% right when he incorporated it in his book. One section of the book that I found absolutely fascinating was a short description of the standardization process of the Western or Gregorian calendar. It was mostly irrelevant to the topic of the book but fascinating nonetheless. There are other gems scattered throughout, he has a good list of references and I have found he has made several points which I could quote to support my postion in arguments in standards committee meetings, but I feel that it would take as much more effort to get the book right as it has take already to produce it.
Rating:
Summary: ! Yes I use it - Professionally ...
Review: I know Joe Celko, because of his sense of humour. We are bored about teachers and professors having great theorical views and poor practises. Do you need to have a constant look over your car engine while driving ? If yes, you may cause many accident, and I would'nt come with you in your car ! Designing databases and using it, are two different concepts and when the primer is well done the former will automatically be a simple matter of "how to" and not a "technic" reserved to high leveled engineers ! That is, I think, just the way Joe Celko try to teach SQL to us. That is the way I teach and practice SQL and I just want to have larger view about what SQL can do, and this book answer fully to my request ! Thanks Joe for all your books about SQL and databases, you are just the writer that had miss in the many passed years...
Rating: 
Summary: This book is great mostly because its one of a kind
Review: I read this book a year ago, so I do not remember much. It's the only book I've seen out there that deals with advanced queries. The book is very insightful and stimulates ideas in one to try out, but many of the examples, however complicated they might be, are trivial in nature. Examples that nobody out there in the real world would want to do unless they want to satisfy some silly curiosity. The examples that come to mind are his organizational trees. Who cares about that? That's going a bit overboard I think. Another thing I remember is how authoritative Joe Celko tries to sound in his presentation of SQL and then he down plays it when he instructs his readers to check with their specific SQL implementation. Other than that the book seems to be expensive. If you must buy it try finding a used copy.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting tricks but may not quite practical
Review: I think the book talks about a lot of interesting tricks which are not very crucial to a developer's everyday life work. I admit that without this book I'll probably have to spend more time to figure out how to perform this or that task, but I normally have no need to perform those tasks anyway. For my work, I'll prefer reading Oracle's online manual, or those popular Oracle books. Of course I'm keeping this book in case I really need to implement some strange things in my database and I can't find out how by myself.
Rating:
Summary: Should re-title "SQL 201"
Review: I would have preffered a book speciffic to 'SMARTIES' as the title suggests, unfortunately those of us who've been writting SQL for a number of years will find this book of little use. A great book if you are new to SQL or have used SQL sparingly. I was looking for a book that would help me write better, more efficient SQL code and performance tune my code, maybe insights into the compilers ...instead, the book in my opinion, is a good introduction to SQL or a refresher on SQL.... I found several errors in the book that annoyed me, not typos, but errors in the SQL itself. Maybe I'm too critical, but considering the price we pay for these books, I beleive I deserve more. Mr. Celko is definately the 'guru' when it comes to SQL....but maybe I was expecting too much!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book, very easy to understand
Review: I'm currently taking an undergraduate course in database and this book teaches you powerful and efficient SQL techniques that are not even cover in undergraduate books. Excellent for Beginners to SQL.
Rating:
Summary: excellent advanced SQL book
Review: If you are conversant with SQL, this is a great book to buy. This book has all kinds of advice for finessing SQL for power users. It is the only advanced SQL book of which I am aware.
Rating:
Summary: Be a SQL God
Review: If you need to sling some really nasty SQL which you probably shouldn't be writing in the first place, then this book is for you. Celko is the man. As a cover-to-cover read, you will pick up on a lot of new SQL techniques, but in general, this is a "I know where to look when I need to know that book." If you know the basics of SQL and want to start your SQL Master training, then start here. Just keep it close by when you need to remember how Celko was able to get "that" to work.
| 
