Learning SQL

>>8731357
omg, what kind of shit uni you are at?

>>8731365
I highly doubt unis anywhere would teach you SQL in your physics undergraduate. Thanks for the helpful response though :^)

>>8731357
SQL isn't really a programming language its more to do with manipulating / creating databases. I'm no expert but I think you could get decent at it in 2 full weeks

>>8731377
>its more to do with manipulating / creating databases. I'm
SQL is Declarative programming language

>>8731377
any pre req shit or am i good to dive in? Specifically, gonna need 2 be able to design, architect and build a data platform for big data companies

>>8731438
That sounds too ambitious. You could get good at using mysql, but design and architecture of databases relies on experience and intricate knowledge of how the system as a whole is going to work. There's a reason "databases and search" is one of the masters you can pick for CS at my uni.

>>8731438
>design, architect and build a data platform for big data companies
>any pre req
Yeah, a degree in software engineering

>>8731372
i'm sorry man i didn't mean that sorry

>>8731470
summer internship, i doubt im that much behind my cs and maths counterparts even if ive no clue what its about. were used to being thrown in the deep end with coding modules anyway!

>>8731357
SQL is a domain specific language. It is used for writing database queries. The language itself is really simple but in order to use it you have to understand databases and that is likely to be the more difficult task.

Moreover there are many different areas to database theory and with what you've told us there's no telling what or how much you'll need to know. For instance, if they expect you to design and implement a database then you will have to
>know how to design a database, including knowing how to normalize data, implementing relational integrity, and possibly other database stuff
>Know SQL enough to actually implement it, fill it with data, and write all the queries/views/etc.. for it. Depending on your application you may even need to know how to deal with SQL from another language (like PHP when designing a website) and you may need to familiarize yourself with topics like prepared statements (in order to secure the database against SQL injections).
>Be familiar enough with the database software to know how to do some basic administration and security stuff (eg. adding users/passwords, creating indexes, etc..).

On the other hand if they just have a ton of data in one big database table and they want you to be able to query it so you can use it in some numerical applied math project then you can probably get by with some really basic SQL query skills.

There are many other possibilities as well. Databases are a big area and there's a lot of hard shit involved in the field. There's a reason being a database admin pays 6 figures starting.

>>8731438

Me again, somehow missed this post >>8731914

This is way out of your league, anon. Not only is all of that shit hard but big data companies have special needs and the standard way of doing things may not work for them. I suggest running away from that unless you want to have a mental breakdown.

>>8731921
Fucked up the order of those links. Whatever.

Yes. SQL is very straightforward. It doesn't operate like a normal programming language, it's just various commands you can send to a database to create/delete tables, insert information, retrieve information.

If you spend 4-hours a day researching it for 2 weeks you'd be considered high aptitude.

If you want to learn, CodeAcademy has a course on SQL - I'd highly recommend it.

I'd also recommend making some toy programs in python that interface with a SQL database. Something like a simple bus timetable program.

SQL isn't a programming language, it's remarkably easy to pick up.

>>8731357
SQL is extremely easy and can be learned in a day and you can become proficient in a week if you are not retarded. I recommend the w3schools tutorial.

Database design is another thing entirely, which is hard, but it's not SQL.

>>8731921
I have little knowledge on databases, no language on PHP or anything, and it sounds like I won't be comfortable with the work involved. Thanks for the full blown out answer, im bummed I wouldnt be able to succeed at this as the timing and location is perfect, and its so hard to find a bloody internship relevant to physics desu. Thats my problem thought not yours.

learning SQL will be the easy part. If you've already done programming in other languages, it'll just be a matter of learning syntax and practicing. The harder part will be the "design and architect" part. That is not trivial and besides theoretical knowledge, the most important thing to get good at it is experience.