MySQL: Your Visual Blueprint to Open Source Database Management [With CDROM]

This book is part of a series of Visual Blueprint (tm) books. the subtitle reads Your visual blueprint to oepn source database mangement. There are others in this series on PHP, XML, and Javascript that I know of. The format is clear and obvious. Of course with the blue ink and the graphical layout, it is designed to resemble building plans or blueprints. The format is such that each ajoining pages tackle one command or subject. The subject is narrow in focus allowing you to concentrate on that one topic. Examples include topics such as Delete a Column, Understanding Date and Time Functions, View and manage running processes. On each two-page topic they have included four screen views that are annotated with helpful hints as to what has happened on the screen. Also there is a text portion that analyzes the specific command. On the right page is a text box titled "Extra" that goes into more depth. This rigid format makes the book easy to read and reference, but it also forces that authors to make a point in no more than several paragraphs sometimes limiting the topics effectivness. So I liked this book in the way its consistant design and format makes it very easy to read and learn the topics one step at a time. Looking forward to reading the other books in the series.

This book is great if you're looking to get started quickly with MySQL. I was able to set up and create a database within hours after buying the book, with only minimal prior exposure to MySQL. Plus, it's a great quick reference for some of the standard MySQL commands that you may not need to use on a super-regular basis. The majority of the teaching is done through diagrams and examples, which allows the user to see what's supposed to happen, and have a gauge of how their performing. The text is just over half of the meat of the book, and really just fills in the blank spots that the diagrams leave out. I highly recommend this book for anyone just getting started with MySQL, but it as you get more proficient, you might want to pass it on to another MySQL newbie, as it may just gather dust on your bookshelf.