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Summary: Design AND implementation
Review: How much do you already know about designing and implementing a SQL database? That is really two questions. The first refers to applying a well trodden theory of SQL design to your application. What tables should you conceptually extract? How should these be interrelated by judicious choice of primary and foreign keys? What are the germane attributes in each table? All these issues are explained by Davidson in the first part of the book. He goes well into discussing how to normalise data, and the numerous normal forms. He does this at a level independent of SQL Server. So even if your database is dB2 or Oracle or whatever, you should be able to profitably gain something from his teachings. But having designed your database, now comes having to implement it. The second part of the book. Here is the SQL Server specific material. The details specific to its implementation do matter. But you know what? A fair amount of the examples use mostly standard SQL commands. In your application, you should probably strive to do likewise, to the maximum extent possible. It minimises the amount of inevitable lockin to SQL Server. There are also sections in the second part that apply to any relational database. Like his description of best practices, in chapter 13. Davidson presents a useful balance between design and implementation. A favourable contrast to texts that predominently deal with only one aspect.
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