Rating: 
Summary: A Decent But Uninspiring Guide to SQL Server 2000
Review: This book provides a solid, useful introduction to SQL Server 2000. The coverage is comprehensive and informative. The writing is mostly clear and accessible though I was unable to understand a few points that the author covered. Very few books attempt to cover the Transact-SQL language, database concepts, and server administration in one volume and this one does it fairly successfully.You have to be pretty determined to make it through this book. The author covers a lot of ground and I did not find it to be particularly engaging. I coaxed myself through by reading chapters from the section on system administration in parallel with the earlier chapters on SQL language, syntax, and queries that were pretty dry. I didn't want to skip anything because I did not want to miss any of the new features of SQL 2000. It is clear from this book that the big change between SQL Server versions was between 6.5 and 7.0. The continuity between 7.0 and 2000 stood out in this reading. There are significant changes - from data types to syntax to utilities and more, but for those who are familiar with 7.0 the latest version will feel pretty comfortable. I rated the 7.0 version of this book 4 stars and this one 3 stars. Actually the book is about as good as the previous one but I have read a lot of SQL Server books since then and my expectations have risen. This isn't a bad book but it is among the dullest treatments I have encountered. Is this a good book for beginners? Yes. Many readers want a one-volume source and this one meets that need. If you want to learn SQL Server this book offers the basic education you need. A few sections will make no sense to a beginner. They made little sense to me and I'm not a beginner anymore. But if you keep at it by the end you will have a good general understanding and ability with SQL Server 2000. I picked up this book to prepare for Microsoft's beta exam on SQL Server 2000. Pre-test I think it does a pretty good job of covering material. While I found it boring I appreciated the review of Transact-SQL. I spend more time troubleshooting problems than writing scripts so I had gotten a little rusty. A reader who is up to speed on SQL Server basics might skip over the first two sections of the book to concentrate on the sections that deal with system administration, analysis services, full-text search, and XML support where more new stuff is introduced. What is new in the first two sections is very minor.
Rating:
Summary: A Decent But Uninspiring Guide to SQL Server 2000
Review: This book provides a solid, useful introduction to SQL Server 2000. The coverage is comprehensive and informative. The writing is mostly clear and accessible though I was unable to understand a few points that the author covered. Very few books attempt to cover the Transact-SQL language, database concepts, and server administration in one volume and this one does it fairly successfully. You have to be pretty determined to make it through this book. The author covers a lot of ground and I did not find it to be particularly engaging. I coaxed myself through by reading chapters from the section on system administration in parallel with the earlier chapters on SQL language, syntax, and queries that were pretty dry. I didn't want to skip anything because I did not want to miss any of the new features of SQL 2000. It is clear from this book that the big change between SQL Server versions was between 6.5 and 7.0. The continuity between 7.0 and 2000 stood out in this reading. There are significant changes - from data types to syntax to utilities and more, but for those who are familiar with 7.0 the latest version will feel pretty comfortable. I rated the 7.0 version of this book 4 stars and this one 3 stars. Actually the book is about as good as the previous one but I have read a lot of SQL Server books since then and my expectations have risen. This isn't a bad book but it is among the dullest treatments I have encountered. Is this a good book for beginners? Yes. Many readers want a one-volume source and this one meets that need. If you want to learn SQL Server this book offers the basic education you need. A few sections will make no sense to a beginner. They made little sense to me and I'm not a beginner anymore. But if you keep at it by the end you will have a good general understanding and ability with SQL Server 2000. I picked up this book to prepare for Microsoft's beta exam on SQL Server 2000. Pre-test I think it does a pretty good job of covering material. While I found it boring I appreciated the review of Transact-SQL. I spend more time troubleshooting problems than writing scripts so I had gotten a little rusty. A reader who is up to speed on SQL Server basics might skip over the first two sections of the book to concentrate on the sections that deal with system administration, analysis services, full-text search, and XML support where more new stuff is introduced. What is new in the first two sections is very minor.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent book for SQL Server 2000 Beginner !!!
Review: THIS IS THE BOOK if you have any previous SQL experience ( i.e. if you worked with MySQL or PostgreSQL ) and want to get SQL Server 2000 skills. Organization of this book is straightforward and very logical. Explanations are great and this book has even exercises at the end of each chapter! ( With answers at the back ). I am more than satisfied with this book.
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