You’ve heard the saying – “Practice makes perfect.”
Perfection may be hard to reach but, when learning a new skill, there’s just no substitute for getting in there and using it. It doesn’t matter if it’s a language, an instrument or fixing your car; hands-on practice builds proficiency.
“Self-Guided SQL: Build Your SQL Skills with SQLite”, is designed to help you do just that. Every lesson in the book is focused around exercises in which you will actually use SQL and the SQLite database management software, with enough explanation to help you understand what you’re doing and carry you forward.
As a self-taught programmer, I know that it’s possible to pick up a new technology without spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on classroom instruction. “Self Guided SQL” will help you to add this important skill while investing only your own time and effort.
SQL remains among the most popular languages and will continue to be a valuable skill for many years to come. SQLite is in the top three most used database engines and provides an excellent platform for learning to work with database technology. “Self-Guided SQL” will help you to learn both at your own pace.
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through Amazon.com!
… or …
Purchase now on LeanPub in PDF or
ePub format or download a free sample.
Download the preview and sample files from Github.
Updates & Errata
Please bookmark this page for any updates and corrections to Self-Guided SQL. If you have any questions or comments about this book, please contact us at books@comeausoftware.com.
May 22, 2025
“Self-Guided SQL” is now complete! The full version is available for in both PDF and EPUB formats on LeanPub.com and the official release on Amazon.com is set for May 31. The latest update adds explanations of functions in SQLite with examples of many of the scalar functions available.
April 30, 2025 –
The April 2025 release is now available for download from LeanPub! This release features over 100 test questions and answers based on the material in the book to help further measure and develop your skills. The sample edition has been updated on LeanPub and Github.
March 23, 2025
The March 2025 update of Self-Guided SQL is now available on LeanPub!
This update completes the coverage of basic SQL commands in SQLite. This includes the full coverage of the SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE statments. Upcoming releases will focus on SQL functions and console commands in SQLite and will be adding more test questions that you can use to sharpen your skills.
The SQL examples and solutions file has been updated with new material.
February 13, 2025:
The latest version adds a chapter on SQL window functions. From the book –
“A window function in SQLite is performed over a set of related records and provides a value for each record indicating its relative place within that set based on whatever function is needed. This can include aggregate functions such as SUM() but it’s different from the examples you saw when using GROUP BY because those functions grouped many records together into one row within the query. Window functions maintain the records as separate rows and indicate their relation to each other.”
This chapter includes examples of all the available window functions in SQLite including rankings, row numbers, preceding and subsequent values and cumulative distribution. As usual, the chapter includes exercises at the end to help you develop your skills with these features. Solutions are provided, along with all the SQL code from the book, on the project’s Github page.
This release also completes the portion of the book on SQL SELECT statements. In upcoming releases, I’ll be adding sections on UPDATE, INSERT and DELETE statements along with addition exercises and material. This book is still being offered as an early release edition so this is a great chance to get it at a reduced price!
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Resources
Links
SQLite official page – SQLite is a small but fast and fully-featured database engine. Because of it’s small footprint, minimal installation and wide use, it is an ideal learning tool for Structured Query Language (SQL) and database principles.
DB Browser for SQLite – A graphical design environment for SQLite databases. This software also takes up little space and provides a flexible environment for working with SQLite databases.
Self-Guided SQL on LeanPub – This title will be published on LeanPub as well as Amazon and other services. For now, you can learn more about the book and download a free sample on the LeanPub landing page.
Videos
Getting Started with SQLite – Check out my earlier introduction to downloading SQLite and installing it on your system.