20 Jan 08 Advice To Beginner Database Developers

If I were just starting out learning about databases, this is what I would do.

Make yourself a personal goal to learn as much about database concepts as you can. Don't limit yourself to MySQL or any one database system for that matter. There are a lot of peculiarities in the way certain features are implemented in certain ways, depending on the engine that you will not find in any other database system.

There is a good advantage you will have by learning about the pros & cons of the available systems. What open source engine is the best for big data sets? Which one is the easiest to cluster with? There are methodologies and best practices you will learn about by seeing how a particular problem is solved in one system versus another.

Definitely familiarize yourself with ACID compliant database and the SQL standard. MySQL is always a popular choice for applications, especially web applications. Unfortunately there are a lot of short-comings and outright hacks you have to do to accomplish certain things. Date manipulation in MySQL has been notoriously clumsy. Other database engines allow you to do arithmetic on date values as easily as writing an algebraic forumula. MySQL took the approach of using arcane functions such as date_add and date_diff. The same goes for languages.

Oracle DBA's make good money if a corporate career is something you seek. Getting certifications and even a computer science degree are common ways people pursue this career path.

A friend of mine told me a great piece of advice during a conversation we once had about marketable business skills. Investing in SQL is the best shot in the arm any "knowledge worker" can do to increase the value they can add to any employer. It is the most ubiquitous, advanced business tool for storing and reporting on business data in this age.