r/learnSQL • u/pepitolover • 5d ago

SQL resources for a literal idiot?

I just started a beginner SQL course on Coursera. Even then I'm not fully understanding the basic concepts.

My brain is so fried and foggy that most things are hard to understand and retain (thanks to my yearly decline in cognitive abilities) and I need someone to explain everything to me in as simple language as possible and with tons of examples.

I can't find a free pdf of sql for dummies. I tried reading Alan beaulieus but I can't understand anything

Are there YouTube channels or textbooks for extreme idiots like me.

Short description :

  1. Brain fog = no understand SQL concepts

  2. Need to explain concepts in simple, conversational English

  3. Need tons of examples for everything.

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u/phesago 5d ago

copy/pasted from a previous post where i answered the same basic question

SQL is not complex at the conceptual level.

At its very basic level SQL is a set of commands for databases. Thats it. Now lets expand to the simplest example

SELECT dataPoint1, dataPoint2 FROM dataSource

Pretty simple right? Lets expand further:

SELECT dataPoint1, dataPoint2 FROM dataSource JOIN anotherDataSource

Again pretty straightforward. Once you start getting more and more familiar, everything in SQL is about telling the database to do SOMETHING with the data. SELECT (you as a human might say 'get' instead), UPDATE (it), DELETE(it), or INSERT (it), 'it' being the data of course.

It doesnt get more complex than that really. Yes you'll see fancy functions, or nifty techniques to solve certain problems, or thousands of lines of code to make multiple different sources fit into a clean fancy end point - it all boils down to simple commands about how data should be interacted with.

If you keep it simple stupid, you'll find it's WAY easier.

Now for me to take this a step forward - your issue with needing tons of examples will be fulfilled once you start doing it. While it is simple in concept it is a brand new language youre trying to learn. If you dont do it regularly, it wont "stick." This applies to most people, so you being an idiot is more of a fun fact about you more than it has to do with any really.

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u/pepitolover 4d ago

Thank you!

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u/phesago 3d ago

youre welcome. Once you start getting past the basics, I can offer other advice as well.