Database Your Way, LLC
"Database by Design, not Chance"
Useful Links
These links are loosely categorized, although several could fit in multiple categories. Just look around. This page had not been updated in a while, and I found a number of broken links. Those have either been updated, replaced by new sources when updating was not possible, and a few outright deleted. Also added a few new resources. Links are valid as of June 2020, but of course there's no guarantee they will be at any given time in the future.
Database general reference:
Data Modeling Using Entity-Relationship Model - Good overview of the database application development process, with helpful diagrams and examples.
Database Normalization - The site is basically concerned with PHP, but this link goes to a page with a look at database normalization and design, with the web in mind.
About Databases - A lot of information about database basics, as well as SQL, put together by Mike Chapple.
TechNet - Microsoft TechNet has an abundance of information about, well, Microsoft products, and includes a library and a wiki. Good section on SQL Server, which the link goes to.
The Database Programmer - A blog about desktop and web database applications. Not necessarily for the beginner, but has a lot of good information.
The Dangerous Illusion, Part 1 and The Dangerous Illusion, Part 2 - Good article discussing database normalization versus denormalization.
Unfortunately, this article is in a defunct publication and is no longer readable. Instead, refer to:
Database Debunkings - Blog posts by Fabian Pascal, the author of the now-unavailable article above, along with other items. Link goes to the "About" page. Use the "Home" menu item to see recent blogs.
JDatabase - Tutorial on using Joomla! to interact with a database using JDatabase.
FMS - A collection of technical papers on various subjects, including Access, SQL Server, and Visual Basic.
Microsoft Access:
UtterAccess - One of the best sites anywhere on Access. You can find a solution to almost any design problem you may have, searching through the forums. If you register (free, and I've never received any spam) you can post your own questions.
Microsoft Access - The original page linked here was the Microsoft official Access site, with links to the Developer Center, forums, and a library. The original link now redirects to a page for Microsoft 365 Access, link has been updated.. Page has a link to the Access help center, but is concerned with Access 365 as opposed to the PC based program originally part of Microsoft Office.
AccessSharepoint - A tutorial for integrating Access databases with SharePoint.
DBConvert - Software for converting Access to MySQL, and vice versa, on various cloud platforms. Other types of DB options, link goes to Access migration product. At last look, cost is $149. Haven't tried it, and no endorsement - just for information.
SQL Server:
SQLServerPerformance - As an alternative to going to TechNet, this site has a wealth of information on getting SQL Server to play nice.
MSSQLTips - Another site with tips on using SQL Server, for more experienced users.
Oracle:
Oracle - The one-stop-shop for all sorts of Oracle documentation. You can also download various Oracle databases to play with, like NoSQL.
Structured Query Language (SQL):
SQLzoo - Comprehensive SQL site, with tutorials and a reference section.
MySQL - Reference manuals for various versions of MySQL. Link goes there (the documentation page), but the Developer Zone tab has sections for some other scripting languages, like PHP, Perl, Python, etc.
SQL Cheat Sheet - Just what it says, "...documents some of the more commonly used elements of SQL, and even a few of the less common...". Well laid out with use examples. Also has links to several other "cheat sheets", like HTML and PHP.
Web page design:
Meta Tags Explained - Really clear explanation of meta tags used in the header of an HTML document.
W3Schools - As noted on our home page, W3Schools was a great help. Overall great reference for web site design, including html and scripting. The reference to it on our home page is linked, but adding it again here in case that's overlooked.
Sitepoint - A general-purpose site geared around web design, with forums and other reference material.
HTML Forms - Very good step-by-step guide to creating forms in HTML.
W3C Cascading Style Sheets - A branch of the parent of the preceding link, this is the page for Cascading Style Sheets (CSS).
PHP - General purpose site dedicated to PHP, including documentation and links to sample code. Very comprehensive. Strictly speaking, this would fit in the Scripting category, but its primary use is in web development.
DevGuru - Overall great reference for scripting, including CSS, PHP, T-SQL, HTML & XHTML.
DeGraeve - This is a developer's site. One very helpful page there has a listing of the special characters used in HTML. The link goes to that particular page.
HTMLGoodies - Primers and tutorials for website development, including HTML5. Also has a section for "Beyond HTML". Sectons on javascript, perl, cgi, asp, database/sql, security, etc.
Lorem Ipsum - All you ever wanted to know about Lorem Ipsum, the dummy text used to check the layout of a page. Includes a Lorem Ipsum generator, which can be set for a specific number of paragraphs or words. It is random, but not gibberish - it is actually based on Latin and uses model sentence structures.
Scripting and coding:
Hungarian Notation - A basic table of prefixes, their type, and short example. Really just a quick reference.
Hungarian beginner’s course – a polemic scripture against Hungarian Notation - A blog post discussion about why not everyone agrees with Hungarian Notation, and some of the drawbacks.
Unicode Consortium - Everything you ever wanted to know but were afraid to ask about Unicode, the standard encoding system used by computer systems to store the characters that make up human-readable language.
developerFusion - Some good material on .NET, Java, open source, SQL, etc. Not for the beginner.
Information Security:
ITSecurity - Site devoted to IT security, with a wide range of resources, white papers, and news.
SearchSecurity - A member of the TechTarget network, this site offers news, tutorials, advice, and white papers. To access some of this requires a registration (free), but a very up-to-date, comprehensive site.
GIAC - Information security/assurance certifications.
Information technology general references:
DevX - Doesn't fall neatly into any one category - used this site mainly for database reference, but also has some scripting, security, web design, and open source material.
Research Library - Tech Republic has a lot of good information in their searchable research library. To actually read the articles, you'll need to register with them. It's free, but expect to get newsletters and such.
Gibson Research Corporation - Steve Gibson is given credit (and linked to) on the home page of this site for his contribution to the CSS used here. Primarily a programmer, and seriously into information security, Steve provides a number of useful services and freeware, and some interesting stuff in general.
Computer Ethics Institute - Site dedicated to ethical issues associated with information technology.
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility - Site dedicated to promoting the need for a certain level of social responsibility regarding information technology systems, including issues such as privacy and civil liberties, intellectual property, technology and ethics, etc.
Data Mining - Good overview of how it's used and why, with some common tools and questions. Previously had a link here for Kurt Thearling's website, which gave a great explanation, but apparently that page is behind a LinkedIn firewall now.