Free Database Design and SQL courses

Thanks!

Does “Last updated 4/2015” affect usefulness of some of these courses? I’ve noticed this on many of the recent free class posts. I’m interested in learning some more computer skills, but don’t want to spend time learning something that could now be irrelevant.

Just curious, not saying this isn’t a good deal as I really don’t know! (And I enrolled anyway )

GollyMolly wrote: ↑ Does “Last updated 4/2015” affect usefulness of some of these courses? I’ve noticed this on many of the recent free class posts. I’m interested in learning some more computer skills, but don’t want to spend time learning something that could now be irrelevant.

Just curious, not saying this isn’t a good deal as I really don’t know! (And I enrolled anyway )

Probably not for Database Design.

GollyMolly wrote: ↑Does “Last updated 4/2015” affect usefulness of some of these courses? I’ve noticed this on many of the recent free class posts. I’m interested in learning some more computer skills, but don’t want to spend time learning something that could now be irrelevant.
Just curious, not saying this isn’t a good deal as I really don’t know! (And I enrolled anyway )

Depends on the courses, for database yes new trends have gradually developed and you'll hear latest buzzwords such as NoSQL, Big Data, Cloud-Based DB, Hadoop, JSON integration, In-Memory DB, Container DB, Software in Silicon, native sharding, etc., however basic DB design still remains the same and is an essential stepping stone towards more advanced topics.

GollyMolly wrote: ↑ Does “Last updated 4/2015” affect usefulness of some of these courses? I’ve noticed this on many of the recent free class posts. I’m interested in learning some more computer skills, but don’t want to spend time learning something that could now be irrelevant.

Just curious, not saying this isn’t a good deal as I really don’t know! (And I enrolled anyway )

Comp science graduate and working in related database field for two decades here. Even when technology changes, the core idea hadn't change much except for maybe AI field. If you focus on learning the fundamental concepts over mere syntax, it is pretty much guaranteed to last your lifetime.

SQL hasn't really changed much, syntax-wise (i,e. all that this covers) in many years.

These courses are kind of...hot garbage? I've reviewed so many resumes where someone "knows SQL" because they did these, and frankly they teach nothing about what you actually need to do. You're not usually building a database from scratch (hint: someone who knows what they're doing will do that, once!... or maybe someone who didn't know what they're doing...). It's admittedly a lot harder trying to teach someone how to actually pull some useful data out, but come on.

Can these type of courses help me to transition into I.T ...iam from a non I.T background, want to do some apps development

The real learning happens when you have to work with someone elses garbage db design

christapo wrote: ↑ SQL hasn't really changed much, syntax-wise (i,e. all that this covers) in many years.

These courses are kind of...hot garbage? I've reviewed so many resumes where someone "knows SQL" because they did these, and frankly they teach nothing about what you actually need to do. You're not usually building a database from scratch (hint: someone who knows what they're doing will do that, once!... or maybe someone who didn't know what they're doing...). It's admittedly a lot harder trying to teach someone how to actually pull some useful data out, but come on.

What do you look for in applicants?

christapo wrote: ↑ SQL hasn't really changed much, syntax-wise (i,e. all that this covers) in many years.

These courses are kind of...hot garbage? I've reviewed so many resumes where someone "knows SQL" because they did these, and frankly they teach nothing about what you actually need to do. You're not usually building a database from scratch (hint: someone who knows what they're doing will do that, once!... or maybe someone who didn't know what they're doing...). It's admittedly a lot harder trying to teach someone how to actually pull some useful data out, but come on.

Yes, most of the SQL users do not need to worry about building databases from scratch, but in my case, I was actually forced to build multiple databases from scratch. few times because I was building new applications for the team to use and few other times because I took over project full of garbage back-end to the point it made much more sense to build new one from scratch than to scavenge what's there. Even when pulling data out of SQL, understanding proper data structure does help in writing more efficient SQL queries. That being said, yes, SQL hasn't changed much.
Yes, it's hard trying to teach someone how to actually pull useful data, but it's even harder to teach what the data actually represent..

So I'm thinking of going back to school to do a data scientist course, unfortunately the only coding I did was in high school with visual basic. Would any of these be good prep before taking it/what should I learn?

Hello friend.
This is only a small part of I.T.
I.T pays really well. So to see if you like it.

Try this one.
https://www.edx.org/course/cs50s-introd ... er-science

Still free. And if you love it. You gonna be filthy Rich and don't forget us.

Ridinginoffice7 wrote: ↑ Can these type of courses help me to transition into I.T ...iam from a non I.T background, want to do some apps development

KT2312 wrote: ↑ Hello friend.
This is only a small part of I.T.
I.T pays really well. So to see if you like it.

Try this one.
https://www.edx.org/course/cs50s-introd ... er-science

Still free. And if you love it. You gonna be filthy Rich and don't forget us.

Thanks mate!

Ridinginoffice7 wrote: ↑ Thanks mate!

All good mate. The sun shines for everyone.
And if you want to earn that 120k in a year and go heads down. This can be a good option too.

I mean heads down. Eat, sleep, drink full stack.
I know nothing beats experience, but if you have the knack for it. It's all yours.

Needless to say if along the way you create a killer app which is the next Facebook.
Look, even if there is 0.000001% chance and it happens to you.

Like Wayne Gretzky would say.
You miss 100% shot you don't take.

Go for it kind STRANGER and don't forget to keep us posted.

Esg876 wrote: ↑ So I'm thinking of going back to school to do a data scientist course, unfortunately the only coding I did was in high school with visual basic. Would any of these be good prep before taking it/what should I learn?

Hey, don't worry just go to coursera.org and edx.org see the data science course. The free ones and the programming ain't that hard.

Check out this one too. Lots of money. Lately if you google full stack developer on linkedin. There is a shortage.

https://www.coursera.org/specialization ... evelopment

Hey what can I say, free is free, thanks OP.

I;m not interested in this as a career but curious as to what it entails. If it's anything like trying to learn human languages then it probably isn't for me. But I'll try one of the free courses just to make sure. Thanks...

DougO wrote: ↑I;m not interested in this as a career but curious as to what it entails. If it's anything like trying to learn human languages then it probably isn't for me. But I'll try one of the free courses just to make sure. Thanks...

SQL itself is actually super easy to learn. However good DB design and administration do generally require years of experience.