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So I'm looking for a book for advanced MySQL in PHP. I know all the basics, and I've worked with it a lot. But I'm not real sharp on more advanced topics, like combining queries with JOINs, and avoiding redundant or unnecessary queries.

Any database theory/design thrown in would be a nice bonus too.

Scott
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    Forget "with PHP". Good database design and query writing is language independent. – Quentin Dec 11 '10 at 18:41
  • You need book in advanced (My)SQL then. On PHP side all you need to know is how to use mysql/mysqli functions, or PDO. There's nothing more advanced on this side (unless you want to go ORM way - where PHP builds queries for you) – Mchl Dec 11 '10 at 18:43
  • Related : http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2119859/questions-every-good-database-sql-developer-should-be-able-to-answer/2120339#2120339 – OMG Ponies Dec 11 '10 at 18:43

4 Answers4

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Not PHP specific (as others have mentioned, "advanced" MySQL knowledge should be language-independent), but here you go (from this question and this question):

Understanding MySQL Internals :

Learn how data structures and convenience functions operate, how to add new storage engines and configuration options, and much more

High Performance MySQL:

Learn how to design schemas, indexes, queries and advanced MySQL features for maximum performance, and get detailed guidance for tuning your MySQL server, operating system, and hardware to their fullest potential. You'll also learn practical, safe, high-performance ways to scale your applications with replication, load balancing, high availability, and failover.

Pro MySQL:

Topics include transaction processing and indexing theory, benchmarking and profiling, and advanced coverage of storage engines, data types, subqueries, derived tables, and joins. Also covers MySQL 5's new enterprise features like stored procedures, triggers, and views.

(partial descriptions from Amazon included, see respective product page for more detailed info).

Community
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Donut
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  • I'd say at least first two (don't know the last one) might be a bit too advanced. – Mchl Dec 11 '10 at 18:45
  • @Mchl Potentially. The original SO question that linked to the third book requested an "intermediate" level book, so it may be a good option if the first two are too advanced. – Donut Dec 11 '10 at 18:56
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Expert PHP and MySQL (Wrox Programmer to Programmer)

alt text

Authors: Andrew Curioso, Ronald Bradford and Patrick Galbraith

  • Reviews essential techniques, such as design patterns, complex queries, and advanced regularexpression
  • Addresses advanced PHP concepts, such as iterators andclosures
  • Demonstrates using Gearman for multitasking in your web applications
  • Discusses caching using memcached with MySQL and your PHP webapplications
  • Discusses ways to create PHP Extensions and MySQL User DefinedFunctions
  • Shows how to use Sphinx for search functionality in your PHP web applications

MySQL High Availability: Tools for Building Robust Data Centers

alt text

Charles Bell, Mats Kindahl and Lars Thalmann

  • Explore the binary log, a file for replication that helps in disaster recovery and troubleshooting
  • Get techniques for improving response time and handling large data sets
  • Monitor database activity and performance, as well as major operating system parameters
  • Keep track of what masters and slaves are doing, and deal with failures and restarts, corruption, and other incidents
  • Automate key tasks with code from an open source library written by the authors
  • Learn techniques for using MySQL in virtualized environments, such as Amazon Web Services
  • Use MySQL Cluster to achieve high availability
Faraz Kelhini
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If you care about performance this is a 10/10 stars book: http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596101718

Depending on the subject it ranges from intermediate to advanced. It's a must have in case you are serious about your database backed projects (and you've got a bit of traffic in order to care).

cherouvim
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Pick a more generic SQL book. PHP (the client using the database results) does not have to be mentioned in the book since you want to know how to use the query language and the relational database design.

There may be some books talking generically about MySQL, which can be preferable to you because MySQL doesn't implement the entire SQL language, but even a generic book talking about other SQL servers should suit your needs because the differences are small.

Emil Vikström
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