Terminology used and implementation features

We imply that the terms “table” and “relation”; “row” and “tuple”; “column”, “attribute”, and “field” are synonyms. Readers interested in terminology subtleties may refer to the fundamental work by C.J.Date [1].

When writing queries online, use SQL Server 2012 syntax in case you need specific features not included in the SQL standard (e.g., built-in functions). All scripts in this book have been tested against this DBMS, and it’s also used on the SQL-EX.RU site. Reference information on special aspects of implementation can be found in Part III of this electronic book.