Practical SQL

pgAdmin team working on adding AI capabilities to its popular PostgreSQL query and management tool (i.e., things you learn by watching GitHub repos). github.com/pgadmin-org/pg…

No Starch Black Friday sales is on, including my own Practical SQL: A Beginner's Guide to Storytelling with Data! nostarch.com/practical-sql-…

Wow, JetBrains is making DataGrip available for free for non-commercial use. Great news for students and open-source projects. (And readers of my book.) blog.jetbrains.com/datagrip/2025/…

Postgres.app -- my favorite way to run PostgreSQL on macOS -- is making it easier to add extensions to your environment. Really handy. postgresapp.com/extensions/

Newest versions of pgAdmin now let us customize the font in the Query Tool. Nice upgrade. Set here to MesloLGL Nerd Font:

Postgres users love Common Table Expressions (CTEs) because they make complex SQL easy to read, create, edit, and reuse. Simplicity – CTEs let you break a query into smaller logical chunks, with subqueries defined at the top of the query. It is almost like giving a query book chapters. Build in parts – Since you can test each part of a CTE as its own query, you can build the query in parts that have been individually tested. You can also comment out parts of a CTE for testing and debugging. Reuse – You can reference the same CTE multiple times in a query, which saves repeating logic.

Anthony DeBarros' excellent book "Practical SQL" is now available in Chinese!🎆🎉 @anthonydb @practicalsql @nostarch

What's your favorite free GUI for use with PostgreSQL?

pgAdmin developers planning a version 9.1 release on Friday that addresses user concerns related to the new "Workspace" layout. Notably, they've restored the ability to see the server object tree while in the Query Tool, which was a must-have for many users.

Important note for new readers of Practical SQL! Today's release of pgAdmin v9.0 introduces a "Workspace" layout that's enabled by default. I've written instrux on how to set the layout back to "Classic," which matches the book and is, IMO, better. github.com/anthonydb/prac…

I'm always humbled and grateful when this happens, which it has done a couple times (often coinciding with the start of college semesters). Thank you to all my readers! practicalsql.com

Winners have been notified!

To support students, career-switchers and others who want to add SQL to their data analysis skillsets in 2025, I'm providing three free copies of "Practical SQL." To enter a drawing for one of the free copies, please provide all the information below! forms.gle/ge4ySHjHZbZpTJ…

ROLLUP and CUBE are now on my PostgreSQL learning to-do list. By @sqlliz crunchydata.com/blog/easy-tota…

In the upcoming version 8.14, the pgAdmin developers are providing the ability to shut off the alternating row shadings—a result of negative user feedback.

pgAdmin version 8.13, out today, jazzes up the results grid with alternating row colors and paginated output.

Here's how to handle your Python install for PostgreSQL under Windows, given the below thread. github.com/anthonydb/prac…

Sorry for any trouble!

Once I figure this out, I'll post directions here: github.com/anthonydb/prac…

NOTE! to new readers of Practical SQL: I'm assessing the decision by @EDBPostgres to discontinue its Language Pack installer for Windows as of PostgreSQL 17 -- and thus how to advise you on installing Python support. 🧵