For almost a decade I ran in fear from one of the most vicious creatures of the computer world: the online database. I could not figure out how to edit the MySQL table attached to my WordPress blogs let alone go under its hood and replace or tweak parts. I was afraid that a single wrong action could send my blogs into deep, irretrievable cyberspace.
Sure, there are plenty of database tutorials on the web, and sure, I studied them. But I still didn’t have the nerve to go in. It was like watching a tutorial on how to drain a subdural hematoma from the back of my cerebellum.
I finally decided to ask a database developer friend of mine, John Hughes, to help me. He came over and taught me to go into my control panel, open PhpMyAdmin, locate the database I needed to work on, open the database and modify its records, then save my work.
John was a friendly guy and we spent many repeat sessions together. It was not long before he got into my emotional control panel and modified some crucial records there, such as putting his name in the ‘boyfriend’ record!
When we were not fooling around in those repeat sessions, John also taught me the fundamentals of Microsoft Access, Oracle and SAP. I became so good at database design and development that I applied to and got hired by a leading online database teaching website.
Teaching is one of my passions (John is another), and I recommend this video if you would like to learn the basics of databases:
Databases are of vital importance to humanity. View a list of some of the most important databases in the world.