Book Image

Data Science with SQL Server Quick Start Guide

By : Dejan Sarka
Book Image

Data Science with SQL Server Quick Start Guide

By: Dejan Sarka

Overview of this book

SQL Server only started to fully support data science with its two most recent editions. If you are a professional from both worlds, SQL Server and data science, and interested in using SQL Server and Machine Learning (ML) Services for your projects, then this is the ideal book for you. This book is the ideal introduction to data science with Microsoft SQL Server and In-Database ML Services. It covers all stages of a data science project, from businessand data understanding,through data overview, data preparation, modeling and using algorithms, model evaluation, and deployment. You will learn to use the engines and languages that come with SQL Server, including ML Services with R and Python languages and Transact-SQL. You will also learn how to choose which algorithm to use for which task, and learn the working of each algorithm.
Table of Contents (15 chapters)
Title Page
Copyright and Credits
Packt Upsell
Contributors
Preface
Index

Chapter 1. Writing Queries with T-SQL

This book is intended for any SQL Server developer or database administrator (DBA) who wants to start working in the data science field. In addition, this book is also aimed at existing data scientists who want to start using SQL Server with related services and tools. I will use, and show examples in, three programming languages in this book: Transact-SQL (or T-SQL), R, and Python. Therefore, it makes sense to start with a brief introduction of the three languages. This is what the first three chapters are about. If you are already a SQL Server developer, proficient in writing T-SQL queries, you can simply skip the first chapter. If you are already working with R, skip the second chapter. If you are familiar with Python, please feel free to skip the third chapter.

This first chapter is not a comprehensive reference guide to T-SQL; I will focus on the mighty SELECT statement only, the statement you need to use immediately when your data is located in a SQL Server database. However, besides the basic clauses, I will also explain advanced techniques, such as window functions, common table expressions, and the APPLY operator.

This chapter will cover the following points:

  • Core Transact-SQL SELECT statement elements
  • Advanced SELECT techniques