Environment Setup

In this section, I will guide you through the process of downloading and installing the software you need to create your learning environment.

I know you might be eager to start learning SQL, but let me tell you something: Every lesson that I included in the course was included for a reason.  You are just a couple of sections away from the moment in which you will start writing and running SQL code. Just a couple of sections away from that moment when you will start talking to the database in her own language and will start feeling the magic of SQL.

But you need a foundation before getting to that point, so, don’t take any shortcuts unless I recommend you to do so.  You will get there.  Don’t rush it.

Tempted to Skip?

You might be tempted to skip this section if you already know how to download and install the software.  If that is the case, feel free to skip the installation lectures, but I would recommend that you do not skip the lesson about SQL Developer basics.  That lesson is very short, and it contains things you really need to know before you start working with SQL.

But it is only an excerpt of my FREE course about SQL Developer, so, if you already took that course, you can safely skip that lesson too, and if you have not taken it and want to go beyond the basics and learn how to use SQL Developer LIKE A MASTER, I encourage you to take that course first, which as I said before, is FREE. I’m serious, it is absolutely free.

If you don’t have a computer where you can install these programs, then in the first lesson I will show you how you can use only your internet browser to take the course.  Even if you will have your local database installed, I would recommend reading that lesson, because what you will learn there will allow you to practice SQL from your smartphone or tablet, for those moments where you are not at home or at the office, but have some free time you can utilize to improve your skills.

All of the programs we are going to install have a license that allows you to legally use them for free, so, there’s no need to worry about it.

Software Needed

This is what we are going to install:

  • Oracle Database Express Edition, which is the actual database management system,
  • Oracle SQL Developer, which is an awesome client application that is used to connect to the database and interact with it,
  • And we will install the Java Development Kit or JDK, because it is required by the SQL developer installer.