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Right, it's like criticizing python, or English, for being inconsistent, or "large". Turns out that doesn't matter -- what matters is that the language is usefu
by Areading314 6y ago
Right, it's like criticizing python, or English, for being inconsistent, or "large". Turns out that doesn't matter -- what matters is that the language is useful because it has a wide base of users and libraries, just like SQL does.
- m000 6y agoPython and English are meant to be general purpose languages, so they are kind of expected to be large and occasionally inconsistent. SQL is (by definition) a domain-specific language which has grown out of proportions. Are there really any SQL libraries in the traditional sense (i.e. reusable/composable SQL code with a well specified API)? SQL "libraries" typically focus on hiding the inconsistencies and the abhorrent syntax under the carpet. And the user base is there, mostly because of the database engine properties and features. The query language itself is just a bad side-effect. And TFA does make a point that NoSQL abandoning the underlying RDBMS model is in fact a regression.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- bmh100 6y agoSQL is designed around databases. Python is designed around objects. Clojure is designed around expressions. A table is analogous to a list of objects. None of these languages is more domain-specific than any other.
- Areading314 6y agoPerhaps libraries doesn't really apply to SQL per se, but instead you have tooling, ecosystem, DB engines, ORMs, extensions etc, that all speak SQL and would be hard to do without.