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Tim Spalding wrote: > I'd consider teaching them how to use SQL directly. > > I've done it at LibraryThing. I take employees from the simplest > SELECTs all the way to a people-who-have-X-also-have-Y self-join in > one long hands-on lesson. It doubles as a sort of test, and I've even > used it in hiring. LibraryThing's two full-time librarians got there > with flying colors; I've had programmers who stumbled. (Not > surprisingly they didn't work out.) Once someone understands SQL > itself, you can throw a helper, like PMA, at them too. > > I think there's a real opportunity for empowerment here. Teach a man > to SELECT and he'll never have to, um, fish again. Define "understand SQL". I can't help but be concerned about the adage "knows just enough to be dangerous". I've seen some systems brought to their knees in terms of performance as a result of a couple of poorly constructed queries.