articles & essays
Tracking Web Site Visitors
An introduction to using web logs, log analyzers, and other tools to track what the visitors to your site do. Originally published in Computer Bits magazine, December 2002.
Better SQL: Don't use SELECT *
Short essay on how SQL's SELECT * breaks the abstraction between the database and the application, and why SQL programmers should avoid SELECT *.
Introduction To Relational Databases
Brief technical introduction to relational databases, theory vs. practice, and why you should hire a professional to set up an important database. Published in Computer Bits magazine, April 2003.
Database-Backed Web Sites
Most interesting web sites generate pages on-the-fly from databases. This article explains how database-backed sites work and why you might need one. To be published in Computer Bits magazine.