SQL, lite lite lite

[Philip Semanchuk]

On Dec 29, 2008, at 1:06 PM, Aaron Brady wrote:

> I don't think relational data can be read and written very easily in
> Python.  There are some options, such as 'sqllite3', but they are not
> easy.  'sqllite3' statements are valid SQL expressions, which afford
> the entire power of SQL, but contrary to its name, it is not that
> 'lite'.  To me, 'lite' is something you could learn (even make!) in an
> afternoon, not a semester; something the size of an ActiveState
> recipe, or a little bigger, maybe a file or two.

Hi Aaron,
The "lite" part of SQLite refers to its implementation more than its  
feature set. In other words, SQLite doesn't promise to make SQL  
easier, it promises many of the features of a big, heavy relational  
database  (e.g. Postgres, MySQL, Oracle, etc.) but in a small, light  
package. I can see why you'd be disappointed if you were expecting the  
former. IMHO it does quite well at the latter.

After a look at the syntax you're proposing, I wonder how you feel it  
differs from ORMs like SQLAlchemy (for instance).


Cheers
Philip