--- title: "How SQL has evolved in the 21st century" publication: "DB Weekly" issue: 274 published_at: "2019-10-04" canonical_url: "https://dbweekly.com/issues/274" --- This week's database news #274 — October 4, 2019 [Read on the Web](https://dbweekly.com/issues/274) Database Weekly ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/cpress/image/upload/w_1280,e_sharpen:60/v1570192364/csn9daitwiprdsnhj3pq.jpg) 📊 PDF [More Than a Query Language: SQL in the 21st Century](https://modern-sql.com/slides/MoreThanAQueryLanguage-2019-10-01.pdf) — It’s rare we’d include an item that’s both a PDF _and_ a slide deck as a featured item, but when it’s Markus Winand going deep on SQL’s history and developments in 21st century versions of the SQL spec, it’s a must see 😄 Markus Winand [PostgreSQL 12 Released](https://www.postgresql.org/about/news/1976/) — Only a year on from Postgres 11 comes version 12, another strong step forward for the popular relational database. Key enhancements include SQL/JSON support, [generated columns](https://www.postgresql.org/docs/12/ddl-generated-columns.html), and significant performance improvements (particularly with indexes and partitioned tables). BTW, if you’re a Postgres user, be sure to subscribe to [our Postgres newsletter](https://postgresweekly.com/?utm_source=db&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cross_promo&utm_content=274). PostgreSQL Global Development Group [![\](https://copm.s3.amazonaws.com/2530ac77.jpg)](https://www.timescale.com/webinar/what-the-heck-is-time-series-data) [What is Time-Series Data? And Do I Need a Time-Series Database?](https://www.timescale.com/webinar/what-the-heck-is-time-series-data) — What the heck is time-series data, when should I use it, and what is the most effective way to store it? Find out during the [webinar](https://www.timescale.com/webinar/what-the-heck-is-time-series-data) on 10/17 and decide if a time-series database is the right fit for you. Timescale sponsor [How Sqreen Handles 50,000 Req/Min Minute in a Write-Heavy Environment](https://stackshare.io/sqreen/how-sqreen-handles-50000-requests-every-minute-in-a-write-heavy-environment) — Sqreen is an application security management service and here’s how they handle the load. MongoDB, DynamoDB, memcached, and Redis all play a key role. Benoit Larroque [Kafka Spawns Open-Source KarelDB](https://www.datanami.com/2019/09/30/kafka-spawns-open-source-kareldb/) — Apache Kafka and its accompanying key-value store are being used to provide persistent storage for a growing list of relational databases. [KarelDB](https://github.com/rayokota/kareldb) is a new such entrant and uses the [Apache Calcite](https://calcite.apache.org/) SQL parser to support ANSI SQL. George Leopold [Kafka Transforming Into 'Event Streaming Database'](https://www.datanami.com/2019/10/01/kafka-transforming-into-event-streaming-database/) — And rapidly following on from the previous item.. _“Don’t look now, but Kafka is transforming into a database. That’s the new direction the popular event streaming platform is headed..”_ Alex Woodie [SQL Queries Don't Start with `SELECT`](https://jvns.ca/blog/2019/10/03/sql-queries-don-t-start-with-select/) — The various elements that make up a complex SQL query don’t run sequentially in the order they’re presented. Julia Evans 💻 Jobs [DevOps Engineer at X-Team (Remote)](https://x-team.com/remote-devops-engineer-jobs/?utm_source=cooperpress&utm_medium=email-ad&utm_campaign=db) — Work with the world's leading brands, from anywhere. Travel the world while being part of the most energizing community of developers. X-Team [Find A Job Through Vettery](https://www.vettery.com/tech?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=cooper-dbweekly&utm_term=tech&utm_content=grouped&utm_campaign=ad-88878) — Vettery specializes in tech roles and is completely free for job seekers. Create a profile to get started. Vettery 📒 Everything else [Database Deep Dives: A Chat with FaunaDB's Creator](https://www.ibm.com/cloud/blog/new-builders/database-deep-dives-faunadb) — An interview with Fauna’s CEO, Evan Weaver, on why you might pick a global, serverless database like [Fauna](https://fauna.com/) and the details of handling consensus. Josh Mintz (IBM) [A Quick Guide to Redis Lua Scripting](https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/a-quick-guide-to-redis-lua-scripting/) — Redis is a popular in-memory data structure store and can be scripted using Lua. Here’s how. Andrei Chernikov [Microsoft's New Free SQL Server 2019 Training Materials](https://www.brentozar.com/archive/2019/09/free-azure-and-sql-server-2019-training-from-microsoft/) — _SQL Server 2019 Ground to Cloud_ covers, unsurprisingly, how to get started with SQL Server whether on-prem or on Azure. There’s also a 219 page PDF you can download and work through. Brent Ozar [Try Studio 3T: The best way to get started with MongoDB](https://studio3t.com/download/?utm_source=cooper&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=dbeoct3) — Code translation in a click? Easy SQL to MongoDB Migration? We’ve got it - and more. Get your 30-day trial today to see. Studio 3T sponsor 📊 [A Slidedeck Introduction to NoSQL Databases](https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1pUA2ZzZ4e-nrieHuBLpOaEeXrLJWXgEFND5pTHMEGzc/edit#slide=id.p) — We always prefer a full talk, of course, but these slides are pretty well put together and cover a variety of concepts including ACID, BASE, Redis, MongoDB, and graph databases. AboutBits [How Much Faster is Redis at Storing a Blob of JSON Compared to Postgres?](https://www.peterbe.com/plog/redis-vs-postgres-blob-of-json) — If you’re familiar with [Redis](https://redis.io/), the in-memory data structure store, it won’t surprise you that’s it’s fast(!) but the use cases and pros and cons between Redis and Postgres are hugely different too. Peter Bengtsson [MongoDB Compass, MongoDB's GUI Tool, is Becoming More Open](https://www.mongodb.com/blog/post/mongodb-compass-is-becoming-more-open-than-ever) — MongoDB’s own _Compass_ is being opened up under the [Server Side Public License](https://www.mongodb.com/licensing/server-side-public-license/faq) making it free for all users. [GitHub repo](https://github.com/mongodb-js/compass). Massimiliano Marcon (MongoDB) A **[Cooperpress](https://cooperpress.com/)** publication. 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