I am a C++ programmer who occasionally uses MySQL to work with databases, but my SQL knowledge is rather limited. However I am surely willing to change that.
At the moment I am trying to do analysis(!) on the data I have in my database solely with SQL queries. But I am about to give up, and instead import the data to C++ and do the analysis with C++ code.
I have discussed this with my colleagues, and they also push me to use C++, saying that SQL is not meant for complex analysis but mainly for importing (from the existing tables) and exporting (to new tables) data, and a little bit more such as merging data to – e.g. – joined tables.
Can somebody help me drawing a line? So I know when to switch to C++? Of course performance is also an issue.
What are indications that things get to complex in SQL? Or maybe I just take the wrong approach with designing the queries. Then where can I find tutorials, books, … to take a better approach?
I hope this is not too vague. I am really a bit lost.
SQL excels at analyzing large sets of relational data.
The place to draw the line is the scale of your analysis.
If you analyze individual records one at a time, do it in your application.
If you analyze large sets of records as a unit, SQL is definitely the best tool for that job.
Row-by-row analysis is not something SQL is designed or optimized for very well. But, if you want to know something about a million-row group of data, do it in the database.