Book excerpt: In this book, a world-class Informix expert guides both novices and power users through the complex suite of Informix products, helping them master the development and administration skills they need most. Informix Basics is chock-full of exercises, practical examples and real-world tips - all honed through Glenn Miller's 14 years "in the trenches" teaching, building, and administering Informix databases. It shows not just what to do, but how and why to do it, and which tools to use. It covers virtually every key issue Informix developers and DBAs are likely to face, including: designing databases for maximum efficiency and power; working with SQL; using advanced SQL techniques such as stored procedures and triggers; 4GL programming and user interface development, and more. Coverage also includes data migration, interfacing with 3GLs, and the basics of Informix database administration. Informix Basics is ideal for new Informix users; power users seeking to learn application development; and database professionals migrating from other environments.