HackerTube.dev

How Modern SQL Databases Come up with Algorithms that You Would Have Never Dreamed Of by Lukas Eder

Devoxx · 55.3K views · 2017-03-02 · 50:31

Open on YouTube ↗

If playback is restricted in your region, try opening the original video. Use Mark watched to add it to your marked videos.

Overview

Lukas Eder's Devoxx talk on how modern cost-based SQL optimizers rewrite and plan queries in ways developers would not expect. It argues that declarative SQL, used well, can run complex queries very fast.

On Hacker News

HN commenters recommend it to developers unfamiliar with how much leverage and intelligence there is in a SQL database.

Recommended by 3 HN people across 3 months · HN mentions 2019–2023

Topics

Search by tags

What people said

lukaseder · 2023-09 · Recommendation

> This may be more intuitive for some developers, especially those that don't use SQL all the time. I tend to recommend my famous talk to such developers: [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗
loudlambda · 2022-02 · Recommendation

I would suggest that learning SQL (the syntax) isn't the crux--it's just syntax you learn over time based off need, just like learning python--what you need is motivation. I'd suggest watching this video to get a flavor of how much leverage using the database can give you: [VIDEO] If the database can make you more productive and more efficient and make your life easier, you now have incentive to use it more. Another thing that took my use of databases to the next level, was using PostGraphile ( [LINK] ). It takes a PostgreSQL database and provides a GraphQL endpoint for it. Use that as your only backend. You can use PostgreSQL row-level security to do access control (who can see or modify what). You can use PL/pgSQL to write business logic for higher level calculations. You can use constraints and triggers to do data validation. Each of these areas has an initially steep learning curve, and wonky syntax, but once you get over them you can implement many backends extremely quickly with them. And using PostGraphile where you only have SQL available (well, you can also add javascript extensions, but try to limit those) will be a great forcing function that will require you to scour stackoverflow and the excellent PostgreSQL docs to learn many of the useful corners of SQL you'd never learn otherwise.

Read the original HN comment ↗
nerdbaggy · 2020-05 · Recommendation

I use to think that too. This is a good talk about how smart SQL query engines are. It is an hour though [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗

Sources

Video by Devoxx, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

Views, duration and playback status refresh separately from the published catalog. When an update fails, existing data remains visible.

Selection checks
  • SaaS & AI candidates: Topic keywords do not match
  • Editor-approved picks: Editorial review is required

Rule matches identify candidates. They do not guarantee video quality or financial results.

About the library and its sources