Learning SQLite for iOS

Table of Contents

Learning SQLite for iOS

Credits

About the Author

About the Reviewer

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Why subscribe?

Preface

What this book covers

What you need for this book

Who this book is for

Conventions

Reader feedback

Customer support

Downloading the example code

Downloading the color images of this book

Errata

Piracy

Questions

1. Introduction to SQL and SQLite

About SQL

Where does SQLite stand in today's industry?

iOS with SQLite

Embedded databases

The architecture of the SQLite database

Features

The advantages of using SQLite

Working with SQLite

The examples of using SQLite with iOS

Summary

2. Database Design Concepts

Database essentials

Reasons for using SQLite

Database connections

Preparing queries

Parameterized SQL

Error handling

Queries within the db.exec statement

SQL injection attacks

Creating user-defined functions

Transactions and locks

Transactions – reading/writing

Designing for SQLite

Summary

3. Administering the Database

Creating a database

Creating a table

Inserting data

Selecting data

Creating an index

Exporting data

Viewing database schema data

Index data

Schema data

Backing up the database

Database tools

Database file information

Summary

4. Essentials of SQL

Transactions

Query plan

SQL basics

Insert with a subselect clause

Update with a subselect clause

Select with a subselect clause

Data integrity

Default values

Constraint checking

Foreign keys

Updating Views

Index use

Triggers

Synchronous writes

Database locking and deadlocks

FMDB SQLite wrapper

Database creation and opening

SQL in iOS

Summary

5. Exposing the C API

SQLite C components' functionality

sqlite3_open()

sqlite3_prepare()

sqlite3_step()

sqlite3_column()

sqlite3_finalize()

sqlite3_close()

Using the C API with the open database statement

Using Swift with the open database statement

load_extension()

sqlite3_exec()

sqlite3_config()

The prepare statement

Summary

6. Using Swift with iOS and SQLite

Basic requirements

Starting an Xcode Project with Swift

Using the SQLite 3 Library

Using FMDB

Summary

7. iOS Development with PhoneGap and HTML5

HTML5 and PhoneGap development

An HTML5 framework

Hybrid applications

An Xcode project with PhoneGap, HTML5, and Swift

Summary

8. More Features and Advances in SQLite

PhoneGap plugins

Extensions to the C API

Write Ahead Logging with SQLite

The B-tree usage with SQLite

Creating a simple Swift

Summary

Index

Learning SQLite for iOS

Learning SQLite for iOS

Copyright © 2016 Packt Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.

Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.

Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

First published: March 2016

Production reference: 1180316

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.

Livery Place

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Birmingham B3 2PB, UK.

ISBN 978-1-78528-897-5

www.packtpub.com

Credits

Author

Gene Da Rocha, MSc, BSc (Hons)

Reviewers

Alvaro Franco

Ting Xiao

Acquisition Editors

Larissa Pinto

Subho Gupta

Content Development Editor

Rashmi Suvarna

Technical Editor

Anushree Arun Tendulkar

Copy Editors

Charlotte Carneiro

Yesha Gangani

Ameesha Green

Project Coordinator

Judie Jose

Proofreader

Safis Editing

Indexer

Tejal Daruwale Soni

Graphics

Abhinash Sahu

Production Coordinator

Aparna Bhagat

Cover Work

Aparna Bhagat

About the Author

Gene Da Rocha, MSc, BSc (Hons) in mobile and computer science is an experienced IT professional with over 25 years in the IT industry. He has worked for a variety of companies nationally and internationally, in different industries including corporate, start-up, pharmaceutical, finance, banking, and the NHS.

Gene is also the owner and founder of a mobile solutions company, Voxstar (www.voxstar.com), based in London and Buckinghamshire. He comes from a programming and development background, and has worked with database technology, iOS, Android, Windows mobile, and a variety of other technologies.

He has been helping and advising, programming, and recently testing software for a number of companies such as DigitasLBI, Oxfam, News UK, QAWorks, Reuters, and the Association for Project Management, among many others.

About the Reviewer

Alvaro Franco is an iOS engineer and web developer. He has contributed to the iOS and OS X open source community. He has also been a part of Aluana, building Mindrop, and companies such as Mozilla, where he contributed to delivering Firefox for iOS. Alvaro is also a motorsport fan and guitarist.

Ting Xiao, is a frontend developer focusing on how to make things good on the webpage; she is also working on the development of a mobile app simultaneously. She is interested in any brain technology. According to Ting, thanks to the technology, we can know this world much better.

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Preface

SQLite is still a widely used database for mobile applications on smartphones and tablets. For those with SQL experience, it will be easier to understand and learn what it has to offer and the applications it can be used for. SQLite was released in 2000 has grown to be a well-used database for mobile device development.

Mr. D. Richard Hipp developed it on a battleship while he was at a company called General Dynamics. Initially used as storage, it was then developed using a B-tree implementation, which enhanced it and enabled the storage of rows and transactions.

This book gives you the opportunity to learn elements of SQLite, the mobile database; its interaction with the MAC operating system, Xcode; and the developer IDE for Apple apps and PhoneGap, which enables HTML5. It outlines how easy it is to work with SQLite.

What this book covers

Chapter 1, Introduction to SQL and SQLite, introduces you to the background of Structured Query Language (SQL) and the mobile database SQLite.

Chapter 2, Database Design Concepts, talks about the database concepts in SQLite.

Chapter 3, Administering the Database, introduces you to administering the SQLite database and makes you aware of the different components of this relational database.

Chapter 4, Essentials of SQL, this chapter talks about the essentials of SQL. It will outline the major possibilities with SQL and how it can be used properly on SQLite. This is essential so that you understand how SQL can be used and its limitations and advantages.

Chapter 5, Exposing the C API, deals with the C API and how you can extend its application use and produce the applications that you require using code.

Chapter 6, Using Swift with iOS and SQLite, looks at using the new programming language from Apple, Swift, with SQLite.

Chapter 7, iOS Development with PhoneGap and HTML5, looks at how to use Xcode with PhoneGap to integrate and compile with source code, including HTML5.

Chapter 8, More Features and Advances in SQLite, deals with how SQLite has changed in recent years, how it has advanced to be integrated into a variety of existing technologies, and how its simple easy-to-use formula has guaranteed its popularity with others.

What you need for this book

In this book, the software required will be the following:

Mac Operating System:

OS X 10.9 or later

Software:

Xcode IDE software development environment (version 7.0-7.1.1+) with Swift support

Latest version of PhoneGap from PhoneGap.com

Latest version of Node.js from https://nodejs.org/en/

Who this book is for

This book is intended for those who want to learn about the most powerful and flexible mobile database for developing apps in Swift or Objective-C the right way. If you are an expert Objective-C programmer or new to this platform, you'll learn quickly, grasping the code of real-world apps to use Swift effectively.

Conventions

In this book, you will find a number of text styles that distinguish between different kinds of information. Here are some examples of these styles and an explanation of their meaning.

Code words in text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and Twitter handles are shown as follows: This language has a variety of statements but most would recognize the INSERT, SELECT, UPDATE and DELETE statements.

A block of code is set as follows:

SELECT parameter1, STTDEV(parameter2)

FROM Table1 Group by parameter1

HAVING parameter1 > MAX(parameter3)

Any command-line input or output is written as follows:

$ sqlite3 testdatabase.db

New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, for example, in menus or dialog boxes, appear in the text like this: Then at the bottom of the page, within the Linked Frameworks and Libraries, click on the + and a modal window will appear.

Note

Warnings or important notes appear in a box like this.

Tip

Tips and tricks appear like this.

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