Re: [NonGNU ELPA] New package: sqlite3

[Lynn Winebarger <owinebar@gmail.com>]

On Tue, Mar 21, 2023 at 3:22 AM Jean Louis <bugs@gnu.support> wrote:
> * Philip Kaludercic <philipk@posteo.net> [2023-03-14 19:17]:
> > Jonas Bernoulli <jonas@bernoul.li> writes:
> >
> > >> Do you have a link to the package you are talking about?
> > >
> > > Ups, here you go: https://github.com/pekingduck/emacs-sqlite3-api
> >
> > Would you happen to know if there is some rx-like, s-expression based
> > language for constructing SQL queries.  I am not looking for anything
> > generic, just a way to avoid writing long strings.
>
> While such packages exists, for me I do not find them usable as then I
> have to forget about the SQL and learn about the new Emacs Lisp
> structure that is to correspond to SQL. I see personally no benefit in
> that.

There are a couple of good reasons to use an sexpr-based query language:
* Avoiding sql injection issues by putting all the boilerplate for
interpolating data into queries into a macro expander
* Treating code as data and vice-versa is a powerful programming technique

The real power of embedding sqlite in elisp will come when sqlite data
structures can be used as efficient representations of sets and
relations in lisp code.  Eventually, I would also expect to see
mutually recursive code enabled, with "virtual table" modules for
emacs data structures so they can be transparently used in sql code,
along with sql functions written in lisp.  For example, you might
create a table from lisp data using a select statement rather than
executing a large number of insert statements.  In-memory databases
would not be unusual, and should be dumpable objects.  At that point,
you could expect to see such objects frequently used, e.g. for tag
tables, user configuration, abstract interpretation of lisp code, etc.

Lynn