Next.js and databases (Prisma, SQL...) | Next.js | Page 1

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:04 AM

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Question about databases: what exactly is Prisma doing? Do we need it to interact with a database? Should one still learn SQL to use a relational database inside Next.js?

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Is Prisma what Bootstrap was to CSS? Just sort of a crutch for when you don't really know CSS?

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:07 AM

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what exactly is Prisma doing?
Prisma generates database schema
Prisma lets you design database and create type-safe interface
Prisma also lets you interact with DB without writing SQL. (Though you can still use SQL)

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Do we need it to interact with a database?
No you dont need it. However you still need a connector/driver/api to connect to a database.

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Should one still learn SQL to use a relational database inside Next.js?
Learn concepts rather than SQL. That would be more helpful rather than the SQL itself.
Id recommend the theory on Normalization

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Is Prisma what Bootstrap was to CSS? Just sort of a crutch for when you don't really know CSS?
Bootstrap is not just "sort of a crutch" for when you don't really know CSS... Its more like a layer of abstraction.

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:09 AM

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very helpful, @deft pewter . Which approach you'd take to learn how to interact with databases inside Next.js from scratch? I built very basic Express CRUD apps years ago when learning web dev, but since then all my professional experience has been frontend.

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Bootstrap is not just "sort of a crutch" for when you don't really know CSS... Its more like a layer of abstraction.
I see what you mean, my take was too broad.

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:11 AM

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How to interact databases inside Next.js from scratch?

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hmm

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:11 AM

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I wanna explore the fullstack/backend possibilities of Next.js and having issues finding any resources teaching it. Everything either is focused on the frontend or it assumes previous backend knowledge and "yada-yada" (a-la Seinfeld) the small details.

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:11 AM

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what seems to be the problem with interacting with database?

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its pretty straightforward if you use Prisma :v

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:12 AM

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no problem per se, I just wanna learn how to do it.

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Assuming little to no experience with databases or backend, really

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:12 AM

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then just do it :D

prisma.car.create({name:"Toyoda", wheel: 4})

late olive Dec 11, 2023, 10:12 AM

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to be honest for most things prisma syntax suffices

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:12 AM

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i really recommend it for beginners

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:13 AM

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do you recommend any teaching resource (besides the documentation) ?

late olive Dec 11, 2023, 10:13 AM

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and then you can still use rawsql function if you need to do some more complex query

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:13 AM

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versed scroll do you recommend any teaching resource (besides the documentation) ?

have you tried prisma?

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i recommend using it with Typescript so you'd get autocomplete

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and can learn as you code

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:14 AM

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deft pewter have you tried prisma?

I blindly followed a tutorial that assumed previous backend knowledge, so I didn't really understood much

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:14 AM

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how did you come to the conclusion that the tutorial "assumed previous backend knowledge"?

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what kind of backend knowledge do you feel like ure missing when following the tutorial?

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Sorry i dont have any tutorial so id figure id just help you here 😭

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:17 AM

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how did you come to the conclusion that the tutorial "assumed previous backend knowledge"?
It's just the vibe I got, tutorial spent 90% of the time explaining routing and other FE Next.js features and then for database interaction just dispatched a couple of commands with Prisma with no explanation or depth

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:17 AM

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okay so

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Prisma is an ORM

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:17 AM

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I appreciate your help, just wanted to have some general holistic views on Prisma

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:17 AM

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do you know what an ORM is?

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do you know what relational databases is?

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:18 AM

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deft pewter do you know what relational databases is?

yes

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:18 AM

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well an ORM maps tables and stuff into object-like syntax

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instead of writing queries to get strings of data that you need to format,
Prisma ORM converts those into ready-to-use objects

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:19 AM

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why is it an ORM used with Next.js? When I built Express backends with Mongodb or SQL there was no ORM

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:19 AM

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there was

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you can use Prisma in Espress

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theres also TypeORM

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but Prisma handles more than an ORM

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Prisma also allwos you design the schema and have it generated on the real db

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so you dont even need to write DDL anymore

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:21 AM

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what was DDL sorry?

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:21 AM

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if you write schema like this

model Car {
  name String @id
  wheel Int
}

then your prisma.car.findOne() will always return in the form of

{
  name: string
  wheel: number
}

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the typings are already 1:1

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DDL = data definition language, its the creating table part of SQL

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:22 AM

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ok, starting to make sense

deft pewter Dec 11, 2023, 10:22 AM

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so you can just

const car = prisma.car.findOne(...)
return car.name

:D

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ORM = Object Relational Mapper

versed scroll Dec 11, 2023, 10:22 AM

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I really appreciate the time you've taken with this Alfonsus. I think I know enough what to research more about now. I'll come back if I still have doubts.

Have a great day!

#Next.js and databases (Prisma, SQL...)