## The Crystal SQL Designer

The Crystal SQL Designer creates a query, a request for specific information from a database. If you are requesting information from an SQL database (or from a database accessed via ODBC), your query must be written using the Structured Query Language (SQL).

The SQL language is not difficult to learn, but mastering the fine points of creating and retrieving data with SQL can take quite a while. To assist you, Seagate Crystal Reports provides you with, the Crystal SQL Designer, a component that eliminates the need to fully understand SQL so you can start building effective queries right away.

- If you are new to querying, you will appreciate the way the Crystal SQL Designer helps you create queries. By answering a few questions on a set of sequential tabs, you'll give the program all the information needed to generate a query that fits your needs.
- If you are an SQL professional, you will appreciate the ability to fine-tune queries that the Crystal SQL Designer generates. If you are more comfortable writing your own SQL queries, you will find it easy to enter the queries directly or even copy and paste them in from another source.

Note: The Crystal SQL Designer can only access data stored in an ODBC data source. Any database (including SQL) mentioned in this section must be accessed through ODBC.

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