Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The animals featured on the cover of MySQL and mSQL are kingfishers. This type of bird can be found all over the world, including North America, Europe, Africa, and New Zealand, with the greatest numbers being found in southeast Asia. There are over 80 species of kingfishers, which range in size from five to eighteen inches and which cover a broad spectrum of color. These typically long-billed birds pair for life and are considered to be very territorial. Their nests are long and tunnel-shaped, and are often found in exposed tree roots or water banks.

Most kingfishers live along the banks of rivers or lakes, as the primary staple of their diet is fish. To catch its prey, a kingfisher will perch on a branch above water, watch for a fish, hover for a moment, and then dive headfirst into the water, grabbing the fish in its beak, and heading back up to the surface. The process takes about a third of a second. The kingfisher's diet also consists of spiders, insects, and small amphibians. Jeffrey Liggett was the production editor for MySQL and mSQL. Robert Romano and Rhon Porter created the illustrations using Adobe Photoshop 5.0 and Macromedia Freehand 8.0. Mike Sierra provided FrameMaker technical support. Claire Cloutier LeBlanc provided quality control. Editorial and production services were provided by Rashelle Perez and David Leiser at Electro-Publishing. Becky Peveler was the copyeditor. The index was written by Electro-Publishing, with assistance from Seth Maislin.

Edie Freedman designed the cover of this book, using a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. The cover layout was produced by Kathleen Wilson with QuarkXPress 3.32 using the ITC Garamond font. Whenever possible, our books use RepKover, a durable and flexible lay-flat binding. If the page count exceeds RepKover's limit, perfect binding is used. The inside layout was designed by Alicia Cech based on a series design by Nancy Priest. The layout was implemented in FrameMaker 5.5.6 by Mike Sierra. The text and heading fonts are ITC Garamond Light and Garamond Book. This colophon was written by Nicole Arigo.