In this course, you'll get a big-picture view of using SQL for big data, starting with an overview of data, database systems, and the common querying language (SQL). Then you'll learn the characteristics of big data and SQL tools for working on big data platforms. You'll also install an exercise environment (virtual machine) to be used through the specialization courses, and you'll have an opportunity to do some initial exploration of databases and tables in that environment. By the end of the course, you will be able to • distinguish operational from analytic databases, and understand how these are applied in big data; • understand how database and table design provides structures for working with data; • appreciate how differences in volume and variety of data affects your choice of an appropriate database system; • recognize the features and benefits of SQL dialects designed to work with big data systems for storage and analysis; and • explore databases and tables in a big data platform. To use the hands-on environment for this course, you need to download and install a virtual machine and the software on which to run it. Before continuing, be sure that you have access to a computer that meets the following hardware and software requirements: • Windows, macOS, or Linux operating system (iPads and Android tablets will not work) • 64-bit operating system (32-bit operating systems will not work) • 8 GB RAM or more • 25GB free disk space or more • Intel VT-x or AMD-V virtualization support enabled (on Mac computers with Intel processors, this is always enabled; on Windows and Linux computers, you might need to enable it in the BIOS) • For Windows XP computers only: You must have an unzip utility such as 7-Zip or WinZip installed (Windows XP’s built-in unzip utility will not work)