**Course Title:** SQLite Mastery: Lightweight Database Management **Section Title:** Views, Triggers, and Advanced Features **Topic:** Advanced SQLite features such as virtual tables and FTS (Full-Text Search). **Overview** In this topic, we'll explore two advanced SQLite features: virtual tables and Full-Text Search (FTS). These features provide additional functionality and flexibility in database design and querying. By the end of this topic, you'll have a deep understanding of how to use virtual tables and FTS to improve your database management skills. **Virtual Tables** Virtual tables, also known as virtual views, are a way to create a table-like structure that doesn't store data but instead retrieves data from other tables or external sources. Virtual tables are created using the `CREATE VIRTUAL TABLE` statement, which is similar to the `CREATE TABLE` statement. The main difference is that virtual tables don't have a physical storage structure, and data is retrieved on the fly when a query is executed. To create a virtual table, you need to specify the following: * The name of the virtual table * The columns that make up the virtual table * The module or library that will provide the data for the virtual table For example, suppose we want to create a virtual table that retrieves data from a CSV file. We can use the `csv` module to achieve this: ``` CREATE VIRTUAL TABLE csv_data USING csv(file='data.csv', delimiter=','); ``` This statement creates a virtual table named `csv_data` that retrieves data from the `data.csv` file using the `csv` module. **Full-Text Search (FTS)** Full-Text Search is a feature in SQLite that allows you to search for text within a column or rows. FTS is particularly useful when dealing with large amounts of text data, such as blog posts, articles, or even entire books. There are two types of FTS modules available in SQLite: * `fts3`: This is the original FTS module, which provides basic full-text search capabilities. * `fts4`: This is an improved version of the FTS module, which provides additional features such as tokenization and phrase searching. To use FTS, you need to create a virtual table using the `CREATE VIRTUAL TABLE` statement, specifying the `fts` module. For example: ``` CREATE VIRTUAL TABLE articles USING fts3(title, content); ``` This statement creates a virtual table named `articles` with two columns: `title` and `content`. The `fts` module will provide the full-text search capabilities for these columns. **Example Use Cases** Here are some example use cases for virtual tables and FTS: * **Importing data from an external source**: You can use virtual tables to import data from an external source, such as a CSV file or an API, into your SQLite database. * **Performing full-text search**: You can use FTS to perform full-text search on large amounts of text data, such as blog posts or articles. **Practice Time** Now it's time to practice what you've learned! Try the following exercises: * Create a virtual table that retrieves data from a CSV file. * Create a virtual table that uses FTS to perform full-text search on a column. **Resources** For more information on virtual tables and FTS, you can check out the following resources: * [SQLite Virtual Table Documentation](https://www.sqlite.org/vtab.html) * [SQLite Full-Text Search Documentation](https://www.sqlite.org/fts3.html) **Leave a Comment or Ask for Help** If you have any questions or need further clarification on any of the concepts discussed in this topic, leave a comment below. This will help you to get feedback from the instructor, which can aid in solidifying the knowledge you have gained. This topic concludes our coverage of virtual tables and FTS in SQLite. You now have a comprehensive understanding of how to use these advanced features to improve your database management skills. In the next topic, we'll cover the final project requirements. This will give you a chance to apply what you've learned in a real-world scenario and demonstrate your mastery of SQLite.