Although working directly with the MySQL monitor allows you to the most control over what happens whilst also giving you the fastest and easiest feedback, it is true to say that many people find it daunting to use on a long-term basis. I encourage everyone to become comfortable within the monitor program when learning, but if you would rather stay clear of the command-line if possible, there is another solution just for you.
Designed to allow manipulation of MySQL databases and tables through a GUI, phpMyAdmin is itself written entirely in PHP. As such, you can administer your system over the web, either locally from the server or remotely from your own machine or indeed anywhere in the world.
It is currently available in over 47 languages, so there's almost certainly a version you can use in your own system. It can be downloaded from www.phpmyadmin.net, and is available for free under the GPL licence. If you're using Linux and all you have in your package manager is an old version, it's still worth having - any version of phpMyAdmin is better than nothing!
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