This document discusses building dynamic web sites that retrieve content from a database rather than static files. It covers the basics of relational databases, how they can be used to store and retrieve flexible, customized content for websites. Specific topics covered include connecting to a MySQL database from PHP, performing queries to select, insert and update data, and using WHERE and ORDER BY clauses to search and sort records. The document provides examples of common SQL queries and functions for working with database records in PHP scripts.