## 1.4. Accessing a Database

[]()

 Once you have created a database, you can access it by:

* Running the PostgreSQL interactive terminal program, called *psql*, which allows you to interactively enter, edit, and execute SQL commands.

* Using an existing graphical frontend tool like pgAdmin or an office suite with ODBC or JDBC support to create and manipulate a database. These possibilities are not covered in this tutorial.

* Writing a custom application, using one of the several available language bindings. These possibilities are discussed further in [Part IV](client-interfaces.html).

 You probably want to start up `psql` to try the examples in this tutorial. It can be activated for the `mydb` database by typing the command:

```
$ psql mydb

```

 If you do not supply the database name then it will default to your user account name. You already discovered this scheme in the previous section using `createdb`.

 In `psql`, you will be greeted with the following message:

```
psql (14.2)
Type "help" for help.

mydb=>

```

[]() The last line could also be:

```
mydb=#

```

 That would mean you are a database superuser, which is most likely the case if you installed the PostgreSQL instance yourself. Being a superuser means that you are not subject to access controls. For the purposes of this tutorial that is not important.

 If you encounter problems starting `psql` then go back to the previous section. The diagnostics of `createdb` and `psql` are similar, and if the former worked the latter should work as well.

 The last line printed out by `psql` is the prompt, and it indicates that `psql` is listening to you and that you can type SQL queries into a work space maintained by `psql`. Try out these commands: []()

```
mydb=> SELECT version();
                                         version
