How to write a module that talks to the DB

[NeelG]

I'm looking into writing a really simple module. I need to get some information from the MySql DB. Is there an example module or anything I can play with that does these things? I googled around and didn't find anything that was free and complete. I'm just looking for a stub. I'm currently messing with PHP and looking at the docs, but figured I would ask.

Thanks.