Chapter 5: Database Systems

Database management system (DBMS)

a group of programs that manipulate the database and provide an interface between the database and the user of the database and other application programs

Database administrator (DBA)

a skilled IS professional who directs all activities related to an organization's database

Character

a basic building block of most information, consisting of upper-case letters, lowercase letters, numeric digits, or special symbols

Field

typically a name, number, or combination of characters that describes an aspect of a business object or activity

Record

a collection of data fields all related to one object, activity, or individual

File

a collection of related records

Hierarchy of data

bits, characters, fields, records and databases

Entity (Tables)

a general class of people, places, or things for which data is collected, stored, and maintained

Attribute (Columns)

a characteristic of an entity

Data item

the specific value of an attribute

Key

a field or set of fields in a record that is used to identify the record

Primary key

a field or set of fields that uniquely identifies the record

Traditional approach to data management

an approach to data management whereby each distinct operational system uses data files dedicated to that system

Database approach to data management

an approach to data management where multiple information systems share a pool of related data

Data center

a climate-controlled building or a set of buildings that houses database servers and the systems that deliver mission-critical information and services

Data model

a diagram of data entities and their relationship

Enterprise data modeling

data modeling done at the level of the entire enterprise

Entity-relationshop (ER) diagrams

data models that use basic graphical symbols to show the organization of an relationships between data

Relational model

a database model that describes data in which all data elements are placed in two-dimensional tables called relations, which are the logical equivalent of files

Domain

the allowable values for data attributes

Selecting

manipulating data to eliminate rows according to certain criteria

Projecting

manipulating data to eliminate columns in a table

Joining

manipulating data to combine two or more tables

Linking

the ability to combine two or more tables through common data attributes to form a new table with only the unique data attributes

Data cleanup

the process of looking for and fixing inconsistencies to ensure that data is accurate and complete

Schema

a description of the entire database

Data definition language (DDL)

a collection of instructions and commands used to define and describe data and relationships in a specific database

Data dictionary

a detailed description of all the data used in the database

Concurrency control

a method of dealing with a situation in which two or more users or applications need to access the same record at the same time

Data manipulation language (DML)

a specific language, provided with a DBMS, which allows users to access and modify the data, to make queries, and to generate reports

Data administrator

a nontechnical position responsible for defining and implementing consistent principles or a variety issues

Data warehouse

a large database that collects business in the enterprise, covering all aspects of the company's processes, products, and customers, in support of management decision making

Data mart

a subset of a data warehouse that is used by small and medium-sized businesses and departments within large companies to support decision making

Data mining

an information-analysis tool that involves the automated discovery of patterns and relationships in a data warehouse

Predictive analysis

a form of data mining that combines historical data with assumptions about future conditions to predict outcomes of events, such as future product sales or the probability that a customer will default on a loan

Business intelligence (BI)

the process of gathering enough of the right information in a timely manner and usable form and analyzing it to have a positive impact on business strategy, tactics or operations

Competitive intelligence

one aspect of businesss intelligence limited to information about competitors and the ways that knowledge affects strategy, tactics and operations

Counterintelligence

the steps an organization takes to protect information sought by "hostile" intelligence gatherers

Online analytical processing (OLAP)

software that allows users to explore data from a number of perspectives

Data loss presentation (DLP)

systems designed to lock down--to identify, monitory and protect--data within an organization

Distributed database

a database ins which the data can be spread across several smaller databases connected through telecommunications devices

Replicated database

a database that holds a duplicate set of frequently used data

Object-oriented database

a database that stores both data and its processing instructions

Object oriented database management systems (OODBMS)

a group of programs that manipulate an object-oriented database and provide a user interface and connections to other application programs

Object-relational database management system (ORDBMS)

a DBMS capable of manipulating audio, video and graphical data

Database management system (DBMS)

a group of programs that manipulate the database and provide an interface between the database and the user of the database and other application programs

Database administrator (DBA)

a skilled IS professional who directs all activities related to an organization's database

Character

a basic building block of most information, consisting of upper-case letters, lowercase letters, numeric digits, or special symbols

Field

typically a name, number, or combination of characters that describes an aspect of a business object or activity

Record

a collection of data fields all related to one object, activity, or individual

File

a collection of related records

Hierarchy of data

bits, characters, fields, records and databases

Entity (Tables)

a general class of people, places, or things for which data is collected, stored, and maintained

Attribute (Columns)

a characteristic of an entity

Data item

the specific value of an attribute

Key

a field or set of fields in a record that is used to identify the record

Primary key

a field or set of fields that uniquely identifies the record

Traditional approach to data management

an approach to data management whereby each distinct operational system uses data files dedicated to that system

Database approach to data management

an approach to data management where multiple information systems share a pool of related data

Data center

a climate-controlled building or a set of buildings that houses database servers and the systems that deliver mission-critical information and services

Data model

a diagram of data entities and their relationship

Enterprise data modeling

data modeling done at the level of the entire enterprise

Entity-relationshop (ER) diagrams

data models that use basic graphical symbols to show the organization of an relationships between data

Relational model

a database model that describes data in which all data elements are placed in two-dimensional tables called relations, which are the logical equivalent of files

Domain

the allowable values for data attributes

Selecting

manipulating data to eliminate rows according to certain criteria

Projecting

manipulating data to eliminate columns in a table

Joining

manipulating data to combine two or more tables

Linking

the ability to combine two or more tables through common data attributes to form a new table with only the unique data attributes

Data cleanup

the process of looking for and fixing inconsistencies to ensure that data is accurate and complete

Schema

a description of the entire database

Data definition language (DDL)

a collection of instructions and commands used to define and describe data and relationships in a specific database

Data dictionary

a detailed description of all the data used in the database

Concurrency control

a method of dealing with a situation in which two or more users or applications need to access the same record at the same time

Data manipulation language (DML)

a specific language, provided with a DBMS, which allows users to access and modify the data, to make queries, and to generate reports

Data administrator

a nontechnical position responsible for defining and implementing consistent principles or a variety issues

Data warehouse

a large database that collects business in the enterprise, covering all aspects of the company's processes, products, and customers, in support of management decision making

Data mart

a subset of a data warehouse that is used by small and medium-sized businesses and departments within large companies to support decision making

Data mining

an information-analysis tool that involves the automated discovery of patterns and relationships in a data warehouse

Predictive analysis

a form of data mining that combines historical data with assumptions about future conditions to predict outcomes of events, such as future product sales or the probability that a customer will default on a loan

Business intelligence (BI)

the process of gathering enough of the right information in a timely manner and usable form and analyzing it to have a positive impact on business strategy, tactics or operations

Competitive intelligence

one aspect of businesss intelligence limited to information about competitors and the ways that knowledge affects strategy, tactics and operations

Counterintelligence

the steps an organization takes to protect information sought by "hostile" intelligence gatherers

Online analytical processing (OLAP)

software that allows users to explore data from a number of perspectives

Data loss presentation (DLP)

systems designed to lock down--to identify, monitory and protect--data within an organization

Distributed database

a database ins which the data can be spread across several smaller databases connected through telecommunications devices

Replicated database

a database that holds a duplicate set of frequently used data

Object-oriented database

a database that stores both data and its processing instructions

Object oriented database management systems (OODBMS)

a group of programs that manipulate an object-oriented database and provide a user interface and connections to other application programs

Object-relational database management system (ORDBMS)

a DBMS capable of manipulating audio, video and graphical data