Chapter 2

Databases and Database Users

Peter Kaaya
Outline
n Types of Databases and Database Applications
n Basic Definitions
n Typical DBMS Functionality
n Example of a Database (UNIVERSITY)
n Main Characteristics of the Database Approach
n Database Users
n Advantages of Using the Database Approach
n When Not to Use Databases

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Types of Databases and Database
Applications
n Traditional Applications:
n Numeric and Textual Databases
n More Recent Applications:
n Multimedia Databases
n Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
n Data Warehouses
n Real-time and Active Databases
n Many other applications
n First part of book focuses on traditional applications
n A number of recent applications are described later in the
book (for example, Chapters 24,26,28,29,30)

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Basic Definitions
n Database:
n A collection of related data.

n Data:
n Known facts that can be recorded and have an implicit meaning.

n Mini-world:
n Some part of the real world about which data is stored in a
database. For example, student grades and transcripts at a
university.
n Database Management System (DBMS):
n A software package/ system to facilitate the creation and
maintenance of a computerized database.
n Database System:
n The DBMS software together with the data itself. Sometimes, the
applications are also included.

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Simplified database system environment

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Typical DBMS Functionality
n Define a particular database in terms of its data types,
structures, and constraints
n Construct or Load the initial database contents on a
secondary storage medium
n Manipulating the database:
n Retrieval: Querying, generating reports
n Modification: Insertions, deletions and updates to its content
n Accessing the database through Web applications
n Processing and Sharing by a set of concurrent users and
application programs – yet, keeping all data valid and
consistent

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Typical DBMS Functionality
n Other features:
n Protection or Security measures to prevent
unauthorized access
n “Active” processing to take internal actions on data
n Presentation and Visualization of data
n Maintaining the database and associated
programs over the lifetime of the database
application
n Called database, software, and system
maintenance

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Example of a Database
(with a Conceptual Data Model)
n Mini-world for the example:
n Part of a UNIVERSITY environment.
n Some mini-world entities:
n STUDENTs
n COURSEs
n SECTIONs (of COURSEs)
n (academic) DEPARTMENTs
n INSTRUCTORs

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Example of a Database
(with a Conceptual Data Model)
n Some mini-world relationships:
n SECTIONs are of specific COURSEs
n STUDENTs take SECTIONs
n COURSEs have prerequisite COURSEs
n INSTRUCTORs teach SECTIONs
n COURSEs are offered by DEPARTMENTs
n STUDENTs major in DEPARTMENTs

n Note: The above entities and relationships are typically

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Example of a simple database

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Main Characteristics of the Database
Approach
n Self-describing nature of a database system:
n A DBMS catalog stores the description of a particular
database (e.g. data structures, types, and constraints)
n The description is called meta-data.
n This allows the DBMS software to work with different
database applications.
n Insulation between programs and data:
n Called program-data independence.
n Allows changing data structures and storage organization
without having to change the DBMS access programs.

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Example of a simplified database catalog

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Main Characteristics of the Database
Approach (continued)
n Data Abstraction:
n A data model is used to hide storage details and
present the users with a conceptual view of the
database.
n Programs refer to the data model constructs rather
than data storage details
n Support of multiple views of the data:
n Each user may see a different view of the
database, which describes only the data of
interest to that user.

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Main Characteristics of the Database
Approach (continued)
n Sharing of data and multi-user transaction
processing:
n Allowing a set of concurrent users to retrieve from and to
update the database.
n Concurrency control within the DBMS guarantees that each
transaction is correctly executed or aborted
n Recovery subsystem ensures each completed transaction
has its effect permanently recorded in the database
n OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) is a major part of
database applications. This allows hundreds of concurrent
transactions to execute per second.

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Database Users
n Users may be divided into
n Those who actually use and control the database
content, and those who design, develop and
maintain database applications (called “Actors on
the Scene”), and
n Those who design and develop the DBMS
software and related tools, and the computer
systems operators (called “Workers Behind the
Scene”).

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Database Users
n Actors on the scene
n Database administrators:
n Responsible for authorizing access to the database,
for coordinating and monitoring its use, acquiring
software and hardware resources, controlling its use
and monitoring efficiency of operations.
n Database Designers:
n Responsible to define the content, the structure, the
constraints, and functions or transactions against
the database. They must communicate with the
end-users and understand their needs.

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Categories of End-users
n Actors on the scene (continued)
n End-users: They use the data for queries, reports
and some of them update the database content.
End-users can be categorized into:
n Casual: access database occasionally when
needed
n Naïve or Parametric: they make up a large section
of the end-user population.
n They use previously well-defined functions in the form of
“canned transactions” against the database.
n Examples are bank-tellers or reservation clerks who do
this activity for an entire shift of operations.

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Categories of End-users (continued)
n Sophisticated:
n These include business analysts, scientists, engineers,
others thoroughly familiar with the system capabilities.
n Many use tools in the form of software packages that work
closely with the stored database.
n Stand-alone:
n Mostly maintain personal databases using ready-to-use
packaged applications.
n An example is a tax program user that creates its own
internal database.
n Another example is a user that maintains an address book

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Advantages of Using the Database
Approach
n Controlling redundancy in data storage and in
development and maintenance efforts.
n Sharing of data among multiple users.
n Restricting unauthorized access to data.
n Providing persistent storage for program Objects
n In Object-oriented DBMSs – see Chapters 20-22
n Providing Storage Structures (e.g. indexes) for
efficient Query Processing

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Advantages of Using the Database
Approach (continued)
n Providing backup and recovery services.
n Providing multiple interfaces to different classes
of users.
n Representing complex relationships among data.
n Enforcing integrity constraints on the database.
n Drawing inferences and actions from the stored
data using deductive and active rules

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Additional Implications of Using the
Database Approach
n Potential for enforcing standards:
n This is very crucial for the success of database
applications in large organizations. Standards
refer to data item names, display formats, screens,
report structures, meta-data (description of data),
Web page layouts, etc.
n Reduced application development time:
n Incremental time to add each new application is
reduced.

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Additional Implications of Using the
Database Approach (continued)
n Flexibility to change data structures:
n Database structure may evolve as new
requirements are defined.
n Availability of current information:
n Extremely important for on-line transaction
systems such as airline, hotel, car reservations.
n Economies of scale:
n Wasteful overlap of resources and personnel can
be avoided by consolidating data and applications
across departments.

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Historical Development of Database
Technology
n Early Database Applications:
n The Hierarchical and Network Models were introduced in
mid 1960s and dominated during the seventies.
n A bulk of the worldwide database processing still occurs
using these models, particularly, the hierarchical model.
n Relational Model based Systems:
n Relational model was originally introduced in 1970, was
heavily researched and experimented within IBM Research
and several universities.
n Relational DBMS Products emerged in the early 1980s.

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Historical Development of Database
Technology (continued)
n Object-oriented and emerging applications:
n Object-Oriented Database Management Systems
(OODBMSs) were introduced in late 1980s and early 1990s
to cater to the need of complex data processing in CAD and
other applications.
n Their use has not taken off much.
n Many relational DBMSs have incorporated object database
concepts, leading to a new category called object-relational
DBMSs (ORDBMSs)
n Extended relational systems add further capabilities (e.g. for
multimedia data, XML, and other data types)

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Historical Development of Database
Technology (continued)
n Data on the Web and E-commerce Applications:
n Web contains data in HTML (Hypertext markup
language) with links among pages.
n This has given rise to a new set of applications
and E-commerce is using new standards like XML
(eXtended Markup Language). (see Ch. 27).
n Script programming languages such as PHP and
JavaScript allow generation of dynamic Web
pages that are partially generated from a database
(see Ch. 26).
n Also allow database updates through Web pages

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Extending Database Capabilities
n New functionality is being added to DBMSs in the following areas:
n Scientific Applications

n XML (eXtensible Markup Language)

n Image Storage and Management

n Audio and Video Data Management

n Data Warehousing and Data Mining

n Spatial Data Management

n Time Series and Historical Data Management

n The above gives rise to new research and development in

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When not to use a DBMS
n Main inhibitors (costs) of using a DBMS:
n High initial investment and possible need for additional
hardware.
n Overhead for providing generality, security, concurrency
control, recovery, and integrity functions.
n When a DBMS may be unnecessary:
n If the database and applications are simple, well defined,
and not expected to change.
n If there are stringent real-time requirements that may not be
met because of DBMS overhead.
n If access to data by multiple users is not required.

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When not to use a DBMS
n When no DBMS may suffice:
n If the database system is not able to handle the
complexity of data because of modeling limitations
n If the database users need special operations not
supported by the DBMS.

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Summary
n Types of Databases and Database Applications
n Basic Definitions
n Typical DBMS Functionality
n Example of a Database (UNIVERSITY)
n Main Characteristics of the Database Approach
n Database Users
n Advantages of Using the Database Approach
n When Not to Use Databases

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