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WordNet defines an
information system as "a system consisting of
the network of all communication channels used
within an organization."
The term “database” originated in the
computer industry to refer to an organized
collection of data on the computer. Its usage
has broadened to include non-electronic
databases as well. For example, the European
Database Directive, which creates intellectual
property rights for databases, includes
non-electronic databases as well as electronic.
Many professionals in the field of computing
also attach a wider meaning to the word than
just computer data. Many other professionals,
however, define a collection of data to be a
database only if it is managed to ensure its
integrity, allows shared access, has a specific
schema (a description of the type of facts it
contains), and supports a query language. On the
other hand, there are no universally agreed upon
definitions of these properties.
A database can be defined as a collection of
records stored systematically in a computer in
such way that a computer program can be used to
consult it to obtain specific information. For
easy retrieval and sorting, each record is
organized as a set of data facts or elements.
The information retrieved in response to a query
can be used to make a decision. Strictly
speaking, the term database should be used only
to refer to the collection of related records,
and the software used to access this information
should be referred to as the database management
system or DBMS. When the context is clear,
however, the term database is generally used to
cover both meanings.
DBMS systems are usually categorized according
to a data model such as network, relational,
object-relational, and so on. The data model
determines the query languages that can be used
for accessing the database. Much of the design
of a DBMS, however, is independent of the data
model and is related to managing integrity,
performance, concurrency, and recovery from
hardware failure. In these areas software
products differ greatly.
The schema of a database describes the objects
that are represented in it and their
relationships. Schemas can be organized in
different ways. These organizations are called
database models or data models. The most common
model in use today is the relational database
model, in which the information is contained in
tables of rows and columns with a set of values
in common. This allows the user to search for a
record using more than one data field. For
example, if you were looking for a payment
record, you could search on the check number,
the amount, the name of the payee, the name of
the payer, or the account number. Searching on
any one field would bring up the entire record.
Other database models, such as the network and
hierarchical models, use explicit
representations of relationships.
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