Database Definition

The concept of base , from the Latin basis , has multiple uses.The term can be used with reference to the support or foundation of something.A data , on the other hand, is concrete information, a testimony, a test or a documentation.

With these definitions we can already detail the scope of the notion of database , which is very frequently used in the field of informatics .The set of information that is organized and structured in a specific way is known as a database so that its content can be treated and analyzed quickly and easily.

The databases, therefore, present structured data according to different parameters .By arranging the information in a certain way, the user can find what Search easily, unlike what would happen if all the data were mixed and without any sort of order.

In the computer field, the content of a database can be consulted using a software .Suppose a journalist has a database that presents information about European footballers.If you want to find out which is the most veteran footballer on the continent, you can make an inquiry through the software and the database.Automatically information according to age.

If the database is not digital, however, the search for information can be more complicated.When a library collects information from your books in files or paper cards that are ordered by author and initial letter of the title, who wants to access a piece of information will have to review several files before finding the corresponding one.

Among the advantages of digital databases, in addition to the aforementioned speed of query we can mention the flexibility to expand them and relate the tables in many different ways, for example, if in a database of physical data we would like to add a series of fields (in addition to registering «name» and «surname» of the clients, include their «address» and their «email address»), then we should take each of the cards, write the name them and finally specify the data for each one.

If there were no more space on one of the tabs, it would be necessary to append another, something that would make the task even more laborious.On a computer, simply add the desired number of columns once , and then simply update each record with the new data.

With respect to the relationship between the different tables, this is the point at which the power of the digital databases becomes really fascinating .If we have to prepare the database of students of a school, for example, the simplest version would include a table with the personal information of each one, such as their first and last name , your registration date, your address and contact details.

Of course, to take advantage of the possibilities offered by computer science, we could make it much more complex.If we wanted to specify in which year and division each one is currently, as well as the data of the teachers with whom they are studying, it would not be it is very appropriate to include all this in the record of each student, since this would be a colossal work, which should be updated every year; the relationships between tables come into play here.

If we add a table called «Groups», there we can register only once the data of the teachers who are working in each class, in each division, and simply relate the table «Students» with it so that it is enough with indicate a value (such as the unique group code ) to access all the details of your class.Moreover, the specific data of the teachers should be in their own table, from which we could take just an identification number to refer to them in «Groups».