ISB11C

DATABASE
SYSTEMS
Company
LOGO
What is the Machine Language?

Binary System.
In the Machine Language, data and instructions are represented
electronically with a binary, or a two-state, numbering system.
 What is the Binary System?

The Binary System consists of only

two digits – 1 and 0.
1 and 0 represent the two electronic states – ON & OFF.

BIT – short for Binary Digit

BYTE – groups of 8 bits used to represent numbers,

letters and special characters

CHARACTER – what bytes represent

 Units of Measure

 Kilobyte–abbreviated K, KB or K-byte
– is equivalent to approx. 1000 bytes. More precisely, 1 kilobyte is
equal to 1024 bytes.
 Megabyte–MB or M-byte
– represents 1 million bytes
 Gigabyte – GB or G-byte
– represents about a billion bytes
 Terabyte – TB or T-byte
– represents about 1 trillion bytes
 Binary Coding Schemes

ASCII – American Standard Code for Information

Interchange, also called the Universal Product Code
(UPC), is the most widely used binary code for
microcomputers.
EBCDIC – Extended Binary Coded Decimal
Interchange Code, its was developed by IBM and other
kinds of computers. As a result, EBCDIC is almost an
industry standard for large computers.
UNICODE – is a sixteen-bit code designed to support
international languages like Chinese and Japanese.
These languages have too many characters to be
represented by the eight-bit ASCII and EBCDIC codes.
 Definitions

 Data: a collection of unprocessed items


Structured: numbers, text, dates

Unstructured: images, video, documents
 Information: data processed to increase
knowledge in the person using the data
 Metadata: data that describes the properties
and context of user data

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 Let’s summarize some key points:

• Data constitute the building blocks of information.

• Information is produced by processing data.

• Information is used to reveal the meaning of data.

• Accurate, relevant, and timely information is the key

to good decision making.

• Good decision making is the key to organizational

survival in a global environment.
DATABASES
 Efficient data management typically requires the
use of a computer database.
 A database is:

An organized collection of logically related data

A shared, integrated computer structure that stores a
collection of:
 End-user data, that is, raw facts of interest to
the end user.
 Metadata, or data about data, through which
the end-user data are integrated and
managed.

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 What is an Information System?

A collection of hardware, software,

people, procedures and data.
These elements all work together to provide
information essential to running an
organization.
Data and Information System
Levels of Management in an Information System

Corporate

Team, Division,
Unit

Individual
 Levels of Management in an Information System

• CORPORATE
 corporate information that is useful for the whole
organization.
 Also known as ‘global’ information
 Examples: include policies and procedures, HR
information, online forms, phone directory, etc.
• Team, division, business unit
 covers all the information shared within teams, divisions,
business units, etc.
 Management or supervisory level
 Examples include project documentation, business unit
specific content, meeting minutes, etc
 Levels of Management in an Information System

• Individual
 managing an information system that handles the
personal information needs of staff
 Example includes email, internal and external
correspondence and reports
A database management system
(DBMS) is a collection of programs that
manages the database structure and
controls access to the data stored in the
database. In a sense, a database
resembles a very well-organized electronic
filing cabinet in which powerful software,
known as a database management
system, helps manage the cabinet’s
contents.
Data Hierarchy

Database Single letter, number

File Collection of related fields

Record Collection of related files/data

Field Collection of related records

Character Set of related characters

Role and Advantages of DBMS
 Role and Advantages of DBMS

 Improved data sharing.


helps create an environment in which end users have
better access to more and better-managed data.

Enable end users to respond quickly to changes in
their environment.
 Improved data security.

more users accessing the data = risks of data
security breaches.

DBMS provides a framework for better enforcement
of data privacy and security policies.
 Role and Advantages of DBMS
 Better data integration.

promotes an integrated view of the organization’s
operations and a clearer view of the big picture.

easier to see how actions in one segment of the
company affect other segments.
 Minimized data inconsistency.

Data inconsistency exists when different versions of
the same data appear in different places.

The probability of data inconsistency is greatly
reduced in a properly designed database.
 Role and Advantages of DBMS

 Improved data access.


makes it possible to produce quick answers to ad hoc queries.

query is a specific request issued to the DBMS for data
manipulation (question; an ad hoc query is a spur-of-the-
moment question.

DBMS sends back an answer (called the query result set) to
the application.

For example:
 What was the dollar volume of sales by product during the
past six months?
 What is the sales bonus figure for each of our salespeople
during the past three months?
 How many of our customers have credit balances of $3,000
or more?
 Role and Advantages of DBMS
 Improved decision making.

Better-managed data and improved data access generate
better-quality information better decisions

Data quality is a comprehensive approach to promoting the

accuracy, validity, and timeliness of the data.

DBMS does not guarantee data quality, yet it provides a
framework to facilitate data quality initiatives.

 Increased end-user productivity.


The availability of data + tools that transform data into usable
information empowers

end users to make quick, informed decisions that can make
the difference between success and failure in the global
economy.
 TYPES OF DATABASES

Databases can be classified

according to
1. the number of users,
2. the database location(s),
3. and the expected type and extent
of use.
4. Degree to which data are
structured
 Number of Users

 Single-user database supports only one user at a time.

In other words, if user A is using the database, users B
and C must wait until user A is done.

A single-user database that runs on a personal
computer is called a desktop database.
 Multiuser database supports multiple users at the same
time.

workgroup database supports a relatively small
number of users (usually fewer than 50) or a specific
department within an organization

enterprise database is used by the entire
organization and supports many users (more than 50,
usually hundreds) across many departments
 Location

centralized database
supports data located at a
single site
distributed database
supports data distributed
across several different sites
 Expected type and Extent of use.
 Operational database (sometimes referred to as a transactional
or production database) – supports a company’s day-to-day
operations

For example, transactions such as product or service sales,
payments, and supply purchases reflect critical day-to-day
operations. Such transactions must be recorded accurately and
immediately
 Data warehouse focuses primarily on storing data used to generate
information required to make tactical or strategic decisions.

Such decisions require extensive “data massaging” (data
manipulation) to extract information to

formulate pricing decisions, sales forecasts, market positioning,
and so on.

Most decision support data are based on data obtained from
operational databases over time and stored in data warehouses.

can store data derived from many sources.
 Degree to which data are structured

 Unstructured data are data that exist in their original (raw) state
- unstructured data exist in a format that does not lend itself
to the processing that yields information.
 Structured data are the result of taking unstructured data and
formatting (structuring) such data to facilitate storage, use, and the
generation of information.
 You apply structure (format) based on the type of processing that
you intend to perform on the data.
 For example,

data value 37890 might refer to a zip code, a sales value, or a
product code.

If stored as text, you cannot perform mathematical computations
with it.

if value represents a sales transaction, it is necessary to format it
as numeric.
 Why is database design important?

 Database design - refers to the activities that focus on the design

of the database structure that will be used to store and manage end-
user data.
 The database structure must be designed carefully to meet all user
requirements
 Even a good DBMS will perform poorly with a badly designed
database.
 Proper database design requires identifying precisely the
database’s expected use.
 Designing a transactional database emphasizes accurate and
consistent data and operational speed.
 Designing a data warehouse database emphasizes the use of
historical and aggregated data.
REFER TO CHAPTER 1 OF DATABASE
SYSTEMS E-BOOK.