PREFACE

PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK

A course in database management has become well established as a required course in both undergraduate and graduate management information systems degree programs. This is as it should be, considering the central position of the database field in the information systems environment. Indeed, a solid understanding of the fundamentals of database management is crucial for success in the information systems field. An IS professional should be able to talk to the users in a business setting, ask the right questions about the nature of their entities, their attributes, and the relationships among them, and quickly decide whether their existing data and database designs are properly structured or not. An IS professional should be able to design new databases with confidence that they will serve their owners and users well. An IS professional should be able to guide a company in the best use of the various database-related technologies.

Over the years, at the same time that database management has increased in importance, it has also increased tremendously in breadth. In addition to such fundamental topics as data modeling, relational database concepts, logical and physical database design, and SQL, a basic set of database topics today includes object-oriented databases, data administration, data security, distributed databases, data warehousing, and Web databases, among others. The dilemma faced by database instructors and by database books is to cover as much of this material as is reasonably possible so that students will come away with a solid background in the fundamentals without being overwhelmed by the tremendous breadth and depth of the field. Exposure to too much material in too short a time at the expense of developing a sound foundation is of no value to anyone. We believe that a one-semester course in database management should provide a firm grounding in the fundamentals of databases and provide a solid survey of the major database subfields, while deliberately not being encyclopedic in its coverage. With these goals in mind, this book:

• Is designed to be a carefully and clearly written, friendly, narrative introduction to the subject of database management that can reasonably be completed in a one-semester course.
• Provides a clear exposition of the fundamentals of database management while at the same time presentng a broad survey of all of the major topics of the field. It is an applied book of important basic concepts and practical material that can be used immediately in business.
• Makes extensive use of examples. Four major examples are used throughout the text where appropriate, plus two minicases that are included among the chapter exercises at the end of every chapter. Having multiple examples solidifies the material and helps the student not miss the point because of the peculiarities of a particular example.
• Starts with the basics of data and file structures and then builds up in a progressive, step-by-step way through the distinguishing characteristics of database.
• Has a story and accompanying photograph of a real company's real use of database management at the beginning of every chapter. This is both for motivational purposes and to give the book a more practical, real-world feel.
• Includes a chapter on SQL that concentrates on the data-retrieval aspect and applies to essentially every relational database product on the market.

NEW IN THE SECOND EDITION

It is important to reflect advances in the database management systems environment in this book as the world of information systems continues to progress. Furthermore, we want to continue adding materials for the benefit of the students who use this book. Thus we have made the following changes to the second edition.

• A “mobile chapter” on data retrieval with SQL that can be covered early in the book, where it appears as Chapter 4, or later in the book after the chapters on database design. This is introduced in response to a large reviewer survey that indicated a roughly 50–50 split between instructors who like to introduce data retrieval with SQL early in their courses to engage their students in hands-on exercises as soon as possible to pique their interest and instructors who feel that data retrieval with SQL should come after database design.
• Internet-accessible databases that match the four main examples running through the book's chapters for hands-on student practice in data retrieval with SQL, plus additional hands-on material.
• The conversion of the book's entity-relationship diagrams to today's standard practice format that is compatible with MS Visio, among other software tools.
• The addition of examples for creating and updating databases using SQL.
• The addition of “It's Your Turn” exercises and the new formatting of the “Concepts in Action” real example vignettes.
• The merging of the material about disk devices and access methods and file organizations into the chapter on physical database design, to create a complete package on this subject in one chapter.

ORGANIZATION OF THIS BOOK

The book effectively divides into two halves. After the introduction in Chapter 1, Chapters 2 lays the foundation of data modeling. Chapter 3 describes the fundamental concepts of databases and contrasts them with ordinary files. Importantly, this is done separately from and prior to the discussion of relational databases. Chapter 4 is the “mobile chapter” on data retrieval with SQL that can be covered as Chapter 4 or can be covered after the chapters on database design. Chapters 5 and 6 explain the major concepts of relational databases. In turn, this is done separately from and prior to the discussion of logical database design in Chapter 7 and physical database design (yes, a whole chapter on this subject) in Chapter 8. Separating out general database concepts from relational database concepts from relational database design serves to bring the student along gradually and deliberately with the goal of a solid understanding at the end.

Then, in the second half of the book, each chapter describes one or more of the major database subfields. These latter chapters are generally independent and for the most part can be approached in any order. They include Chapter 9 on object-oriented database, Chapter 10 on data administration, database administration, and data dictionaries, Chapter 11 on security, backup and recovery, and concurrency, Chapter 12 on client/server database and distributed database, Chapter 13 on the data warehouse, and Chapter 14 on database and the Internet.

SUPPLEMENTS

(www.wiley.com/college/gillenson)

The Web site includes several resources designed to aid the learning process:

• PowerPoint slides for each chapter that instructors can use as is or tailor as they wish and that students can use both to take notes on in the classroom and to help in studying at home.
• Quizzes for each chapter that students can take on their own to test their knowledge.
• For instructors: The Instructors' Manual, written by the author. For each chapter it includes a guide to presenting the chapter, discussion stimulation points, and answers to every question, exercise, and minicase at the end of each chapter.
• For instructors: The Test Bank, written by the author. Questions are organized by chapter and are designed to test the level of understanding of the chapter's concepts, as well as such basic knowledge as the definitions of key terms presented in the chapter.

Database Software

Now available to educational institutions adopting this Wiley textbook is a free 3-year membership to the MSDN Academic Alliance. The MSDN AA is designed to provide the easiest and most inexpensive way for academic departments to make the latest Microsoft software available in labs, classrooms, and on student and instructor PCs.

Database software, including Access and SQL Server, is available through this Wiley and Microsoft publishing partnership, free of charge with the adoption of Gillenson's textbook. (Note that schools that have already taken advantage of this opportunity through Wiley are not eligible again, and Wiley cannot offer free membership renewals.) Each copy of the software is the full version with no time limitation, and can be used indefinitely for educational purposes. Contact your Wiley sales representative for details. For more information about the MSDN AA program, go to http://msdn.microsoft.com/academic.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank the reviewers of the manuscript for their time, their efforts, and their insightful comments:

In addition, I would like to acknowledge and thank several people who read and provided helpful comments on specific chapters and portions of the manuscript: Mark Cooper of FedEx Corp., Satish Puranam of the University of Memphis, David Tegarden of Virginia Tech, and Trent Sanders.

I would also like to thank the people and companies who agreed to participate in the Concepts in Action vignettes that appear at the beginning of each chapter and, in some cases, which appear later in the chapters. I strongly believe that business students should not have to study subjects like database management in a vacuum. Rather, they should be regularly reminded of the real ways in which real companies put these concepts and techniques to use. Whether the products involved are power tools, auto parts, toys, or books, it is important always to remember that database management supports businesses in which millions and billions of dollars are at stake every year. Thus, the people and companies who participated in these vignettes have significantly added to the educational experience that the students using this book.

Finally, I would like to thank the crew at John Wiley & Sons for their continuous support and professionalism, in particular Rachael Leblond, my editor for this edition of the book, and Beth Lang Golub, my long-time editor and friend, and her excellent staff.

Mark L. Gillenson

Memphis, TN

April 2011