Database Glossary

A single item of data which represents a fact about an entity.

• Data consistency

• Attribute

• Thingy

• Brexit

The relationship between the input data, the processed data and the output data as well as other related data. If the system is working properly the data will be correct at each stage and is said to be consistent.

• Data consistency
• Entity
• DBMS
• Data Warehouse

The data and the applications/programs used to access it are independent/separate. New applications can be developed to access the data without changing the data / New systems can still use existing data.

• Relationship
• Data Mining
• Attribute
• Data independence

An interrogating the data to find patterns in the data which is stored in the warehouse

• Data Mining

• Data independence

• Foreign Key

• Independence Day

A staged (mathematical) process which removes repeated groups of data and inconsistencies.

• Primary Key
• Data normalisation
• Data consistency
• Data independence

This is where you store an item of data more than once. Data which is repeated unnecessarily is called redundant data.

• Data redundancy

• Data consistency

• Data Integrity

• Data is really cool and I love it

A large collection of archived data used for decision making

• Primary Key
• Entity
• Data Warehouse
• Data independence

An object of the real world that is relevant to an ICT system e.g. a place, object, person, customer, product, etc.

• Foreign Key
• Data Mining
• Primary Key
• Entity

A field of one table which is also a the primary key of another table

• Primary Key

• Relational database

• Data normalisation

• Foreign Key

A field that is used to uniquely define a particular record or line/row in a table

• Primary Key
• Data Mining
• Relationship
• Data normalisation