Database Design
Book Pages Preview
Book Description
Every implementation process is preceded by a planning design process, such as the process of planning any building, studying it, analyzing it, and drawing it on the plans before starting to build it and implement it on the ground. The same is the case with databases. Before implementing it programmatically, there is a design phase in which the database is designed, its tables and columns are planned, the types of data it contains, the links between them, and the restrictions that restrict them, and so on. This design process is of great importance to any database, and hardly any software system that deals with data is devoid of a database, so a solid design must be carried out that is appropriate for the database on which the system will be built.
Database design is a core subject taught in the early years of computer science and computer engineering and software programs at university. It is essential to learn and study the subject before learning how to implement a database programmatically. A robust database with solid connections, sound constraints, uniformity, and no duplication can be built without first studying the design subject theoretically and mastering it practically by designing typical databases and reviewing other database designs created by competent engineers.
This book explains the database design process in a concise and comprehensive manner. It begins by covering all database-related concepts, starting with the original idea of a database and its difference from any other data storage system, and extending to the design process, data modeling and representation processes, and the linking processes between data tables and what they are based on. It then builds on all of that, explaining the database design and development process until the final ER diagram is drawn for the database tables, which is the entity-relationship model diagram describing the database, its tables, and every detail therein. It then explains how to implement the resulting diagram using the SQL language. It does not fail to touch on database management systems (DBMS), mentioning the most popular ones.
This book is a translation of the book "Database Design - 2nd Edition" by Adrienne Watt and Nelson Eng. It is originally based on several sources, the main one being Database Design by the first author, Adrienne Watt. The sources upon which each chapter is based are listed at the end, and you can refer to the original foreign book if you wish to review them. This foreign book is also used in some universities to teach database design in computer science and software design classes.
Important Note
Note that this book does not focus on the process of implementing and programming databases, but rather on the process of designing a database and how to model it, although it quickly touches on the SQL language, briefly explaining how to create a database and the basic operations for modifying it.
Book Source: Database Design