Foundation for object/relational databases: the third manifesto
Foundation for object/relational databases: the third manifesto
An introduction to database systems (7th ed.)
An introduction to database systems (7th ed.)
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A database is a collection of interrelated data of different types. The term conveys much more than the older term file (q.v.). Unfortunately, "database" is still all too frequently used when all that is implied is a conventional file. The difference between a database and a file, in terms used prior to the advent of data processing, is analogous to the difference between a thoroughly cross-referenced set of files in cabinets in a library or an office and a single file in one cabinet which is not cross-referenced with any other file. The important difference between a computerized database and a thoroughly cross-referenced set of manual files is that the database must be stored on a direct access storage device in order for the computer's central processing unit (CPU) to be able to use the cross-references.