Database Systems: A Practical Approach to Design, Implementation and Management (4th Edition) (Paperback)

~ Thomas M. Connolly (Author), Carolyn E. Begg (Author) "The history of database system research is one of exceptional productivity and startling economic impact..." (more)
Key Phrases: relational algebra tree, block nested loop join, information systems lifecycle, Microsoft Access, David Ford, Ann Beech (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This book places a strong emphasis on good design practice, allowing readers to master design methodology in an accessible, step-by-step fashion. In this book, database design methodology is explicitly divided into three phases: conceptual, logical, and physical. Each phase is described in a separate chapter with an example of the methodology working in practice. Extensive treatment of the Web as an emerging platform for database applications is covered alongside many code samples for accessing databases from the Web including JDBC, SQLJ, ASP, ISP, and Oracle's PSP. A thorough update of later chapters covering object-oriented databases, Web databases, XML, data warehousing, data mining is included in this new edition. A clear introduction to design implementation and management issues, as well as an extensive treatment of database languages and standards, make this book an indispensable, complete reference for database professionals.

From the Back Cover

Database Systems, Second Edition provides a strong foundation in good design practice. Using an accessible, step-by-step approach, students will master a database methodology. Then, the authors apply this methodology to worked examples so students learn to design and build applications using a leading commercial database system. Also, a central, realistic case study is integrated throughout the text to provide an understanding of the issues involved. This new edition will build on the clear, accessible presentation of the successful first edition. New to the Second Edition Includes additional and simplified examples. Features new material on distributed databases including interactions with web-based data. Contains new material on object-oriented databases that covers the latest ODBM standards. Illustrates concepts with screen shots from Accesso. Offers new coverage of query processing and optimization, data mining, data warehouses, multimedia databases, and the Internet.

0201342871B04062001 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 1236 pages
• Publisher: Addison Wesley; 4 edition (May 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321210255
• ISBN-13: 978-0321210258
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.3 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #261,746 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for a database course., December 15, 1998

By	Tom VonOxford "schabetc" (Oxford, Oh USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Database Systems: A Practical Approach to Design, Implementation, and Management (International Computer Science Series) (Paperback)

I used this book to teach a course in Database Systems. I thought it gave the best presentation of typical database topics that I have ever seen. I believe that data modeling is the essence of database and this book has more chapters on database design than any other five database books combined. The chapter on normalization was at just the right level. At the same time, the book is one of the few to acknowledge the need for denormalization.

These authors have clearly been practitioners. It shows throughout the book.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive Book on Database Management Systems, November 3, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Database Systems: A Practical Approach to Design, Implementation, and Management (International Computer Science Series) (Paperback)

Comprehensive - that is the first word that comes to my mind after reading the book Database Systems: A Practical Approach to Design, Implementation and Management. If you are in search of a book that will help you in mastering the subject of Database Management Systems this is it. The coverage is exhaustive and in-depth. While reading the table of contents and preface, I thought that the authors were very ambitious in the scope and are promising too much. But after reading the book, I am glad to say that I was mistaken - the authors have very successfully delivered whatever they have promised and more.

The book is ideal for a student of database management systems. It is also a valuable book for the practicing professional. In fact the people, who are in the database profession, who uses databases or develop applications involving database management systems, will find this book invaluable and will be able to appreciate it much more than a beginner. It is a connoisseur's delight.

The authors assume nothing. Each and every concept is built from scratch. The level of detail is so impressive that one can think this book as a collection of books of various database-related topics. For example, the section on SQL is so comprehensive that, it can stand on its own as a separate book. Such detailed coverage is found for all the topics in the book and is one of its best features. The case studies, worked examples and the presentation style, the concepts in boxes, excellent illustration, review questions, etc. will go a long way in improving the usefulness of the book.

Another feature that makes this book stand out form other books on database management, is its coverage of the latest technologies. The chapters of Distributed Database Management, Object-Oriented and Object-Relational Database Management Systems, Web based database applications, Data Warehousing, OLAP and Data Mining, etc. will prove invaluable to the students as well as the practitioners, novices as well as experts.

When dealing with theoretical concepts like data modeling, normalization, it is the usual practice of most authors either to go too mathematical or to gloss over the subject. This book is by far the best in this respect as it takes an optimum approach. The explanations are not too mathematical, but the topics are explained in sufficient detail, so that the reader will have a very good understanding of the concepts like normalization, functional dependency, etc.

Four most useful features of this book are the logical organization chart (suggesting the various paths that one can follow), the references, the suggested readings and the index. When reading or studying a book of this size - 1093 pages - these features are quite invaluable.

The usefulness of the book could have been improved if an electronic version was provided. It would have made references easy. Also the Deductive database model is not covered. An appendix on the database related sites on the Internet would have been nice. Also a description of the major database systems and vendors could have been included.

So in the final analysis, this is a must read and must have book for every database professional. For students it is a valuable course material. For professionals it is a very good self-study guide. For practitioners it an excellent refresher and a good way to keep track of the latest developments in the database field. An excellent buy!

Copyright 1998, Pegasus Book Club

19 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and comprehensive database book, September 18, 2005

By	Chris S. Johnson "C.S. Johnson" (Jacksonville, FL) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book isn't for the faint of heart. It's not for someone who wants a quick understanding of how to create a database. This book is for someone who, whether student or practitioner, wants a completely thorough treatment of the topic of databases, with virtually no topic left out, and with enough detail and examples to apply the techniques in practice.

It will be most valuable if you have at least some experience or exposure to databases, but if you're really are interested in the topic, it's not necessary. There were a few places in the opening chapters that briefly spoke to concepts not yet introduced, or assumed some IT background, though this is rare, and the studious reader could use the index to temporarily jump ahead and gain sufficient understanding.

That said, this is the most comprehensive book on databases, from idea through implementation, logical through physical, including optimization, that I have ever read. There isn't a topic that I've come across in my experience with database related projects, or my own attempts to create business tools using a database, that this book doesn't appropriately address.

Having managed numerous IT projects using Oracle, DB2, and SQL Server, I already had a good foundation in databases. But then I found myself creating a few databases myself using MS Access (Jet and MSDE) and then SQL Server. However, it's one thing to manage a project that uses a database, but quite another to be doing the design and development oneself. I experienced moments of frustration when I couldn't use some of the views/queries to perform updates to the base tables, and when I couldn't get some views/queries to work as intended, or sometimes wasn't sure how to start to author a solution (I learned that some of my relationships were highly recursive and that is a weakness of the relational model, and solved by a little bit of code). This book gave me the insights as to why each was the case, as well how to solve all of them. There's nothing like experiencing a, "Why won't this work!", followed by, "Oh, that's why.", followed by, "That was easy to fix." That's what this book did, when numerous other books on Access and SQL Server were too high level.

Some have indicated this book to be boring, and padded with unnecessary text. It isn't exciting like a thriller, but it's not supposed to be. Its intention is to educate, and it does that exceedingly well. If you have a thirst for knowledge or passion for databases or information systems, you'll love it. If you're a student with no choice but to take a course that uses this text, but are otherwise uninterested in databases, you would probably rather be using a more high level and less expensive book. However, if you plan a career in IT, don't sell this book back. I assure you that you will use it in the future.

Someone else didn't like the writing style of the book because the authors are from the United Kingdom. This is rarely evident, but when it is, it doesn't detract: flat=apartment, pound=money, Glasgow=city.

The best, most thorough treatment of database systems that I have ever read, and has been extremely helpful.