Flat-file+database,+relational+database,+normalization

= Flat File Database =

A relatively simple database system in which each database is contained in a single table. In contrast, [|//relational database//] systems can use multiple tables to store information, and each table can have a different record format.

= Relational Database = Short for // ** r **elational ** d **atabase ** m **anagement ** s **ystem // and pronounced as separate letters, a type of database management system (DBMS) that stores data in the form of related tables. Relational databases are powerful because they require few assumptions about how data is related or how it will be extracted from the database. As a result, the same database can be viewed in many different ways. An important feature of relational systems is that a single database can be spread across several tables. This differs from flat-file databases, in which each database is self-contained in a single table. Almost all full-scale database systems are RDBMS's. Small database systems, however, use other designs that provide less flexibility in posing queries.

= Normalization  =

In relational database design, the process of organizing data to minimize redundancy. Normalization usually involves dividing a database into two or more tables and defining relationships between the tables. The objective is to isolate data so that additions, deletions, and modifications of a field can be made in just one table and then propagated through the rest of the database via the defined relationships.