Arnon Rosenthal
Abstract
We describe the tools and theory of a comprehensive system for database design, and show how they work together to support multiple conceptual and logical design processes. The Database Design and Evaluation Workbench (DDEW) system uses a rigorous, information-content-preserving approach to schema transformation, but combines it with heuristics, guess work, and user interactions. The main contribution lies in illustrating how theory was adapted to a practical system, and how the consistency and power of a design system can be increased by use of theory.
First, we explain why a design system needs multiple data models, and how implementation over a unified underlying model reduces redundancy and inconsistency. Second, we present a core set of small but fundamental algorithms that reaarange a schema without changing its information content. From these reusable components, we easily built larger tools and transformations that were still formally justified. Third, we describe heuristic tools that attempt to improve a schema, often by adding missing information. In these tools, unreliable techniques such as normalization and relationship inference are bolstered by system-guided user interactions to remove errors. We present a rigorous criterion for identifying unnecessary relationships, and discuss an interactive view integrator. Last, we examine the relevance of database theory to building these practically motivated tools and contrast the paradigms of system builders with those of theoreticians.
- BATINI, C., LENZERINI, M., AND NAVATHE, S.B. 1986. Comparison ofmethodologies for database schema mtegration. ACM Comput. Surv. 18, 4 (Dec.), 323 364. Google Scholar
Digital Library
- BISKUP, J., AND CONVEN% B. 1986. A formal view integration method. In Proceedzngs of the ACM SIGMOD Conference. ACM, New York, 398 407. Google ScholarDigital Library
- CASANOVA, M., AND AMAREL DE SA, J. 1984. Mapping umnterpreted schemes into entityrelatlonship diag~cams: Two apphcations to conceptual schema design. IBM J. Res. Dev. 28, 1 (Jan.).Google ScholarDigital Library
- CASANOVA, M., VIDAL, V. M.P. 1983. Toward a sound view integratmn methodology In the ACM Conference on Prtnctples of Database Systems. ACM, New York, 36-47. Google ScholarDigital Library
- COSMADAKIS, S., AND KANELLAKIS, P. 1984. Functional and inclumon dependencies: A graphtheoretic approach. In the ACM Con{erence on Princtples of Database Systems. ACM, New York, 29-37. Google ScholarDigital Library
- D'ATm, A., AND SACCA, D. 1984. Equivalence and mappmg of database schemes. In Proceedmgs of the lOth Conference on Very Large Databases (Singapore). VLDB Endowment, 187-195 Google ScholarDigital Library
- DIEDERICH, J., AND MILTON, J. 1988. New methods and fast algorithms for database normalization. ACM Trans. Database Syst. 13, 3 (Sept.). Google ScholarDigital Library
- HULL, R. 1984. Relative information capacity of simple relational database schemata. In Proceedtngs of the ACM Conference on Prmciples of Database Systems. ACM, New York~ 97 109. Google ScholarDigital Library
- JOHANNESSON, P., AND KALMAN, K. 1989. A method for translating relational schemas into conceptual schemas. In Proceedings o{ the lOth Internattonal Conference on the Enttty- Relationship Approach (Toronto, Oct.), E/R Institute. Google ScholarDigital Library
- KAL~NICHENKO, L.A. 1990. Methods and tools for equivalent data model mapplng construction. In Proceedings of the Internatwnal Conference on Extendtng Database Technology EDBT'90 (Venlce). Springer-Verlag, New York, 92 119. Google ScholarDigital Library
- Kl.t~. A. 1070 Ent:ity eo-la~:,on~hip =~e~s o=e= un;n{erpretect etakerpr}se scLesxxas. I~ P,-o~~~d mgs of the International Conference on the Ent~(~-Relationshtp Approach (Los Angeles, Dec.), E/R Institute, 39-59.Google Scholar
- LINO, T.-W. 1986. An analysls of multivalued and join dependencies based on the Entity- Relationshlp approach. Data Knowl. Eng. 1, 253 271.Google Scholar
- LING, T.-W. 1985. A normal form for Entlty-Relationship diagrams. In Procee&ngs of the 3rd International Con~er~nce on the Enttty-Relattonship Approach, E/R Institute. Google ScholarDigital Library
- MAIER, D 1983. The Theory ofRelat,onal Databases. Computer Science Press, Rockville, Md. Google ScholarDigital Library
- MANTHA, R. 1987. Logical Data Model (LDM): Bridging the gap between ERM and RDM. In Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on the Entzty-Relationsh,p Approach, E/R\xi Instltute, 42.Google Scholar
- MARKOWlTZ, V. 1990. Referential integrity revisited An object-oriented perspective. In Proceedings of the 16th Conference on Very Large Databases (Brisbane, Australia). VLDB Endowment. Google ScholarDigital Library
- MARKOWITZ, V., AND SHOSHANI, A. 1989. On the correctness of representing extended Entity- Relationship structures in the relational model. In Proceedings of the ACM SIGMOD Conference (Portland, Ore., June). ACM, New York. Google ScholarDigital Library
- NAVATHE, S., ELMASRI, R., AND LARSON, J. 1986. Integrating user views in database design. IEEE Comput. 19, i (Jan.).Google Scholar
- OERTLY, F., AND SCHmLER, G. 1989. Evolutionary database design. In Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Data Engineering (Los Angeles). IEEE, New York. Google ScholarDigital Library
- RAM, S. 1993. Automated tools for database design: State of the art. CMI Working Paper, Dept. of MIS, College of BPA, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz.Google Scholar
- RE~NE~, D. 1992. Automated database design tools. Can. Inf. Process. (July/Aug).Google Scholar
- REINER, D. 1991. Database design tools. In Conceptual Database Design: An Entity Relatzonship Approach, C. Batini, S. Ceri, and S. Navathe, Eds. Benjamin Cummings, Menlo Park, Calif.Google Scholar
- REINER, D., AND GONZALES, D. 1985. User's Guide for the Database Design and Evaluation Workbench (DDEW). DDEW-SD-835-2, Computer Corporation of America, Cambridge, Mass.Google Scholar
- REINER, D., BROWN, G., FRIEDELL, M., LEHMAN, J., McKEE, R., RHEINGANS, P., AND ROSENTHAL, A. 1986. A database designer's workbench. In Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on the Entity-Relationship Approach (Dijon, France).Google Scholar
- ROSENTHAL, A., AND REINER, D. 1989. Database design tools: Combining theory, guesswork, and user interaction. In Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Entity-Relat~onship Approach (Toronto, Oct.), E/R Institute. Google ScholarDigital Library
- ROSENTHAL, A., AND REINER, D. 1987. Theoretically sound transformations for practica! database design In Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on the Entity-Relationship Approach. Google ScholarDigital Library
- SEGEV, A. 1987. Transitive dependencies. Surveyor's Forum. ACM Comput. Surv. 19, 2 (June).Google Scholar
- SOCKUT, G., AND MALHOTRA, A. 1988. A full-screen facility for defining relational and Entity- Relationship database schemas. IEEE Softw. (Nov.). Google ScholarDigital Library
- TEOREY, T. 1990. Database Modeling and Design: The Entity-Relatzonshlp Approach. Morgan Kaufmann, San Mateo, Calif. Google ScholarDigital Library
- TEOREY, T., YANG, D., AND FR~, J. 1986. A logical design methodology for relational databases using the extended Entity-Relationship model. ACM Comput. Surv. 18, 2 (June). Google ScholarDigital Library
Index Terms
- Tools and transformations—rigorous and otherwise—for practical database design
Recommendations
Using UML class diagrams for a comparative analysis of relational, object-oriented, and object-relational database mappings
SIGCSE '03: Proceedings of the 34th SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science educationThis paper illustrates the manner in which UML can be used to study mappings to different types of database systems. After introducing UML through a comparison to the EER model, UML diagrams are used to teach different approaches for mapping conceptual ...
Incorporating NoSQL into a database course
This article introduces the concepts of Big Data and NoSQL and describes a semester long web-based project that uses both a relational database (Oracle 11g) and a NoSQL (MongoDB) database for an undergraduate database course. The relational database ...
Reviews
Riccardo Torlone
Rosenthal and Reiner describe the tools provided by Data base Design and Evaluation Workbench (DDEW), a system prototype for database design. DDEW supports multiple design methodologies, including techniques for design from scratch, reverse engineering, and integration of schemas. The data model at the conceptual level is a version of the entity-relationship data model called ER+, but at the logical level DDEW uses a relational, network, or hierarchical data model. It is disappointing that ER+ is limited in that it supports only binary relationships with no attributes, and does not support generalization hierarchies. The main features of DDEW are the use of a unified underlying data model (ER+) and of a collection of content-preserving schema transformations (called rearrangements). Specifically, the ER+ model is used to represent the various stages of database design. Thus, the output of the logical design in the relational model is indeed a schema in the relational style of ER+ (in which all the relationships are determined by matches of attribute values). Moreover, the schema transformations needed in the various design phases (refinements, integrations, and so on) can be implemented by using a set of predefined modules that preserve the information content of a schema. The major contribution of this paper is to show how theoretical results in database design have been combined with heuristics, guesswork, and user interactions in the realization of the system. I found s ection 5, in which the authors discuss the contributions and limitations of the theoretical literature on building a practical database design system, particularly interesting. The authors also provide general suggestions to theoreticians who want to make their work more useful to system builders. The paper is well written and easy to read for anyone with some knowledge of database design.
Access critical reviews of Computing literature here
Become a reviewer for Computing Reviews.
Comments