BTEC 2012

Unit 1 The Online World

Name: Dani McLeod

Lesson 11 Data Storage

(Student Book B Pg 18 - 21)

Starter What is meant by data storage?

A system for managing a collection of data.
1. What is a database structure made out of?
A table or a grid. Every row in the table holds information about a single item; this is also called a record .
Every column holds information about a property of the items in the
table, such as a customers name or an items price these properties are called fields
2. Explain what is meant be each of the following terms.
Table - A two-dimensional representation of data in a database.
Record - A group of selected data which are associated in some way.
Field - A single piece of data within a record.
Relationship - Relationships can be one-way (as shown in Figure 1.14), two-way, one-to-many or
many-to-one. Many-to-many relationships also exist in some databases but are
extremely complex to provide.
Data Type the type of data a field must hold (e.g. date of birth, date)

I.
II.
III.
IV.

3. Name the various data types that are used in databases.

Text
Number
Date/time
Logical (Boolean or Yes/No)

Databases use relationships to link different tables together as shown below.

4. What is a primary key?

A single unique key used to identify each record in a table.
5. What is a foreign key?
A field which can be used to cross-reference and access associated information across many
tables.
6. What kind of relationships can tables have between each other?
A benefit of databases is the ease with which the information they hold can be assessed.

A.Silver

BTEC 2012
Unit 1 The Online World

Name: Dani McLeod

Online databases are databases which are accessible using a network, including the
internet. They are very different to local databases as they have to be accessed, and
possibly updated, by millions of users. Normally these databases will have thousands
of rows of information. Usually information is found in online databases by using a
search engine.
7. How might an online database be used?
They are used to store lots of information.
8. What is a DBMS? What does it do?
DBMS stands for Data Base Management Systems and it allows you to create, maintain, search
and sort data on a database. It allows different users to access the database at the same time,
and can provide different levels of access to the data.

I.
II.
III.

9. Name some common database management systems that are used:

Microsoft Access
MySQL
Oracle

Plenary What is the difference between a database and a database management

system?
A database is a collection of data that is held in a central place and a
database management system are the programs which allow you to create
any database that you need and to use the databases you have created.

A.Silver