A SURVEY OF DATA BASE MANAGEMENT IN ENHANCING THE WORK PERFORMANCE OF OTM GRADUATES IN SELECTED ORGANISATION

By

Author

Presented To

Department of Computer Science

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

A database is an organized collection of data.[1] It is the collection of schemes, tables, queries, reports, views and other objects. The data is typically organized to model aspects of reality in a way that supports processes requiring information, such as modelling the availability of rooms in hotels in a way that supports finding a hotel with vacancies.

A database management system (DBMS) is a computer software application that interacts with the user, other applications, and the database itself to capture and analyze data. A general-purpose DBMS is designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and administration of databases. Well-known DBMSs include MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase and IBM DB2. A database is not generally portable across different DBMSs, but different DBMS can interoperate by using standards such as SQL and ODBC or JDBC to allow a single application to work with more than one DBMS. Database management systems are often classified according to the database modelthat they support; the most popular database systems since the 1980s have all supported the relational model as represented by the SQLlanguage.  

Sometimes a DBMS is loosely referred to as a 'database'Formally, a "database" refers to a set of related data and the way it is organized. Access to this data is usually provided by a "database management system" (DBMS) consisting of an integrated set of computer software that allows users to interact with one or more databases and provides access to all of the data contained in the database (although restrictions may exist that limit access to particular data). The DBMS provides various functions that allow entry, storage and retrieval of large quantities of information as well as provides ways to manage how that information is organized. Because of the close relationship between them, the term "database" is often used casually to refer to both a database and the DBMS used to manipulate it. Outside the world of professional information technology, the term database is often used to refer to any collection of related data (such as a spreadsheet or a card index).

This article is concerned only with databases where the size and usage requirements necessitate use of a database management system.[2]Existing DBMSs provide various functions that allow management of a database and its data which can be classified into four main functional groups:

• Data definition " Creation, modification and removal of definitions that define the organization of the data.
• Update " Insertion, modification, and deletion of the actual data.[3]
• Retrieval " Providing information in a form directly usable or for further processing by other applications. The retrieved data may be made available in a form basically the same as it is stored in the database or in a new form obtained by altering or combining existing data from the database.[4]
• Administration " Registering and monitoring users, enforcing data security, monitoring performance, maintaining data integrity, dealing with concurrency control, and recovering information that has been corrupted by some event such as an unexpected system failure.[5]

Both a database and its DBMS conform to the principles of a particular database model.[6] "Database system" refers collectively to the database model, database management system, and database.[7]Physically, database servers are dedicated computers that hold the actual databases and run only the DBMS and related software. Database servers are usually multiprocessor computers, with generous memory and RAID disk arrays used for stable storage. RAID is usedfor recovery of data if any of the disks fail. Hardware database accelerators, connected to one or more servers via a high-speed channel, are also used in large volume transaction processing environments.

DBMSs are found at the heart of most database applications. DBMSs may be built around a custom multitaskingkernel with built-in networking support, but modern DBMSs typically rely on a standard operating system to provide these functions. Since DBMSs comprise a significant economicalmarket, computer and storage vendors often take into account DBMS requirements in their own development plans. Databases and DBMSs can be categorized according to the database model(s) that they support (such as relational or XML), the type(s) of computer they run on (from a server cluster to a mobile phone), the query language(s) used to access the database (such as SQL or XQuery), and their internal engineering, which affects performance, scalability, resilience, and security

CHAPTER 1

1.1      BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Databases are used to support internal operations of organizations and to underpin online interactions with customers and suppliers (see Enterprise software).

Databases are used to hold administrative information and more specialized data, such as engineering data or economic models. Examples of database applications include computerized library systems, flight reservation systems and computerized parts inventory systems.

Application areas of DBMS

1.     Banking: For customer information, accounts, and loans, and banking                         transactions.

2.     Airlines: For reservations and schedule information. Airlines were                       among the first to use databases in a geographically                               distributed manner - terminals situated around the world                      accessed the central database system through phone lines and                         other data networks.

3.     Universities: For student information, course registrations, and grades.

4.     Credit card transactions: For purchases on credit cards and generation of                                      monthly statements.

5.     Telecommunication:      For keeping records of calls made, generating                                         monthly bills, maintaining balances on prepaid                                         calling cards, and storing information about the                                         communication networks.

6.     Finance:         For storing information about holdings, sales, and purchases of            financial instruments such as stocks and bonds.

7.     Sales:       For customer, product, and purchase information.

8.     Manufacturing:       For management of supply chain and for tracking                                   production of items in factories, inventories of items in                             warehouses / stores, and orders for items.

9.     Human resources: For information about employees, salaries, payroll taxes                                and benefits, and for generation of paychecks.[8]

A DBMS has evolved into a complex software system and its development typically requires thousands of person-years of development effort.[9] Some general-purpose DBMSs such as Adabas, Oracle and DB2 have been undergoing upgrades since the 1970s. General-purpose DBMSs aim to meet the needs of as many applications as possible, which adds to the complexity. However, the fact that their development cost can be spread over a large number of users means that they are often the most cost-effective approach.

However, a general-purpose DBMS is not always the optimal solution: in some cases a general-purpose DBMS may introduce unnecessary overhead. Therefore, there are many examples of systems that use special-purpose databases. A common example is an email system that performs many of the functions of a general-purpose DBMS such as the insertion and deletion of messages composed of various items of data or associating messages with a particular email address; but these functions are limited to what is required to handle email and don't provide the user with the all of the functionality that would be available using a general-purpose DBMS.Many other databases have application software that accesses the database on behalf of end-users, without exposing the DBMS interface directly. Application programmers may use a wire protocol directly, or more likely through an application programming interface.

Database designers and database administrators interact with the DBMS through dedicated interfaces to build and maintain the applications' databases, and thus need some more knowledge and understanding about how DBMSs operate and the DBMSs' external interfaces and tuning parameters. The research shall provide a survey of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduates.

1.2              STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The problem confronting this research is to conduct a survey of  database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja

1.3      RESEARCH   QUESTION

1      What constitute database management?

2      What are the functions of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduate?

3      What is the nature of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduates in selected organization in Abuja?

1.4      OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

1            To determine the nature and functions of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduates

2            To provide a survey of the significance of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduates in selected organization in abuja.

1.5      SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

1.     The study shall provide a conceptual and theoretical framework of the nature and significance of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduates

2.     It shall provide a veritable source of information on database management to administrators and office managers

1.6      STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS

1            H0    The work of OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja is not         significant

H1    The work of OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja is significant

2     H0    Database management does not  enhance the work performance of         OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja

       H1   Database management enhances the work performance of OTM         graduate in selected organization in Abuja

3              H0   The level of performance of OTM graduate in selected organization in         Abuja is low

H1    The  level of performance of OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja is high

1.7      SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study provides a survey of database management in enhancing the work performance of OTM graduate in selected organization in Abuja

1.8      DEFINITION OF TERMS

1.     A database is an organized collection of data.[1] It is the collection of schemes, tables, queries, reports, views and other objects. The data is typically organized to model aspects of reality in a way that supports processes requiring information, such as modelling the availability of rooms in hotels in a way that supports finding a hotel with vacancies.

2.     A database management system (DBMS) is a computer software application that interacts with the user, other applications, and the database itself to capture and analyze data. A general-purpose DBMS is designed to allow the definition, creation, querying, update, and administration of databases. Well-known DBMSs include MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase and IBM DB2