The History of Database Management Systems

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The ultimate aim of this paper is to discuss the history of Database Management Systems (DBMSs) and in particular the Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) (McManus, 2003). The paper will start with the definition of DBMSs and an explanation of their functions. The paper will then list the various database models in existence today. The next stage will be to dive in to the history of DBMSs starting from the 1960s, when the first database systems made their way into the computing world to modern trends in DBMS development. This history will be explained in three main stages. First, the 1960s navigational databases, which took two main approaches – the Codasyl approach and IBM’s IMS will be discussed and the concepts behind them illuminated. Secondly, the paper will explore the relational model that gained prominence in the 1970s especially after the publication of Edgar Codd’s ground shattering paper on the relational approach. Some significant amount of effort will be spent on the concepts proposed by Edgar Codd and how they were radically different from those employed by navigational databases. Thirdly, the late 1970s and early 1980s Structured Query Language (SQL)-based DBMSs will be discussed at length with the DBMS historical chronology ending with a mention of the most popular RDBMs such as Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase, PostgreSQL and MySQL. Finally, the impact of database systems on businesses will be explained in detail.

History of Database Management Systems (DBMSs)

Perhaps, before diving into concepts related to the history of DBMS, it would be prudent to present a thorough definition of DBMSs and their functions. A DBMS refers to a collection of software programs that aid in the construct...

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...it possible to develop customized websites with extensive functionality well suited to user needs. Many businesses have realized huge profit margins as a result of this.

References

Codd, E. F. (1970). A relational model of data for large shared data banks. Communications of the ACM, 13(6), 1-11.

Database Management System. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2010, from

http://www.fact-index.com/d/da/database_management_system.html

Kedar, S. (2009). Database Management Systems. Pune, India: Technical Publications Pune.

McManus, J. D. (2003). Database Management Systems (DBMSs): A brief introduction. Sebastopol, CA: Lawrence Erlbaum Publishers.

National Research Council (U.S.) (1999). Funding a revolution: Government support for computing research. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

Oppel, A. J. (2004). Databases demystified. Emeryville, CA: McGraw Hill

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