Fundamentals of Database Management Systems, Second Edition

CHAPTER 14

DATABASES AND THE INTERNET

One of the fascinating things about successful new technologies is that, after they've been around for a while, it's hard to imagine how we ever did without them! Automobiles and airplanes have always been a part of the lives of anyone reading this book. Computers are almost too obvious in this regard. What about photocopiers, as an example? How did we ever get along without photocopiers, which we used to routinely call “Xerox machines?” But even they have been in substantial use for well over forty years at this point. Then, there is the Internet. How did we ever get along without the Internet? The Internet has become such a huge part of our lives so quickly that it's easy to forget that its widespread commercial use began only in the mid-1990s. Do you remember when there was no Amazon.com? It seems as if it was always there! The question for us in this chapter is: how does the Internet relate to database management?

OBJECTIVES

• List the four differences between the Internet database environment and the standard database environment.
• Describe the database connectivity issues in the Internet environment.
• Describe the expanded set of data types found in the Internet environment.
• Describe such database control issues as performance, availability, scalability, and security and privacy in the Internet environment.
• Describe the significance of data extraction into XML in the Internet environment.

CHAPTER OUTLINE

Introduction

Database Connectivity ...