Structures of a Database
by Jacqueline Bene
1. Flat File
1.1. The simplest model for storing data.
1.2. Consists of a single, two-dimensional table of data elements.
1.3. Each row in the table is a record and each column of the table is a field.
2. Hierarchical Database
2.1. Allows one-to-one and one-to-many relationships.
2.2. Offer lightning quick searches.
2.3. Utilize a minimum amount of disk space for storage.
3. Networked Database
3.1. Uses a mesh-like structure to offer the additional capacity to define many-to-many relationships.
3.2. Rarely used today for business, consumer, and other mainstream database applications.
3.3. Remain in use only for specialized applications.
4. Relational Database
4.1. Stores data in a collection of related tables.
4.2. Each table is a sequence of records similar to a flat file.
4.3. All the records in a table are of the same record type.
5. Dimensional Database
5.1. Organizes relationships over three or more dimensions.
5.2. Sometimes referred to as a multidimensional database.
5.3. Each field is contained within a cell that can be accessed directly from a query or from following a relationship.
