03a - Basic Database Concepts

Question 1

Define a database.

Answer 1

Database is a large collection of data items and links between them. Structured in a way that allows it to be accessed by a number of different application programs.

Question 2

Examples of databases that store information about people.

Answer 2

Bank, school, business, airlines

Question 3

Define a table.

Answer 3

A flat file where data is organised into rows and columns.

Question 4

Define a record.

Answer 4

A collection of data items which may be of different data types, all relating to the individual/object that the record describes. Represented by rows in tables.

Question 5

Define a field.

Answer 5

A part of a record designed to hold a single data item of a specified data type. Represented by columns in a table.

Question 6

Define a primary key.

Answer 6

A key that uniquely identifies an individual record in a table.

Question 7

How does a primary key become a foreign key?

Answer 7

When the primary key from one table appears as a field in a second table. The primary key is known as a Foreign key and forms a relationship between the tables.

Question 8

What is a composite key?

Answer 8

A key that consists of two or more fields.