A database is a "warehouse" that allows us to store large amounts of information in an organized way so that we can later find and use it easily. (Pérez Valdez, D. (October 26, 2007) Masters of the web retrieved on February 16, 2017
Data processing drives the growth of computers (Silberschatz A. (2002), Fundamentos de Bases de Datos (4th edition, Aravaca Madrid, editor: Concepción Fernández Madrid)), as happened in the early days of commercial computers. In fact, automation of data processing tasks precedes computers. Punch cards, invented by Hollerith, were used in the early 20th century to record US census data, and mechanical systems were used to process the cards and to tabulate the results. Punch cards were widely used as a means of entering data into computers.
Data storage techniques have evolved over the years.
The term of databases was heard for the first time in 1963, in a symposium held in California, USA. A database can be defined as a set of related information that is grouped or structured.
From the computer point of view, the database is a system made up of a set of data stored on disks that allow direct access to them and a set of programs that manipulate that set of data.
Each database is made up of one or more tables that hold a set of data. Each table has one or more columns and rows. The columns store a part of the information about each element that we want to save in the table, each row of the table forms a record.
A database is defined as a series of organized and interrelated data, which are collected and exploited by the information systems of a particular company or business.
IMPORTANCE OF THE DATABASE AT THE BUSINESS LEVEL.
Author: Lucio Fabián Escobar Ovando.
Characteristics.
Among the main characteristics of database systems we can mention:
- Logical and physical data independence Minimal redundancy Concurrent access by multiple users Data integrity Optimized complex queries Access security and auditing Backup and recovery Access through standard programming languages
Why are databases important in companies?
Databases are highly relevant at a personal level, but even more so, at a business level, and are considered one of the greatest contributions that computing has made to companies (Saiz Martínez A. (October 14, 2015). Data centric retrieved on February 16, 2017 http://datacentric.es/sin-categorizar/importancia-bases-de-datos-2/. Currently, any organization worth its salt, no matter how small, must have with a Database, but for it to be as effective as it should, it is not enough to have it: you have to know how to manage them.
In the event that our company does not have a person in charge of this work, there is the possibility of hiring an external company to do it.
The main utilities offered by a database to the company are the following:
- Group and store all company data in one place Facilitate data sharing between different members of the company Avoid redundancy and improve the organization of the agenda Establish a proper dialogue with customers.
If a Database is managed properly, the organization will obtain different advantages. Its efficiency will increase, there will be jobs that are carried out with greater speed and agility due to their simplification, we will be able to improve the security of the data we store, and with all these factors, we will maximize time and therefore, there will be an improvement in the productivity.
These functionalities will add value to the company, since with a correctly formulated database, we will ensure that information and knowledge are the company's greatest assets, we will be able to get the most out of the skills of our collaborators, as well as find out data of our potential customers. Finally, since information is power, the more data we have, the greater the competitiveness of the company.
Of course, Databases are essential to establish an adequate CRM (Customer Relationship Manager) strategy in the company. A CRM strategy is to collect as much information about customers as possible to manage these relationships around data. In this way, we will be able to segment the information that is most relevant to each one and optimize some aspects of commercial communication, such as offering more personalized advertising campaigns, offering specific support, and keeping a detailed record of all the documents that we send and receive from that company.. Orders, quotes and the sales process are also automated.
An adequate CRM strategy greatly favors the impact that the company's online marketing will have, since one of the trends that is currently working best is the personalization of the message. By collecting all the data about our clients in our database, one of the sections that we will fill in will be that of social networks, which will also help us improve our web communication strategy.
Regarding the future of Databases, there are two trends that are very loud among experts in the sector.
First of all, it is worth referring to its typology, at present. Relational or SQL databases are the most used, but they have several disadvantages such as being very rigid or preventing constant file growth. For its part, NoSQL is proposed as an alternative in the immediate future.
However, there are two major drawbacks that make NoSQL or non-relational databases not advance at the rate they should, and both are related to the training of the people who use them.
The first drawback is that many experts are reluctant to use them, on many occasions, because they do not know all the possibilities they offer; The second (related to the first) is that this type of Databases have a great diversity, and you have to have knowledge about all of them to know which one is appropriate for each case (it is essential to have very defined the type of project to which will be associated, the expected number of users and the technology that will be used for development).
In this regard, there are defenders and detractors of every kind; Defenders of SQL databases are committed to the structuring offered by this typology, since they consider that NoSQL lacks structure. This belief is false, and is mainly due to misinformation: NoSQL does have a defined structure called schema-free, the difference is that it is more flexible than that of SQL or relational ones.
Finally, I can conclude by emphasizing how both databases and database management systems have evolved, as well as the different uses that we give to them, although we know that they can serve us both for large and small companies and we imagine that So big can each of those discs used in each one of them be, now let's imagine the magnitude that covers the databases applied in social networks, this is an example of the great evolution that they have had over time.
I don't want to imagine what databases will be like in a couple of decades, and the different ones revolutionized in a way that nobody imagined.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Jefrey D. Ulman and Jennifer Widom, introduction to database systems, 1st edition, Mexico DF, national chamber of the Mexican publishing industry Reg. Num. 1524, 1999, 1st volume, 488 pages.
Mario G. Piattini Velthuis, fundamentals and database models, 2nd edition, Mdrid Spain, rights reserved RA-MA editorial, 2005, 528 pages.
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