Databases: from paper-based to web-based.
Moghaddam, Alireza Isfandyari
Introduction
In the history of information, humans have moved relatively rapidly
from an oral storytelling tradition, to manuscripts, to printed books,
to filing systems, to databases. Databases were created to solve
problems with file-oriented systems (Sol, 1998). The rapid growth of
networked information resources and information representation have led
to a reassessment of tools and techniques for information management.
World Wide Web technologies play a central role in redesigning
information management tools (Shiri and Revie, 2000).
Organizing and retrieving information in a databases with a limited
volume of information is fairly straightforward, but as the Internet
emerged, information storage and retrieval changed radically
(Isfandyari, 2005). As a result, a new generation of databases called
WBDBs have been created to meet user needs. Although some research such
as Doldi, et al. (2005) shows that the web has reached a level of
maturity in regard to scientific and qualitative content and can be
considered a worthwhile source of scientific information, the present
article emphasizes the important role web-based databases (WBDBs), free
and fee-based, play in better and relevant information retrieval.
What is a database?
A database is a collection of data that is organized for easy
storage and access These include paper-based tools like dictionaries and
libraries of print materials. Computerized databases have existed for
decades, and online databases are a product of the earliest days of the
Internet. A web-based database (WBDB) is an organized listing of web
pages (Nicholson, 2002). Online databases and WBDBs are widely available
to library patrons in the entire world, and many patrons can tap into
these databases from their own computers (Falk, 2005). According to Doe
(2004), WBDBs are collections of information that we use all the time.
In another viewpoint, Garman (1999; quoted in Xie, 2004) names online
WBDB systems, such as Dialog, Lexis-Nexis, the original, or ultimate
search engines, and believes that the search engines of today owe much
to these originals.
History of Databases
Databases have their origin in efforts at office automation by IBM and other companies in the 1960s and 70s, resulting in models and
technology that are still in use (CERN, 2000). Databases grew from an
early database management system (DBMS) in the early 1960s, through
networked and hierarchical relationships for data, to SQL-based and
relational database models that are in use today (Zaki 2002)
Client/Server database
Most databases in use nowadays are relational databases, but
client/server databases are the basis for WBDBs. They are set up to
operate 24 hours a day and are used by ISPs as well as individuals (Sol,
1998). The most common language used by relational databases is SQL.
[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]
Functionality of WBDBs
Feiler (1999; quoted in Wyllys, 2003) distinguishes four purposes
for WBDBs:
* Web publishing
* Web data sharing
* E-commerce
* Database-driven websites
Search features included in WBDBs
Most WBDBs offer an advanced or "power" search that lets
users be specific (Tarleton State University Libraries, 2004). The
following images show examples of this type of search interface:
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Frequently, databases also provide other ways for users to limit
(narrow) searches. A few standard search limiters (restrictors) are
listed and described below:
* Scholarly/Peer-Reviewed--limits results to items from academic
journals
* Document Type--limits results to a specific type of item (for
example, abstract, article, book review, editorial, report, and so on)
* Full Text--limits results to items that are available online in
full text format.
* Publication Date--limits results to items in a specified time
period.
* Publication Type--limits results to items from specific types of
publications (for example, books, newspapers, periodicals, primary
sources, and so on).
* Language--limits results to a specific language
Components of developing and maintaining WBDBs
WBDBs must be developed and maintained. The methods involved can be
highly technical. The following is a summary of those methods.
* Underlying all WBDBs is a relational database-management system
(RDBMS), together with one or more relational databases (RDBs) that
actually contain the data or information of interest.
* A web page defined in HTML or Dynamic HTML (DHTML) controls the
visual display that the user of the WBDB sees and * An interface
receives information from the user and passes it to the RDBMS, extracts
information from the RDB (with the assistance of the RDBMS), and
provides the information to the web page, whose HTML or DHTML structure
makes the information visible.
Although Microsoft Access 97 (and later versions) offers built-in
support for WBDBs, the limitations of Access restrict it to websites
that experience low use (no more than a few simultaneous users). Large
and heavily-used WBDBs typically use high-level RDBMSs such as IBM DB2,
Informix, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, and Sybase. A substantial
majority of such sites use Oracle.
The interfaces used for WBDBs fall into two broad classes. The
first is interfaces intended for a specific application and written in a
scripting language that conforms to Common Gateway Interface (GCI)
standards. A script is a set of programming-language statements,
typically (but not necessarily) short and used to accomplish certain
actions on the Internet. Languages used in scripts include C, C++, Java,
Perl, and Visual Basic for Applications. The second is interfaces
developed commercially for a certain class of applications. Commercial
interfaces include those of Oracle, SAP, and Siebel.
ColdFusion is a tool for aiding in the development of CGI scripts.
ColdFusion's role in working with CGI scripts as analogous to that
of Dreamweaver and Microsoft FrontPage in aiding the preparation of
HTML-formatted pages. ColdFusion can do things such as:
* Insert and update records in database tables with HTML forms
* Submit database queries that can then be used to dynamically
generate Web pages
* Intermix the results of queries with HTML tags and text for
complete control over how data is displayed and formatted
* Track users and customize their view of Web pages by using
information about their browser, location, or other preferences * [Use]
advanced data input and reporting features
* Validate form field entries as integer, floating point, date or
numeric range
* Make conditional statements (if ... else branching) to
dynamically customize output returned to users and decisions about
queries submitted to the database
* Embed SQL statements in templates to specify queries. SQL
statements may be dynamically customized using data from submissions,
URL query strings, and CGI environment variables, as well as the results
returned from other queries
* Execute multiple SQL queries and send SQL queries to multiple
databases for each client request
* Support Java and JavaScripts
* Support web browsers cookies for state control (Wyllys, 2003).
Conclusion and recommendation
In spite of the advantages of existing databases, WBDBs have become
the standard in new database applications. The reasons for their
popularity include:
* Ease of use: point and click simplicity
* Accessibility: securely accessible from anywhere
* Lower total cost of ownership: to secure, scale, deploy and
maintain (LightSpoke, 2003).
It seems safe to predict that WBDBs will become increasingly
prevalent and increasingly sophisticated in the ways they receive
information from users, as well as in the ways in which they display
information to users. Though the most sophisticated uses of WBDBs are
currently found in the commercial arena, such uses will spread steadily
to the non-profit and other less well-financed arenas. Obviously, the
Internet has added whole new dimensions to databases, not only to the
type and breadth of information available- but to the complexity and
problems involved in getting the information. The Internet can be seen
as gigantic database or databases within a database (Doe, 2004). It is
role of library practitioners to identify Internet-based services,
especially WBDBs, and provide users with information on how to use them.
In addition, further research is needed to assess usability,
functionality, and effectiveness of WBDBs as information storage and
retrieval tools.
Acknowledgements
Special thanks to Dr. F. Babalhavaeji for her helpful guidance.
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Alireza Isfandyari Moghaddam
Department of Library and Information Sciences
Islamic Azad University, Hamedan Branch
Iran