SQL - Structured Query Language
*   have both ISO and ANSI standards
*   ...and myriad implementations!

*   We'll be using Oracle's implementation of SQL this semester;

*   a DBMS needs to provide:
    *   at least one data definition language (DDL)
    *   at least one data manipulation language (DML)
    *   at least one data control language (DCL)

    *   Most relational DBMS's provide an implementation of SQL
        which conveniently can be a DDL and a DML and a DCL...

    *   that is, SQL is a DDL AND a DML AND a DCL...
        it can be used to define, manage, and update relations,
        query them, and control access to them;

*   When we access and use Oracle via nrs-labs,
    we'll be using a program called Oracle SQL*Plus

    ...the command for starting this program on nrs-labs is
       sqlplus, like we did in the Week 1 Lab.
    *   like a shell program for the Oracle DBMS!
    *   you get a SQL> prompt you can type commands at...

    *   you can run 3 kinds of commands/statements in sqlplus:
        SQL commands
        SQL*Plus commands (housekeeping/extra commands, NOT part of SQL)
        PL/SQL statements (Oracle's extension to SQL adding the basic
                           programming language structures of branching,
			   looping, procedure, and a few other goodies)

        NOTE: SQL is a standard --
	      SQL*Plus and PL/SQL are not...
              (other DBMS's often provide their versions of such capabilities)

*  it would be inconvenient to have to always type individual 
   SQL/SQL*Plus/PL/SQL commands -- they can be combined as desired in
   a text file with the suffix .sql
   ...this is called a SQL SCRIPT

*  today's GOALS:
   *   to intro enough SQL and SQL*Plus to be able to create simple
       SQL scripts to create and populate tables, and to demonstrate
       that we have done so;

*