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Week 1 Asynchronous Material Part 1: A little about databases, DBMSs, and application programs...
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*   what is a database?
    *   our first definition:

        it is a collection of tables, holding information about different interrelated entities

        *   what is an entity?
	    ...a set of something important in a world or scenario

            ...an entity in a scenario will be represented by ONE OR MORE tables in a database

*   what is a DBMS?
    *   DataBase Management System

    *   a DBMS is a program or collection of programs that acts as the INTERFACE between a user or
        application program and a database

    *   Oracle is an example of a DBMS. So are programs such as Microsoft Access and MySQL and
        Microsoft SQLServer and PostgreSQL.

        *   be a little careful -- SQL is a language often implemented and provided by a DBMS.

        *   and Excel, while it is a lovely and powerful spreadsheet program, is not a DBMS

*   and remember: an application program, then, USES the DBMS to access a database managed and
    controlled by that DBMS