DEVELOPING TOOLS

CHAPTER 2 DEVELOPING TOOLS 2.1 DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (DBMS) 2.1.1 Kinds of DBMS There are many different types of DBMS, ranging from small systems that run on personal computers to huge systems that run on mainframes. Now we will introduce some types of DBMS before choose one: Oracle, SQL, Access, MySql etc. Oracle Oracle is a relational database system from Oracle corporation extensively used in product and internet-based applications in different platforms. Oracle is a powerful relational database management system that offers a large feature set. Along with Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle is widely regarded as one of the two most popular full-featured database systems today. Oracle is only used for databases with huge size, from millions to tens of millions records. This DBMS runs based on Client/Server model, can adopt different operating systems and security level. Because of complexity of database so disadvantages of Oracle are high cost of maintaining database and training IT staff. Microsoft Access Microsoft Access is a relational database running under Microsoft Windows. Access is the desktop database included in Microsoft’s popular productivity suite Microsoft Office. The product may connect with many different databases, but it is shipped with the Microsoft JET Engine, and in this paper the two terms are synonymous, unless otherwise noted. The inclusion of Access in the MS Office Suite enables MS Office users to create simple database applications very inexpensively. The arguments for using MS Access are very strong because of its low cost and its backward compatibility. Access also uses very few resources and is easily distributed, since the application and data can be stored in a single file. However, popularity does not always translate into successful applications. Access applications typically start as a single-user application created by the user for his or her specific use. But, many times another individual in the organization sees value in the application and the application is then shared. This sharing can proliferate to the point where a single Access application, designed for one user, is servicing multiple users, something normally handled by a full server-based database management system. With more than one person using the application, the data storage requirements also increase. These increases can quickly eclipse the limits Access imposes. Growth in either the user count or data storage eventually leads to degradation in performance and stability. Corruption also occurs at a much higher rate in Access than in server-based database management systems. In a server-based system, only the database server engine itself accesses the file, while in a file sharing system like Access, all users have access to the file. This multiple and unmanaged access is the most common cause of data corruption in an Access data file. Though all database systems face some risk of corruption, the possibility is exponentially higher in Access, because the architecture is built on file sharing. Microsoft SQL Server SQL Server 2000 is a relational database management system (RDBMS) using Transact_SQL to exchange information between Client computer and SQL Server computer. A RDBMS consists of databases, database engine and applications that use to manage data. SQL Server 2000 can integrate in harmony with other servers such as Internet Information Services (IIS), E-Commerce Server, Proxy Server, etc. Although SQL Server 2000 is designed to work as the data storage engine for thousands of concurrent users who connect over a network, it is also capable of working as a stand-alone database directly on the same computer as an application. The scalability and ease-of-use features of SQL Server 2000 allow it to work efficiently on a single computer without consuming too many resources or requiring administrative work by the stand-alone user. The same features allow SQL Server 2000 to dynamically acquire the resources required to support thousands of users, while minimizing database administration and tuning. MYSQL MySQL, the most popular Open Source SQL database management system, is developed, distributed, and supported by MySQL AB company, it’s also a relational database management system. MySQL software is Open Source means it is possible for anyone to use and modify the software. Anybody can download the MySQL software from the Internet and use it without paying anything. The MySQL Database Server is very fast, reliable, and easy to use. MySQL Server also has a practical set of features developed in close cooperation with our users. MySQL Server was originally developed to handle large databases much faster than existing solutions and has been successfully used in highly demanding production environments for several years. Though under constant development, MySQL Server today offers a rich and useful set of functions. Its connectivity, speed, and security make MySQL Server highly suited for accessing databases on the Internet. The MySQL Database Software is a client/server system that consists of a multi-threaded SQL server that supports different backends, several different client programs and libraries, administrative tools, and a wide range of application programming interfaces (APIs). 2.1.2 Choose DBMS and explain reasons Choosing DBMS is a very important decision, it should base on different factors such as infrastructure, human resource, volume of information etc. The Knowledge Base System is designed for students and lecturers of the Faculty of Informatics and Economic in information exchanging, thus size of database is not over large. With current infrastructure, MSSQL Server is a suitable choice along with many benefits:  Utilizing existing infrastructure  MS SQL Server is easy-to-use and has user friendly interface  Low overhead  Integrated with Microsoft IIS MS SQL Server is a perfect DBMS, provides a new generation of features and functions, including many strong tools for managing and controlling database. Microsoft SQL Server 2000 features include:  Internet Integration. The SQL Server 2000 database engine includes integrated XML support. It also has the scalability, availability, and security features required to operate as the data storage component of the largest Web sites. The SQL Server 2000 programming model is integrated with the Windows DNA architecture for developing Web applications, and SQL Server 2000 supports features such as English Query and the Microsoft Search Service to incorporate user-friendly queries and powerful search capabilities in Web applications.  Scalability and Availability. The same database engine can be used across platforms ranging from laptop computers running Microsoft Windows® 98 through large, multiprocessor servers running Microsoft Windows 2000 Data Center Edition. SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition supports features such as federated servers, indexed views, and large memory support that allow it to scale to the performance levels required by the largest Web sites.  Enterprise-Level Database Features. The SQL Server 2000 relational database engine supports the features required to support demanding data processing environments. The database engine protects data integrity while minimizing the overhead of managing thousands of users concurrently modifying the database. SQL Server 2000 distributed queries allow you to reference data from multiple sources as if it were a part of a SQL Server 2000 database, while at the same time, the distributed transaction support protects the integrity of any updates of the distributed data. Replication allows you to also maintain multiple copies of data, while ensuring that the separate copies remain synchronized. You can replicate a set of data to multiple, mobile, disconnected users, have them work autonomously, and then merge their modifications back to the publisher.  Ease of installation, deployment, and use. SQL Server 2000 includes a set of administrative and development tools that improve upon the process of installing, deploying, managing, and using SQL Server across several sites. SQL Server 2000 also supports a standards-based programming model integrated with the Windows DNA, making the use of SQL Server databases and data warehouses a seamless part of building powerful and scalable systems. These features allow you to rapidly deliver SQL Server applications that customers can implement with a minimum of installation and administrative overhead.  Data warehousing. SQL Server 2000 includes tools for extracting and analyzing summary data for online analytical processing. SQL Server also includes tools for visually designing databases and analyzing data using English-based questions. In addition, Microsoft SQL Server 2000 extends the performance, reliability, quality, and ease-of-use of Microsoft SQL Server version 7.0. Microsoft SQL Server 2000 includes several new features that make it an excellent database platform for large-scale online transactional processing (OLTP), data warehousing, and e-commerce applications. The OLAP Services feature available in SQL Server version 7.0 is now called SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services. The term OLAP Services has been replaced with the term Analysis Services. Analysis Services also includes a new data-mining component. The Repository component available in SQL Server version 7.0 is now called Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Meta Data Services. References to the component now use the term Meta Data Services. The term repository is used only in reference to the repository engine within Meta Data Services. 2.2 PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE (PL) 2.2.1 Kinds of Programming Languages There are mainly 2 kinds of scripting on the Internet, client-side scripts that executes at the users machine, and server-side. Server-side language is script/language, which runs on the server and not the browser’s machine. Some of the more common languages are: PHP, ASP, JSP and Perl. Each language is different - either slightly or completely, much like real languages. Your choice of server-side language depends on what you want to do with the script you are writing. PHP PHP (PHP Hypertext Preprocessor) is one of the most popular server-side scripting on web. Server-side scripting is a web server technology in which a user's request is fulfilled by running a script directly on the web server to generate dynamic HTML pages. It is usually used to provide interactive web sites that interface to databases or other data stores. This is different from client-side scripting where the viewing web browser, usually in JavaScript, runs scripts. The primary advantage of server-side scripting is the ability to highly customize the response based on the user's requirements, access rights, or queries into data store PHP is a widely used scripting language that is especially suited for server-side applications to develop dynamic web and can be embedded into HTML. One of the more attractive parts of PHP is that it is more than just a scripting language, thanks to its modular design; PHP can also be used to develop GUI applications and it can be used from the command line like Perl. PHP allows easy interaction with a large number of relational databases (Oracle, DB2, MySql, etc.) while maintaining a simple and straightforward syntax. PHP runs on every major operating system, including Linux, Unix, Windows and Mac OSX and can interact with all major web servers. PHP, unlike Perl and ASP, has some of the largest free and open-source libraries include with the core built. ASP Active Server Page is Microsoft’s server-side technology for dynamically generated web pages. Page can be generated by mixing server-side scripting code with HTML and client- side code. Programming ASP websites is made easier by various built-in objects, such as cookie based session object that maintains variables from page to page. ASP has some advantages like  Script Language-independent: ASP allows using VBScript, Jscript or Perl ("perlscript") and have it executed on the server without having to learn another scripting language  Utilize COM components from your web server - reuse any functionality built using COM components for your company's software product can on your website through ASP pages. ASP is the connection between the conventional software and the web site.  ODBC links to any data source  You can use server-side Active components (DLLS) ASP also several restrictions such as only run on Windows NT / IIS JSP Java Server Page is a Java technology that allows developers to dynamically generate HTML, XML or some other type of web page. The technology allows Java code and certain pre-defined actions to be embedded into static content. The JSP syntax adds additional XML tags; call JSP actions, to be used to invoke built-in functionally. Additionally, the technology allows for the creation of JSP tag libraries that act as extensions to the standard HTML and XML tags. JSPs are compiled into Servlets by a JSP compiler. Using JSP gives some advantages:  Power of Java  Familiar Language for the designers  Persistent Sessions: One of the most important features of a server-side language is tracking sessions so that data can be transferred from page to page. JSP and Servlets provide a nice API for managing this called Http Session. JSP requires you to notify the page that you wish for a session to start and then register all of the variables that you wish to track with the session. Other pages can then access these variables and their values. Unlike PHP though, JSP solely relies on cookies to perform this task. If the user does not accept cookies, the programmer has to do some extra work to make JSP perform Session tracking through the URL instead of through cookies. Disadvantages are:  Difficult Install of Necessary Components: because JSP relies on Servlet technology, it requires the installation of a servlet engine in order to function. This engine is responsible for transforming the JSP page into the corresponding Servlet page as well as compiling the Servlets. The most popular engine currently available is Tomcat, which is developed by the Jakarta Project and distributed freely under the Apache Software License. Tomcat can act as a stand-alone web-server but in order to make it communicate with Apache (a far superior web-server) an extra installation is necessary, more specifically the Apache module mod_jk must be installed. Finally, in order for any of these to work, Java itself must be installed on the machine. That is three components that must be installed and maintained in order for JSP to work.  Overly Complex: JSP implements several changes to help make Java a more "web- friendly" language but there are still various nuances of the language, which make it cumbersome to perform specific tasks. Accessing a database is a prime example of where Java is overly complex. Perl Perl is a programming language that is used to create server-side web applications. Like Java or Active Server Pages (ASP), two competitive technologies, Perl is an object-based, interpreted language. As a result, it is easier to write, easier to maintain, and easier to extend then other languages such as C or C++. Unlike Java and ASP however, Perl is not embedded into web servers by default. In other words, Perl applications typically run stand alone, not requiring the use of a specially designed, and often costly, application servers. The benefits of Perl as a development tool lie in the fact that Perl applications require little infrastructure. Thus entry costs are minimized and the simpler application architectures assure that applications are less expensive to build, maintain and extend. On the other hand, Perl applications may be slower and less scalable for certain types of applicatons. However, if customers require more speed or scalability, they may install a Perl accelerator such as ModPerl or Velocogen. Using a Perl accelerator, Perl may be embeded into any web server just like Java or ASP. 2.2.2 Choose PL and explain reasons We decide to choose ASP because of many factors like costs, easy-to-use, easy-to-debug, existing infrastructure and one more important factor is this programming language need integrate well with chose Database Management System. Microsoft Active Server Pages (ASP) is a server-side scripting environment that you can use to create and run dynamic, interactive Web server applications. With ASP, you can combine HTML pages, script commands, and COM components to create interactive Web pages or powerful Web-based applications, which are easy to develop and modify. Organizations will use the Active Server Pages technology to put a Web front end on existing business solutions, or to create entirely new Web-based applications. Since ASP provides a very open development environment, with support for both Microsoft Visual Basic®, Scripting Edition (_VBScript) and _JScript, organizations can leverage the investments they already have in these scripting languages. Active Server Pages also has the following considerable advantages:  Active Server Pages is a component of IIS 3.0, which is a free, downloadable, and integrated feature of Windows NT Server 4.0.  Active Server Pages can work with any Web browser. The output of an ASP file is plain HTML, the content of which can be customized for the capabilities of the client.  Active Server Pages allows you to define application and session variables that can be carried across multiple pages in a Web site. This can be as simple as remembering a user's name, and it is necessary in applications such as online shopping to track product selections  Active Server Pages makes it easy to bring legacy database applications to the Web.  It is quick and easy to interact with MS SQL using Active Server Pages. . CHAPTER 2 DEVELOPING TOOLS 2.1 DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (DBMS) 2.1.1 Kinds of DBMS There. SQL Server 2000 includes tools for extracting and analyzing summary data for online analytical processing. SQL Server also includes tools for visually designing