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Chapter 6 Foundations of Business Intelligence: Databases and Information Management 251

FIGURE 6.7 EXAMPLE OF AN SQL QUERY

Illustrated here are the SQL statements for a query to select suppliers for parts 137 or 150.
They produce a list with the same results as Figure 6.5.

Microsoft Access and other DBMS include capabilities for report generation
so that the data of interest can be displayed in a more structured and polished
format than would be possible just by querying. Crystal Reports is a popular
report generator for large corporate DBMS, although it can also be used with
Access. Access also has capabilities for developing desktop system applications.
These include tools for creating data entry screens, reports, and developing the
logic for processing transactions.

DESIGNING DATABASES

To create a database, you must understand the relationships among the data,
the type of data that will be maintained in the database, how the data will be
used, and how the organization will need to change to manage data from a
company-wide perspective. The database requires both a conceptual design
and a physical design. The conceptual, or logical, design of a database is
an abstract model of the database from a business perspective, whereas the
physical design shows how the database is actually arranged on direct-access
storage devices.

FIGURE 6.8 AN ACCESS QUERY

Illustrated here is how the query in Figure 6.7 would be constructed using Microsoft Access
query-building tools. It shows the tables, fields, and selection criteria used for the query.

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