Dictionary of Terms

ACORD

Aggregate Business Information Entity (ABIE)

Aggregate Core Component (ACC)

Aggregation

Alternate Key (AK)

American National Standards Institute (ANSI)

Association Business Information Entity (ASBIE)

Association Core Component (ASCC)

[General modeling]
A Core Component which constitutes a complex business characteristic of a specific Aggregate Core Component that represents an Object Class. It has a unique Business Semantic definition. An Association Core Component represents an Association Core Component Property and is associated to an Aggregate Core Component, which describes its structure.

Atomic Data Element (ADE)

[Data modeling]
A piece of information that cannot be further subdivided without losing meaning to the business. For instance, a "First Name" field makes sense, with a value of "Mike". However, it would not make sense to have a field for each letter in the first name, "M", "I", "K" and "E". This depends on the business, where "Phone Number" may be atomic, or "Phone Area Code" and "Phone Extension" might be more appropriate.

Attribute (WAM)

[General modeling]
An attribute is an object that qualifies a dimension. For example, Year is an attribute of the Date dimension. Attributes are usually attached to columns in a dimension table. For example, the Month attribute is attached to the Month column in the Time dimension table. Attributes can also be attached to facts, for example in a matrix schema.

Attribute - Conceptual

Basic Business Information Entity (BBIE)

Business Process Execution Language 4WS (BPEL4WS)

Business Process Model (BPM)

Business Rule

[General modeling]
Specific business-related information that is linked to database objects. The information can be in the form of business facts or descriptions, or it might be formula or algorithms either client-based or destined for the server. Once defined, business rules can be applied through the database or application code generation.

Business Rule - Definition Type

[General modeling]
Characteristics or properties of an object in the information system. For example, a customer is a person identified by a name and an address.

Business Rule - Fact Type

[General modeling]
Certainty or existence in the information system. For example, a client may place one or more orders.

Business Rule - Formula Type

[General modeling]
Calculation employed in the information system. For example, the total order is the sum of all the order line costs.

Business Rule - Validation Type

[General modeling]
Constraint on a value in the information system. For example, the sum of the order totals for a given client must not be greater than that client´s allowance.

Cardinality

Column

Commit

Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE)

[General modeling]
This is the use of software tools to assist in the development and maintenance of software. Tools used to assist in this way are known as CASE Tools.

Conceptual Data Model (CDM)

[Data modeling]
A CDM represents the overall logical structure of a database, which is independent of any software or data storage structure. A conceptual model often contains data objects not yet implemented in the physical databases. It gives a formal representation of the data needed to run an enterprise or a business activity.

Core Component (CC)

[General modeling]
A building block for the creation of a semantically correct and meaningful information exchange package. It contains only the information pieces necessary to describe a specific concept.

Create, Read, Update & Delete (CRUD)

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

[General modeling]
The strategies, processes, people and technologies used by companies to successfully attract and retain customers for maximum corporate growth and profit. CRM initiatives are designed with the goal of meeting customer expectations and needs in order to achieve maximum customer lifetime value and return to the enterprise. As a primary sales, service and retention touch point for many companies, the Contact Center is a critical component of a successful CRM strategy.

Data Administration

[Business process modeling]
Organizational function that plans and looks after institutional data. Typical functions include: data modeling, naming standards for databases and data elements, manage metadata (data dictionaries), maintain data access policies, etc.

Data Dictionary

[General modeling]
A database about data and database structures. A catalog of all data elements, containing their names, structures, and information about their usage. A central location for metadata.

Data Flow

[Business process modeling]
Depicts and documents the flow of information between external entities, processes and data stores.

Data Item

Data Management (DM)

Data Mining

[General modeling]
A class of analytical applications that search for patterns in a data base. Data mining is the process of sifting through large amounts of data to produce data content relationships.

Data Modeling

[General modeling]
The analysis of data objects and their relationships to other data objects. Data modeling is often the first step in database design and object-oriented programming as the designers first create a conceptual model of how data items relate to each other. Data modeling involves a progression from conceptual model to logical model to physical schema.

Data Store

[General modeling]
A data store in a PAM represents a place to put information, either temporarily from process to process, or permanently as a final or finished result of a process.

Data Warehouse

[General modeling]
Database that receives data from heterogeneous On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP) systems and organises it for extraction by On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) systems.

DataArchitect

[General modeling]
A module within the Sybase PowerDesigner suite.
DataArchitect provides traditional data modeling capabilities, including database design, generation, maintenance, reverse-engineering and documentation for database architects. It enables database designers to create flexible, efficient and effective data structures for use by an application

Database Definition Language (DDL)

[Database technical]
This is the syntax that a given DBMS understands and is used to manipulate the structure of the database, from initial database creation to additions, modifications and deletions of all database objects (tables, columns, indexes, etc.) to the eventual removal of the database. Another term used for DDL is "schema". Because each DBMS is slightly different, the DDL statements that each use is also different, sometimes completely alien to each other.

Database Management System (DBMS)

Datamodel

[General modeling]
It would be remiss to have a datamodel web site and never define what a datamodel is.  Basically, a datamodel is any method of visualizing the informational needs of a system and typically takes the form of an ERD (Entity Relationship Diagram).  PowerDesigner implements conceptual (CDM) and physical (PDM) datamodels.

Datatype (CDM)

Datatype (PDM)

Decision Support System (DSS)

[General modeling]
Refers to an interactive computerized system that gathers and presents data from a wide range of sources, typically for business purposes. DSS applications are systems and subsystems that help people make decisions based on data that is culled from a wide range of sources.

Denormalization

[Data modeling]
Opposite of normalization. The process of intentionally duplicating data or allowing insert/update/delete anomalies in the design. This is typically done to enhance performance of queries against the database, possibly because the data is fairly static (reporting database).

Dimension

[General modeling]
Defines the axis of investigation of a fact. Is attached to a dimension table.

Dimension Hierarchy

[General modeling]
Dimension that is split into other more detailed dimensions. Each descending level in a dimension hierarchy corresponds to a finer level of detail. The number of levels in a dimension hierarchy corresponds to the available levels of granularity in a query.

Dimension Table

[General modeling]
A dimension table stores data related to the axis of investigation of a fact. For example, geography, time, product. A WAM can have any number of dimension tables. Dimension tables are connected to a central fact table. The primary key in the dimension table migrates as a foreign key in the fact table. Dimension tables can also be connected to other dimension tables to form a hierarchy of dimensions.

Domain

[General modeling]
A way of identifying and grouping the types of data items in the model.  This makes it easier to standardize data characteristics for attributes/columns in different entities/tables.   Some DBMSs will implement domains as "User Defined Datatypes".  Another feature of domains is in the maintenance of similar columns.  If all "name" columns (LastName, CityName, ProductName, etc.) are defined as a common domain, then changing the datatype from char(40) to char(50) is a one-step procedure, rather than having to visit each table and search for the correct columns.

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

[General modeling]
EDI is the computer-to-computer exchange of normal business transactions including payments, information exchange and purchase order requests. The most basic EDI line consists of a computer-to-computer link. The second level incorporates an application-to-application design where individual companies links a minimum of one of their in- house systems to the EDI interface. The most elaborate version of EDI actually transform the way business procedures are executed to gain optimal productivity. These involve trend-institutions that evolve into a centralized EDI based functions.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

[General modeling]
ERP systems are comprised of software programs which tie together all of an enterprise's various functions -- such as finance, manufacturing, sales and human resources. This software also provides for the analysis of the data from these areas to plan production, forecast sales and analyze quality. Today many organizations are realizing that to maximize the value of the information stored in their ERP systems, it is necessary to extend the ERP architectures to include more advanced reporting, analytical and decision support capabilities. This is best accomplished through the application of data warehousing tools and techniques.

Entity

Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD)

[Business process modeling]
A graphical representation of entities and their relationships to each other, typically used in computing in regard to the organization of data within databases or information systems.

Executive Information System (EIS)

[Business process modeling]
A computerized system intended to provide current and appropriate information to support executive decision making for managers using a networked workstation. The emphasis is on graphical displays and an easy to use interface that present information from the corporate database. They are tools to provide canned reports or briefing books to top-level executives. They offer strong reporting and drill-down capabilities. An early term for a sophisticated data-driven DSS targeted to senior executives.

External Entity

[General modeling]
In a PAM, external entities refer to action agents (or actors, to borrow from object oriented programming) that interact with the processes directly.

Facilitation

[General modeling]
In one respect, facilitation is simply making something easy, or easier than it was originally. In modeling terms, this encompasses the art of capturing complex business needs, wants, constraints, requirements and rules, and expressing them in simpler terminology, as more achievable concepts. When talking with the business, the focus of the analyst is to hear through the complexity of situations, anecdotes and processes to capture the essence of the business data needs. However, most people think of facilitation in terms of conducting meetings and ensuring that they stay on track to the agenda and achieve the stated goals. This could be a one-on-one interview where the analyst communicates directly with a business liaison or a group meeting where the analyst is one of many people present.

Fact

[General modeling]
A fact corresponds to the focus of a decision support investigation, for example, Sales, Revenue, and Budget are facts. You attach facts to fact tables. When you create a fact table, a fact with the same name as the table is automatically created.

Fact Table

FastProjection

[Database technical]
Column will be projected (used in a SELECT) and return hundreds and thousands of rows. See LowFast. Column will be used with the LIKE keyword and has a ´%´ wildcard prefix, for example WHERE column LIKE ´%ing´.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

[General modeling]
A service that allows you to transfer files to and from other computers on the Internet. Anyone who has access to ftp can transfer publicly available files to his or her computer. Files retrieved from outside sources can contain viruses. All files retrieved from the Internet should be check with a virus protection program.

Foreign Key (FK)

[Database technical]
Column or combination of columns whose values are required to match a primary key in some other table.

HighGroup

[Database technical]
Column has a high number (1,001 to infinity) of unique values. Column is part of a join field. You need maximum query speed. Column is used in a GROUP BY clause, argument of a COUNT(DISTINCT), or in the select list of a SELECT DISTINCT. See HighNonGroup.

HighNonGroup

[Database technical]
Column has a high number of unique values, but does not fall into the HIGHGROUP categories. Column is a subset of the HIGHGROUP index. See FastProjection.

Horizontal Partitioning

Identifier (ID)

[General modeling]
In a CDM, this uniquely identifies an occurrence of an entity. Identifiers relate to primary keys and unique indexes in the PDM.

Identifying Relationship

[General modeling]
An identifying relationship is a relationship between two entities in which an instance of a child entity is identified through its association with a parent entity, which means the child entity is dependent on the parent entity for its identify and cannot exist without it. In an identifying relationship, one instance of the parent entity is related to multiple instances of the child. See Non-Identifying Relationship

Index

[Database technical]
An index is a data structure associated with a table that is logically ordered by the values of a key. It improves database performance and access speed. You normally create indexes for columns that you access regularly, and where response time is important. Indexes are most effective when they are used on columns that contain mostly unique values.

IndexSet

[Database technical]
An IndexSet is the Sybase IQ equivalent of a table. An IndexSet has columns but doesn´t contain any data.

Inheritance

[General modeling]
Inheritance allows you to define an entity as a special case of a more general entity. The entities involved in an inheritance have many similar characteristics but are nonetheless different. The general entity is known as a supertype (or parent) entity and contains all of the common characteristics. The special case entity is known as a subtype (or child), entity and contains all of the particular characteristics. Between entities, it is also possible to define an inheritance link. In an inheritance link, one or more subtype (or child) entities inherit, at the physical level, all or part of the attributes carried by one supertype (or parent) entity.

JDBC

Join Relationship

[Database technical]
A join relationship is a predefined join between two indexsets. It links a column in one indexset to a column in another. You create join relationships when you know that the underlying tables in the Sybase SQL Server workspace are typically joined in a consistent way. You can define join relationships in two ways: