Introduction to "Feature Analysis of
Generalized Data Base Management Systems"

This paper is a separately published introduction
to a main report which analyzes the features 
of generalized data base management systems.  This introduction
gives a review of the current state of 
the art in these systems and discusses the differences
and similarities between capabilities found in 
host language systems and those found in self-contained
systems.  After some discussion of the problems 
of data independence and binding,the four user levels
are identified and described.  Technical problems 
facing future designers are described.  The first of
these is that of handling existing stored data and 
the next is that of providing more complex data structures
than those already available in conventional 
programming languages.  The problem of high level interrogation
and update functions acting on network 
structures is mentioned, followed by a discussion of the
problem of catering to a high volume of transactions 
initiated from terminals by parametric users-the lowest
level of user.  The use of Cobol as a basis for 
further development work is considered at some length
with respect to data structures, host language 
capabilities, and self-contained capabilities.  This
section also assesses the effect of the Data Base 
Task Group proposals.  The final section outlines the
ten major topics in the main body of the full report.

CACM May, 1971

Codasyl Systems Committee

data base management systems, programming languages,
data structures, storage structures, information 
retrieval, transaction processing

3.5 3.70 3.72 3.73 3.74 4.29

CA710501 JB February 3, 1978  3:18 PM

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