2. Design Objectives

Everything factual is, in a sense, theory. The blue of the sky exhibits the basic laws of chromatics. There is no sense in looking for something behind phenomena; they are theory.

—GOETHE

Topics Covered in This Chapter

Why Should You Be Concerned with Database Design?

The Importance of Theory

The Advantage of Learning a Good Design Methodology

Objectives of Good Design

Benefits of Good Design

Database Design Methods

Normalization

Summary

Review Questions

Why Should You Be Concerned with Database Design?

Some of you who work with relational database management system (RDBMS) application programs may wonder why you should be concerned with database design. After all, most programs come with sample databases that you can copy ...

Get Database Design for Mere Mortals®: A Hands-on Guide to Relational Database Design, Third Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.