Database Design for Mere Mortals®: A Hands-on Guide to Relational Database Design, Third Edition

5. Starting the Process

“Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?” he asked. “Begin at the beginning,” the King said gravely, “and go on till you come to the end: then stop.”

—LEWIS CARROLL ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND

Topics Covered in This Chapter

Conducting Interviews

The Case Study: Mike’s Bikes

Defining the Mission Statement

Defining the Mission Objectives

Summary

Review Questions

Everything has a beginning, and the database design process is no different. Interestingly enough, you start the process by defining the end result. It is in the very first step of the database design process that you identify and declare the purpose of the database. You also define and declare a list of the tasks that your users can perform against the data ...