Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Bible

Chapter 7

Relational Database Design and Creating the Physical Database Schema

In This Chapter

Introducing Entities, Tuples, and Attributes

Understanding Conceptual Diagramming Versus SQL DDL

Avoiding Normalization Over-complexity

Choosing the Right Database Design Pattern

Ensuring Data Integrity

Exploring Alternative Patterns

Using Normal Forms

There are some musicians who can hear a song and then play it; most people don't have that ability. Most can feel the rhythm, but have to work through the chords and figure them out almost mathematically before they can play anything but a simple piece. To most, building chords and chord progressions is like drawing geometric patterns on the guitar neck using the frets and strings.

Music theory encompasses the scales, chords, and progressions used to make music. Every melody, harmony, rhythm, and song draws from music theory. For some musicians there's just a feeling that the song sounds right. For those who make music their profession, they understand the theory behind why a song feels right. Great musicians have both the feel and the theory in their music.

Designing databases is similar to playing music. Databases are designed by combining the right patterns to correctly model a specific solution to a problem. Normalization is the theory that shapes the design. There's both the mathematic theory of relational algebra and the intuitive feel of an elegant database.

Designing databases is both science and art.