| Links | course schedule | homework | project | resources | ||||||||
| Description |
CSC 290C is an introduction to the design and use of database systems --- systems that manage very large amounts of data. There are two important approaches to organizing and querying (asking questions about) data: the "relational model," which uses a two-dimensional table (relation) as its primary structure, and the "semistructured model," which uses trees as its fundamental structure and today appears primarily in XML (eXtensible Modeling Language) and its related systems. The relational model underlies the major commercial database systems. We cover relational design using the entity-relationship model, UML (Unified Modeling Language), and ODL (Object Description Language). SQL (Structured Query Language), the standard query language for relational databases, will be learned and experienced. We shall also learn some other database languages, both concrete and abstract, including relational algebra, Datalog, and several ways to combine SQL with conventional programming, such as JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) and PHP (doesn't stand for anything). We shall learn XML, the standard for structuring data as trees. It has several associated languages for design and programming. We shall meet DTD (Document Type Definition), XML Schema, XPath, XQuery, and XSLT (XML Stylesheet Language). It is not our goal to study database system implementation (e.g., how to build a system that processes SQL queries efficiently and prevents concurrent database operations from mangling the database). |
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| Prerequisites | CSC 172 or equivalent. | ||||||||
| Instructor | Dr. Johannes A. Koomen Computer Studies Building, Rm. 714 275-5426 during office hours, 275-4505 all other times koomen at cs.rochester.edu http://www.cs.rochester.edu/~koomen/courses/csc290c/ |
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| Office Hours | Mon & Wed, 18:15 - 19:00, or later by appointment | ||||||||
| Lectures | MW 16:50-18:05 CSB 601 | ||||||||
| Exam I | Wednesday, March 4, 16:50-18:05, CSB 601 | ||||||||
| Exam II | Wednesday, April 29, 16:50-18:05, CSB 601 (?) | ||||||||
| Project Demos | Friday, May 8, 12:30-15:30, CS 601 (?) (See also the Registrar's exam schedule.) |
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| Textbook |
First Course in Database Systems, THIRD Edition, GOAL Value Pack (ISBN: 9780137135264) by
Jeffrey D. Ullman & Jennifer Widom (Pearson Prentice Hall, 2008).
Be sure to get the GOAL Value Pack. If you buy the book used, or without the GOAL Access card, you'll need to obtain the GOAL Access Card separately. You can obtain this book from all the usual places, such as Amazon, Barnes & Nobles and Borders. If you find something in the book that looks wrong, check out the authors' errata page. |
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| Course Outline | Learning from reading is essential in any course, and this one is no exception. You will not encounter in the lectures everything you need to know to successfully complete the homeworks, the projects and the exams. More over, you are expected to read ahead, and may be called upon in the lectures to summarize the readings. The course schedule provides a lecture-by-lecture schedule of topics and associated reading. | ||||||||
| Software | See the course resources page. | ||||||||
| Course discussion list / news group | The course email list is urcs-db-intro-0809s@googlegroups.com,
which you can also access on the Web,
provided you are a member. (See instructions you receive when you sign up.) Please subscribe so you can stay informed. (Send me an email with your request; please be sure to state your full name in your subscription request if your name is not obvious from your email address.) Note that you do NOT need a Google Mail account to subscribe - send the subscription request message from your favorite email account, and all group messages will be sent to that account. In order to access the group message archive, you do need to create a login using your subscribed email address. |
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| Grading | Grades will be based on approximately the following
distribution:
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| Plagiarism and Collaboration | You are expected to be familiar with and adhere to the University's Academic Honesty Policy. Note especially that it is often impossible to distinguish between those who plagiarize and those who, inadvertently or deliberately, make their materials available for plagiarism. First time offenders will automatically receive 0 points for that lab, assignment or exam; repeat offenders will automatically fail the course and both violations will be officially reported to the Academic Honesty Board. This may result in additional penalties, even dismissal from the University. |