Course Outline

Welcome to the course website for COMP 210: Database Design I. As the course progresses, this website will grow to include lecture notes, project descriptions and deliverables, quiz answers, and links to referenced materials.

Instructor

Campus Schedule

Class Schedule

Description

Database design is one of the fastest growing fields in computer science. Databases are the foundation of any information system. All organizations, large and small, must rely on data management in all aspects of business operations. In this course we shall concern ourselves with the techniques required to implement good database design both in theory and in practise. The concepts introduced during the course will be materialized in a term-long project.

Objectives

As the course progresses, you will:

• understand the role and nature of relational database management systems (RDBMS), in today's IT environment;
• translate business requirements into conceptual entity-relationship data models;
• convert conceptual data models into relational database schemas using the SQL Data Definition Language (DDL);
• query and manipulate databases using the SQL Data Manipulation Language (DML); and
• become familiar with two popular Open Source database systems: MySQL and PostgreSQL.

Prerequisites

The only prerequisite is BUS 175: Microsoft Access. Experience with relational database management systems (RDBMS) is an asset, but not required. Admission to the course may also be granted at the instructor's discretion.

Format

Lecture

Weekly lectures present a general overview of the course material.

Lab

Lab sessions will be used for demonstration and instruction of concepts introduced theoretically in class. No material will have to be completed and submitted in a given amount of lab time.

Notes and Resources

All course notes, handouts, readings, and links to online resources will be posted on the course website: http://grover.yukondude.com/comp210.

Textbook

Database Processing: Fundamentals, Design, and Implementation 9th Edition David M. Kroenke Prentice Hall Publishing

The textbook is now available in the College Bookstore. The previous edition of the textbook should also suffice.

Additional books will be placed on loan in the College library. See the course website's References section for the list of titles.

Policies

Attendance and Participation

You are expected to attend every class and lab session. If you are receiving support, the funding agency may require regular attendance. There are no marks deducted for absence or failure to participate in class discussion. Of course, it is unlikely that you will master the material without effort.

Dishonesty

Cheating of any kind is a serious offense and all parties will receive a mark of 0.

Evaluation

Quizzes

Nine quizzes will be held on specific dates throughout the term, and will always be held at the beginning of the Tuesday class. The quizzes will cover the material taught in the lecture and lab. The one quiz with the lowest mark will be discarded from the term evaluation. Quizzes may not be rescheduled, except in exceptional circumstances and only where prior arrangements have been made with the instructor.

Term Project

The students will be required to model a real life situation, create and populate a database using one of the available database products, and write SQL statements to query and manipulate the data. The project will be marked as a series of deliverables submitted on specified dates throughout the term, and will always be due at the beginning of the Thursday class. Late deliverables will be penalized 20% per working day, unless prior arrangements have been made with the instructor.

Final Examination

The Final Exam will cover all aspects of the course.

Grading

Letter grading will follow the College's standard, which can be found in the Letter Grading section of Academic Regulations in the College Calendar.