A database is used to store data.
A simple example is a phone book. The following information can be stored in a phone book:
- First Name
- Surname
- Address
- Home Number
- Mobile Number
Also note that this information remains there until you change it. In computing terms this is called persistence.
First Name | Surname | Address | Home Number | Mobile Number |
---|---|---|---|---|
John | Smith | 123 Bath Road | 02071234567 | 07911223445 |
Sara | Jones | 32 Kew Avenue | 02071334567 | 07916666645 |
In the example above, we have 2 rows of data. In database terms, a row of data is known as a record.