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Types of Databases

There are varied kinds of databases that are actively used to store information and make applications operate independently of the data that is stored in them. There are relational databases and non-relational databases and all of them operate in different ways. There are also the SQL and NoSQL databases which operate independently and in different manners from each other. Both kinds of databases treat information differently and have varied ways of seeing the information that is stored in them.

For instance, the SQL database makes use of tables, rows, and columns to store information with primary keys being used to identify records and make them unique from each other. On the other hand, the NoSQL databases make use of documents to store the information which is usually represented as a JSON document.

The document is a comma-separated array of records that make up the database and usually begins with a unique ID that is generated by the database to identify the record and set it apart from the rest of the database. When it relates to the retrieval of the records on the database, the unique ID ensures that the correct results are returned for every query that is made on the database.

The documents that are in the NoSQL database represent the information that is being presented and web applications and other applications are designed in such a manner as to present this information to the user in a format that is neatly formatted and well organized for the sake of ease of use.

The user will be able to view the search results as a bunch of rows and columns with the additional option of delving further into any of the results that return from the database. The SQL database can also have relationships between the records that are on different tables if they share some features in common. This relationship can be used to represent a one-to-many and one-to-one relationship between the records that are in the database as well as making the database easier to enforce.

An enforcing relationship means that the users of the database will have an easier time finding out what patterns can be learned or obtained from the information and as such, the users of the database get to make better use of the information that is available to them.

This is the reason why NoSQL databases are preferred for information that is not of an organized nature and random records can be comfortably stored in this kind of database with the information being easier to correlate and making sense out of the massive amount of information is made very easy with the use of applications that track the data within the database and chart the relationships and patterns that appear out of the information.

The users of the database also get to have a better time using the database and they will also be in a position to benefit from the nature of the database through relationships and other complex kinds of queries that are not possible with certain types of databases.