At 07:53 PM 8/26/2003, dbexlist wrote:
>I mean database in the academic sense, as defined by Knuth and by Codd, as
>a set of data with specific characteristics not the least of which is n-tuples.
I don't think academics associate Knuth with any definition of databases. I
believe you are referring to Codd's definition of the relational model, and
I would be surprised if Codd ever said that a database using a different
model can not be called a database. Textbooks used to teach undergrads
about databases generally discuss several different database models, not
just the relational one. These days, they may contain a section on XML
databases.
But by your definition, only a relational database is a database.
>I think most people here mean a data group when they use the word database.
Most people here are not using your terminology.
Jonathan
