1.1 Before Relational Tables

In 1969, Apollo astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon. That same year Dr. Edgar Frank Codd, Ph.D., developed the theory for relational database systems. Shortly after this development, Codd published "A Relational Model of Data for Large Shared Data Banks" in the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) journal, Communications of the ACM . Codd's model became the foundation for a prototype; a relational database project within IBM called System/R. Studies were performed at the IBM San Jose Research Center (now the Almaden Research Center) and by 1974 IBM had a running prototype relational database system. This system was based on multitable queries and multiuser access. The method for accessing data in System/R was called Structured English Query Language (SEQUEL).

Following its research and development, IBM released System/R as a prototype. It was used by the MIT Sloan School of Management and commercial organizations within the manufacturing and inventory sectors. The project demonstrated that Codd's theories could be applied and implemented in the real world, but ended in 1979.

The success of System/R did not receive quite the same attention the world gave the Apollo astronauts on July 20, 1969; but, System/R's success created a new paradigm in the world of information technology ”a paradigm that dominates the information age to this day.

Codd believed that programmers should be able to control the exact data used to join and construct queries from multiple independent tables. This was not the case with existing hierarchical and network databases. For these other technologies, an application programmer would code an algorithm to navigate through the database by accessing data records based on the predefined navigation paths. As software requirements changed, programmers frequently needed database modifications to these paths and new navigations paths needed to be defined. The software development process was slow and impaired with frequent meetings on data access. Codd's model had a broad impact on the software development process.

System/R was implemented by a group of highly talented and educated software engineers. They demonstrated that large information systems could be built on Codd's theory of multi-independent tables and a structured query language. This was the birth of SEQUEL. Throughout the System/R project, engineers openly published their work in technical journals and at international conferences. The policy of open publication is considered to have been a factor in the success of System/R ”leading to the creation of many relational databases such as DB2 and Oracle.

IBM passed control of the System/R structured query language to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), a private nonprofit organization that administers U.S. voluntary technologies. Because of trademark laws, the language was renamed from SEQUEL to SQL for "Structured Query Language." Today SQL is an ANSI standard and an International Standards Organization (ISO) standard.

In 1977, a group of engineers who had been following the System/R project, primarily through publications , recognized its potential and formed a company. This company, Software Development Laboratories, was later named Relational Software. This new company developed and marketed the first commercial version of a relational database management system, which was based on the ANSI SQL Standard. They named their product Oracle.

When project System/R ended in 1979, many information systems relied on either hierarchical or network database architecture. In the 1980s, many development projects moved toward relational technology. Today, the majority of new information systems are relational; however, hierarchical and network database products have still maintained a market presence.

IMS/DB is the flagship hierarchical database of IBM. Rockwell International and IBM developed IMS in 1969 to manage data for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Apollo program. IMS/DB continues today with a solid international presence. It is industry-wide and serves an estimated 200 million end users. The IMS/DB database served the Apollo program including Apollo 11, which sent Armstrong, Aldrin, and pilot Mike Collins to the moon.

Computer Associates' network database product is CA-IDMS, a widely used database serving 2,000 sites around the world. The product has changed in name and ownership but continues to support large corporate data systems that run on IBM OS/390 platforms.

IDMS has an interesting history. John J. Cullinane founded Cullinet Software, Inc. in 1968. He bought the rights to IDMS, a CODASYL database, from B.F. Goodrich. CODASYL, an acronym for Conference on Data System Languages, was established in 1960 by the Department of Defense for the purpose of standardizing languages and software applications. Cullinet was the first software company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Computer Associates purchased Cullinet in September of 1989 and renamed the product CA-IDMS.

Although CA-IDMS is based on database network architecture, the product includes an ANSI-compliant SQL Option. This option allows applications to access IDMS data using SQL. A set of comprehensive tools is available that includes agents for enterprise monitoring, parallel transaction processing using IBM Parallel Sysplex Cluster Technology, JDBC support for Java, and many other eBusiness technologies. The majority of IDMS applications are written in COBOL.

Oracle, predominately known for the Relational Enterprise Server, owns two additional database products: (a) a network database product called DBMS, which is a CODASYL database, and (b) a relational database product called Rdb. Both Rdb and DBMS were purchased from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) prior to the acquisition of DEC by Compaq.

Oracle acquired DBMS when it purchased the Rdb product family from DEC. Ken Olsen, an MIT graduate, his brother Stan, and Harlan Anderson founded DEC. In addition to hardware architectures such as the PDP-11, VAX, and Alpha, DEC developed Rdb, a relational database, and also DBMS, a network database. The network database was renamed from VAX/DBMS to DEC DBMS when version V5.0 was released on the Alpha AXP platform.

Oracle's CODASYL DBMS is a multi- user network database that, like Rdb, is optimized for the Compaq OpenVMS operating system on either an Alpha or VAX architecture platform. DBMS is highly suited for manufacturing systems and shop floor systems that require stable environments where database information is fairly static. Consillium Corporation's WorkStream is the most widely installed Manufacturing Execution System (MES) in the semiconductor and electronics industries. WorkStream has a long history of running on VAX/DBMS and today runs primarily on VAX and Alpha servers using Oracle CODASYL DBMS.

Rdb7 was Oracle's first release of Rdb that was conceived and engineered as an Oracle product. Oracle's Rdb7 is an enterprise relational database optimized for digital platforms; that is, the Hewlett-Packard Corporation's OpenVMS operating system and Compaq Digital UNIX. When Compaq acquired DEC it replaced the DEC version of UNIX, called Ultrix, with the product name DIGITAL UNIX ”an operating system based on a 64-bit architecture that runs on Alpha AXP platforms.

In summary, the database market is clearly dominated by relational technology; however, hierarchical and network databases continue to meet the needs of enterprise network computing environments. IBM IMS/DB is a dominant hierarchical database that can service high-transaction rates and has a large install base. Two network databases ”CA-IDMS, licensed by Computer Associates, and DBMS, licensed by Oracle, ”play critical roles in support of high-transaction enterprise-wide systems. In addition to the Oracle Enterprise Server, Oracle Corporation also owns Rdb7, a relational database, and DBMS, a network database ”both products are optimized for Compaq platforms, including Alpha AXP. Today the Oracle Database Server addresses the needs of small and large businesses that require information processing for online transaction processing (OLTP) systems, decision support systems (DSS), plus the eBusiness solutions. These types of applications can operate on small, stand-alone servers, or on distributed, high-availability architectures.