Managing Time in Relational Databases

Managing Time in Relational Databases shows how to make the rich information content of bi-temporal data available to business users, while simplifying the design, maintenance and retrieval of that data. Metadata declarations eliminate the need to directly model temporal data. Temporal data maintenance is isolated in code that can be invoked to update bi-temporal data in any database and from any application program, across the enterprise. Anyone who can write queries against conventional data will be able to write queries against the bi-temporal data structures described in this book.

KEY FEATURES

1. Integrates an enterprise-wide viewpoint with a strong conceptual model of temporal data management allowing for realistic implementation of database application development.

2. Provides a true practical guide to the different possible methods of time-oriented databases with techniques of using existing funtionality to solve real world problems within an enterprise data architecture environment.

3. Written by IT professionals for IT professionals, this book employs a heavily example-driven approach which reinforces learning by showing the results of puting the techniques discussed into practice.

Part 1. Introduction.
Chapter 1. Historical Contextualization
Chapter 2. A Taxonomy of Methods of Managing Time in Databases.
Chapter 3. Temporal Data Management in Enterprise Data Architecture.
Chapter 4. The Objectives and Origins of Asserted Versioning.
Chapter 5. Basic Concepts of Asserted Versioning.

Part 2. Current Practice in Temporal Data Management.
Chapter 6. Baseline: Updates in Place.
Chapter 7. Standard Practice: Adding a Date to a Primary Key.
Chapter 8. Best Practice: Using Effective Date Pairs.

Part 3. Asserted Versions: a New Approach to Bi-Temporal Data Management.
Chapter 9. Objects, Episodes, Versions and Assertions.
Chapter 10.The Mechanics of Maintaining Versioned Objects.
Chapter 11. The Semantics of Maintaining Versioned Objects.
Chapter 12. Querying Versioned Objects.

Part 4. Introducing Versioned Objects into the Enterprise.
Chapter 13. A Business-Driven Approach to Bi-Temporality
Chapter 14. Surrogate Keys.
Chapter 15. Versioned Objects, Warehouse Snapshots and Versioned Dimensions
Chapter 16. Maximizing Performance for Bi-Temporal Tables.

Part 5. Related Matters.
Chapter 17. Temporal Dimensions and Codd's Information Principle.
Chapter 18. Deferred Transactions and Future States.
Chapter 19. Sandboxes and Release Management.
Chapter 20. The Problem of Identifying Recurring Objects.
Chapter 21. Other Kinds of Asserted Versions.

Part 6. The Asserted Versioning Prototype.
Chapter 22. Specifying Asserted Version Tables.
Chapter 23. Generating Asserted Version Tables From ERwin Macros.
Chapter 24. Using the Prototype.