Just Joined

A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

I just joined in the last half-hour.

Clueless brain cells at this moment

I welcome suggestions about what, where, etc.

Immediate goal is to learn about the database.

My current knowledge about databases is zero and a little bit less.

I am equally interested in the other branches of the OpenOffice.Org suite, particularly the spreadsheet and the drawing program.

For the immediate moment in front of me, I want to learn about the database component and become competent with that.

Suggestions are welcome

A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

Oh, forgot.

I hope I will make friends here, and be a friend to many.

JohnV · Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 11:00 am Post subject:

Look below this post at the right side of the page and note the Jump To box. Click its drop down menu to jump to the section of the forum that is of interest.

therabi · Super User Joined: 01 Sep 2010 Posts: 562

If your as new to databases in general as you state about OOo then I would suggest starting with the documents found at [1]. It gives a very good background on database design with some practical examples.

[1] http://openoffice.org/projects/documentation/downloads/directory/Base/Mid%20level%20Base%20tutorial

HTH
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A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

Okay, I immediately see an area where I might be able to contribute something to this group: proofreading. Is there a venue where my efforts might be welcome or wanted in this regard ?

therabi · Super User Joined: 01 Sep 2010 Posts: 562

Are you referring to the documentation? If so go to http://openoffice.org/projects/documentation . Join the mailing list and introduce yourself. They are always looking for people to help with the documentation.
_________________
OOO v3.3.0 & LO v3.4beta on Ubuntu 10.10 and Win7
If your problem has been solved please add "[Solved]" to the beginning of your first post title (edit button).

A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

Yes, the docs

Is a newbee from nowhere okay with them ?

I don't want to barge in from the word go, but if I can help, I'm ready to spend a little time doing that.

By the way, that's quite a document; 189 pages, plus the ancillary text file with examples; woo-hoo, cool.

jrkrideau · Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 2:57 am Post subject:

A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

By the way, what is the relationship between BASE (the OpenOffice.Org database program, I think that's the name) and MySQL ? Are they similar ? Are there parallels between the two ? Are they opposites ?

My goal is to become competent in database applications. I need to be marketable, and my guess at the moment is that database administrators, and particularly those who can implement the various goals of the users, will have some sort of job for the next 30 or 40 years, which is how long I would like to work.

keme · Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 7:48 am Post subject:

Base is essentially a "database frontend", providing tools e.g. to make forms and making data available to other applications. It also has tools to work with the data, essentially communicationg with the "backend", or database engine.

When you work with a "native" OOo.Base database, you actually run an integrated HSQLDB database engine. MySQL and PostgreSQL are two other freely available database engines, or SQL server softwares, in widespread use.

DB engines often come in two flavors, the "full server" (typically running on dedicated hardware and providing advanced features like user authentication, granular rights management, multiple databases and multiple concurrent access) and the "lite" version (typically running locally as an integrated part of a dedicated database application, and with limited capacity and functionality).

The database backend (engine, or server) takes care of the storage and retrieval of data, while the database frontend (user application) handles presentation and interfacing (e.g. relaying the data to other applications).

A1 · General User Joined: 01 Apr 2011 Posts: 8

Okay, so my vocabulary is clearly lacking. My understanding of the basic concepts is also lacking; pretty severely.

I thought that "database" meant...

-- A program for the user to design the framework of the system
-- A program for the participants to enter and retrieve data
-- The reports that the participants need
-- The ancillary files which the users and participants create and use for their purposes.

Obviously, I have a lot to study