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Foreword Since I am more comfortable with creative writing and fiction, I decided to write this paper as a short story about three members of the Database Family. The story is narrated by the youngest member, who is observing the interaction between the three great women. The characters are Hier, Nettie, and Rela. Heir will discuss the workings of the Hierarchal database, including its history, failures, and successes. Nettie, short for Network, will further explain when the Network Database family began and how it is used in today’s world of information technology. Rela will further engage us by discussing the greatness of the Relational database clan. Yes, I could have made them patriarchs of the family but I am a strong believer that women rule the world. Having said that, let’s go to dinner with Heir, Nettie, and Rela. Let your imagination run free. Dinnertime with Hier, Nettie, and Rela It was a great October day, one of my favorite months, never too hot or too cool, but perfect for outdoor adventures. Today the air had a fresh clean smell. The humidity of the summer lingered gently in the background as the aroma of the fall season began to take effect. The wind nestled in the trees and a humble breeze settled across the pale blue sky. It was the beginning of the evening while the day was still clear enough to see the settling of the sun. I scrambled to the edge of the hallway in my jammies. There was so much about our family history to hear and this was the opportunity of a lifetime. Hier, Nettie and Rela, the oldest members of the Database family, were sitting down to discuss the finer things of life. I could see a small ray of sun break through the slightly opened blinds and crease across Hier’s dusty lid, when she began to speak. “I am the oldest of the database models. Back in those days, we really didn’t give too much attention to writing things down, so the initial date of my conception and birth is unclear. But suffice it to say, I came about between the 50’s and 60’s, way before your time, Rela, and, I have crossed more bridges and roads than you can ever imagine.” Rela made a slight chuckle. Rela felt she was the “be all” and “end all” of the database family and she had no use for Hier’s stories. However, she would show her the respect of listening to her again. Hier continued: “When I laid out all the data sets in a tree fashion, the developers felt a great sense of accomplishment. Finally, I had given some order to databases. My data is hierarchically-arranged in the form of parent-child relationships. The key thing was that I took an upside down approach by establishing the root of the tree as the parent or top. Now, a parent could have multiple children but a child could only have one parent.” Hier took a deep slow breath. Her arthritic hands trembled as she spoke. She was still a very strong database, but currently, she was limited to the legacy systems of certain banks and insurance companies.
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