ER/Studio - Embarcadero Technologies Product Documentation

GLOSSARY
Denormalization: The intentional modification of a data model to a lower-level normal form. Denormalization is
usually undertaken to achieve improved performance in implementing a physical design.
Dependent Entity: An entity is a dependent entity when its primary key contains foreign keys.
Derived Attribute: An attribute whose value can be determined from the values of other attributes.
Descendent: An entity that receives some or all of its primary keys as foreign keys from other entities.
Descriptor: A non-key attribute or column.
Determinant: An attribute or group attribute on which another attribute is fully functionally dependent.
Diagram: The data model in its entirety, including its logical and physical designs.
Discriminator: An attribute of a supertype that distinguishes general differences between associated subtypes.
Document Type Definition (DTD): The Document Type Definition (DTD) is another XML schema language. The
DTD is a description in XML Declaration Syntax of a particular type or class of documents. It defines what names are
used for certain element type, where they may occur, and how the elements fit together and ensures that all
documents conforming to the DTD are constructed and named in a consistent manner. Validators in applications such
as editors, search engines, browsers, and databases can read the DTD before reading the XML file in order to prepare
to display or otherwise work with the XML document.
Domain: The valid values than an attribute can take.
E
Edge: Diagram auto-layout term.The relationship connecting two entities.
Entity: A distinguishable person, place, thing, event or concept about which information is kept.
Entity Instance: A single occurrence or member of an entity.
Existence: The determination of whether a foreign key value inherited from a parent entity should always be
required in the child entity. A relationship’s existence can be either optional or mandatory.
F
Forward Engineering: The process of converting a logical model to a physical design for deployment on a
database platform.
Foreign Key: A primary key or non-key attribute that is inherited from another entity.
Foreign Key Migration: The process of propagating foreign keys from parent entities to child entities based on
relationship rules.
Function: SQL code that can be used to check the validity of data being entered in the database. A function accepts
a number of parameters and passes back a single value to the calling program.
EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES > ER/STUDIO® 8.0.3 USER GUIDE 411