I have two questions related to theory, practice, or principles of
designing an application's schema for a relational database.
- Is it true that a graph (as in graph theory, nodes and edges), when
represented recursively in a schema, is considered a nemesis to DBAs
and application developers? Or are such schemas considered "routine"
for skilled DBAs and application developers?
- For a given application, suppose you had a choice between a schema
that was domain centric, or a schema that took the various domain
"entities" and abstracted them into a graph (see question #A). Suppose
the "graph" schema was (1) half the size (2) more data-driven and (3)
seemingly easier to do application development with. Would that be
sufficient cause to choose the "graph" flavored schema? Or is it a
well understood database principle and practice to avoid such
"temptations" in favor of the domain centric schema? Why?
Received on Mon Nov 13 2006 - 04:16:10 CST
