Chapter 15 Final Study

ActiveX Data Objects (ADO)

A Microsoft object framework that provides a high-level, application-oriented interface to OLE-DB, DAO, and RDO. ADO provides a unified interface to access data from any programming language that uses the underlying OLE-DB objects.

Common Gateway Interface (CGI)

A Web server interface standard that uses script files to perform specific functions based on a client's parameters.

VBScript

A client-side extension in the form of a Microsoft product that extends a browser's functionality; VBScript is derived from Visual Basic.

Microsoft .NET framework

A component-based platform for the development of distributed, heterogeneous, interoperable applications aimed at manipulating any type of data over any network regardless of operating system and programming language.

cloud computing

A computing model that provides ubiquitous, on-demand access to a shared pool of configurable resources that can be rapidly provisioned.

Web-to-database middleware

A database server-side extension that retrieves data from databases and passes them to the Web server, which in turn sends the data to the client's browser for display.

XML schema definition (XSD)

A file that contains the description of an XML document.

document type definition (DTD)

A file with a .dtd extension that describes XML elements; in effect, a DTD file describes a document's composition and defines the syntax rules or valid tags for each type of XML document.

private cloud

A form of cloud computing in which an internal cloud is built by an organization to serve its own needs.

public cloud

A form of computing in which the cloud infrastructure is built by a third-party organization to sell cloud services to the general public.

Remote Data Objects (RDO)

A higher-level, object-oriented application interface used to access remote database servers. RDO uses the lower-level DAO and ODBC for direct access to databases. RDO was optimized to deal with server-based databases such as MS SQL Server, Oracle, and DB2.

Extensible Markup Language (XML)

A metalanguage used to represent and manipulate data elements. Unlike other markup languages, XML permits the manipulation of a document's data elements. XML facilitates the exchange of structured documents such as orders and invoices over the Internet.

Web application server

A middleware application that expands the functionality of Web servers by linking them to a wide range of services, such as databases, directory systems, and search engines.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

A model in which the cloud service provider can build and deploy consumer-created applications using the provider's cloud infrastructure.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

A model in which the cloud service provider offers consumers the ability to provision their own resources on demand; these resources include storage, servers, databases, processing units, and even a complete virtualized desktop.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

A model in which the cloud service provider offers turnkey applications that run in the cloud.

data source name (DSN)

A name that identifies and defines an ODBC data source.

server-side extension

A program that interacts directly with the server process to handle specific types of requests. Server-side extensions add significant functionality to Web servers and intranets.

script

A programming language that is not compiled, but is interpreted and executed at run time.

JavaScript

A scripting language developed by Netscape that allows Web authors to design interactive Websites. JavaScript code is embedded in Web pages, and then downloaded with the page and activated when a specific event takes place, such as a mouse click on an object.

XSL (Extensible Style Language)

A specification used to define the rules by which XML data are formatted and displayed. The XSL specification is divided into two parts: Extensible Style Language Transformations and XSL style sheets.

Call Level Interface (CLI)

A standard developed by the SQL Access Group for database access.

stateless system

A system in which a Web server does not know the status of the clients communicating with it. The Web does not reserve memory to maintain an open communications state between the client and the server.

community cloud

A type of cloud built by and for a specific group of organizations that share a common trade, such as agencies of the federal government, the military, or higher education.

XML schema

An advanced data definition language used to describe the elements, data types, relationship types, ranges, and default values of XML data documents. One of the main advantages of an XML schema is that it more closely maps to database terminology and features.

object-oriented programming (OOP)

An alternative to conventional programming methods based on object-oriented concepts. It reduces programming time and lines of code and increases programmers' productivity.

Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)

An application programming interface that allows a Java program to interact with a wide range of data sources, including relational databases, tabular data sources, spreadsheets, and text files.

Data Access Objects (DAO)

An object-oriented application programming interface used to access MS Access, MS FoxPro, and dBase databases from Visual Basic programs. DAO provides an optimized programming interface that exposes the functionality of the Jet data engine, on which MS Access is based. The DAO interface can be used to access other relational-style data sources.

Java

An object-oriented programming language developed by Sun Microsystems that runs on top of the Web browser software. Java applications are compiled and stored on the Web server. Java's main advantage is its ability to let application developers create their applications once and then run them in many environments.

Object Linking and Embedding for Database

Based on Microsoft's Component Object Model, OLE-DB is database middleware that adds object-oriented functionality for accessing relational and nonrelational data. OLE-DB was the first part of Microsoft's strategy to provide a unified object-oriented framework for the development of next-generation applications.

SQL data services (SDS)

Data management services that provide relational data storage, access, and management over the Internet.

database middleware

Database connectivity software through which application programs connect and communicate with data repositories.

Open Database Connectivity (ODBC)

Database middleware developed by Microsoft to provide a database access API to Windows applications.

XSL style sheets

Documents that are similar to presentation templates and that define the presentation rules applied to XML elements. The XSL style sheet describes the formatting options to apply to XML elements when they are displayed on a browser, cellular phone, PDA screen, and so on.

client-side extensions

Extensions that add functionality to a Web browser. The most common extensions are plug-ins, Java, JavaScript, ActiveX, and VBScript.

DataSet

In ADO.NET, a disconnected, memory-resident representation of the database. The DataSet contains tables, columns, rows, relationships, and constraints.

tag

In markup languages such as HTML and XML, a command inserted in a document to specify how the document should be formatted. Tags are used in server-side markup languages and interpreted by a Web browser for presenting data.

plug-in

In the World Wide Web, a client-side, external application that is automatically invoked by the browser when needed to manage specific types of data.

ActiveX

Microsoft's alternative to Java. A specification for writing programs that will run inside the Microsoft client browser, Internet Explorer. Oriented mainly to Windows applications, it is not portable. It adds controls such as drop-down windows and calendars to Web pages.

dynamic-link libraries (DLLs)

Shared code modules that are treated as part of the operating system or server process so they can be dynamically invoked at run time.

application programming interface (API)

Software through which programmers interact with middleware. An API allows the use of generic SQL code, thereby allowing client processes to be database server-independent.

ADO.NET

The data access component of Microsoft's .NET application development framework, which is a component-based platform for developing distributed, heterogeneous, and interoperable applications aimed at manipulating any type of data over any network using any operating system and programming language.

XSLT (Extensible Style Language Transformations)

The general mechanism used to extract and process data from one XML document and enable its transformation within another document.

cloud services

The services provided by cloud computing. Cloud services allow any organization to quickly and economically add information technology services such as applications, storage, servers, processing power, databases, and infrastructure.

Universal Data Access (UDA)

Within the Microsoft application framework, a collection of technologies used to access any type of data source and to manage the data through a common interface.