Database Systems

Project Proposal

DATABASE PROPOSAL MILESTONE:

Sub-milestone deadline: Sunday February 1, 11:59 pm, by e-mail

Overall milestone deadline: Friday, February 6th, 3:30 pm, turn in project notebook

NOTE: you should not be mentioning tables or relations at this point at all.

Sub-milestone:

e-mailed to bressoud@denison.edu by 11:59 pm on Sunday, February 1st, with

Subject: 377 project scenario

*    Write at least two full paragraphs that clearly define and describe the scenario for which you want to design a database. This is not talking about the problems to be solved --- that's later in the proposal --- nor should it describe the database you want to build. It should describe the setting for the eventual database --- this is description, background, backstory --- and it should include description of the people/users involved. 

*    Write at least three business rules for your proposed project scenario --- operational, day-to-day "rules of thumb" in your project scenario. They should be user-oriented, and not database-oriented. "A student must sign up for at least 1 class, and no more than 8", for example.

Overall milestone: 

*    Inside a 3-ring binder with 10 dividers and one pocket, you should have the following (!!! is placed before those sections whose contents will be particularly significant in grading this milestone):

*   your last name, and 'CS-377 Spring 2004', must appear neatly on BOTH the front of the binder and on its spine.

!!!*   the first divider should be neatly labeled, on its tab, as proposal

*   after that divider should be your typed database proposal, including your name and the date, in which you:

*   clearly define and describe the scenario for which you want to design a database. This is not talking about the problems to be solved --- that's the next proposal part! This is description, background, backstory --- and it should include description of the people/users involved. It is too short if it is not at least two full paragraphs. (You turned in a draft of this for Sub-milestone above --- this should be your polished version of that draft.)

*   clearly define and describe the major problem(s) that the users in the given scenario would like solved (at  least one separate, full paragraph).

*   include a list of specific examples of at least five significantly-different questions that the users of your proposed system would like to be able to have answered using your completed database (separate from the above paragraphs, and written in the form of a numbered or bulleted list).

*   include a list of specific examples of at least three significantly-different kinds of reports that the users of your proposed  system would like to be able to generate using your completed database (separate from the above paragraphs, and written in the form of a numbered or bulleted list)  Note that a report is different from a question --- it includes more than one row or column of information, for example.

*   discuss the feasibility of your proposal (at least one full paragraph). Do you think your proposal is feasible/doable? Why or why not? What possible problems do you foresee?

*   specify any assumptions you need to make (if appropriate).  

Please note: I will be looking at your proposals carefully and will attempt to deduce whether they are likely to result in a database that meets the minimum structural requirements mentioned earlier (at least 5 distinct, significant entities, and at least 4 relationships, at least one of which is many-to-one, at least one of which is many-to-many).  You will not be addressing these requirements specifically in your proposal, however, because that is not appropriate for this stage. You will make sure that they are met in your database model in the next milestone.

I will not accept proposals that seem unlikely to result in a database meeting these minimum requirements. Proposals that are not accepted must be modified so that they are acceptable, and please note that subsequent deadlines will not be changed as a result. Proposals also may be conditionally accepted --- this means that I think they could meet the requirements, but it depends on how you proceed. Whether proposals are accepted or not, however, you must meet these minimum requirements as you proceed.

I will try to note if a project looks too large/ambitious, but you should also be warned that such judgments are very tricky to make.