NB Orbis and such, what are they

[Daniel Say say@xxxxxxxx]

      Re: the NB deal for Xy users. What is
	Orbis and is it really a database or ...?,
	Dorothy Day while on the other side of the
	mountain from XY explained:

Sender: notabene@xxxxxxxx
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From: Dorothy Day 
To: Multiple recipients of list NOTABENE 

Subject: Re: data bases

On Tue, 5 Oct 1999 tsettle@xxxxxxxx wrote:

>  A gap in my own knowledge which I hope someone can begin to dispell.
>
>  Both Ibidem and Orbis are databases, right?

Yes, but Orbis is a "textbase," free-form text indexed in "chunks" of
your choice (default delimiter being a hard carriage return/paragraph
marker), while Ibidem is entirely structured by tagged fields (though
some fields have very long size limits). Orbis does handle a couple of
tagged fields, but is mostly free-form.

>  Are they hierarchical or relational db's?

Definitely not relational. That would involve creating different
"tables" containing different types of data, any two tables associated
by some common field. Changing the content of one field in one record in
one table then updates the corresponding data in associated tables.
Ibidem is simply what is referred to as a "flat-file" database.

> Are their ways of telling
> the difference from superficial characteristics, from what we actually
> see on the screen?

The NBWin interface may make the two appear similar, but that's just in
the way the retrieved items are displayed, not the way the two types are
fundamentally structured. If you view the actual files, you'll see the
tags at the beginning of each field in Ibidem, and the field delimiter
at the end of each field, plus the record separator between each record.
Orbis files are generally just text, with e.g. one or two carriage
returns delimiting the chunks returned when a searched term occurs in
the chuck.

> What is the core of the difference between the two,
> or is that a silly question? Is there a place I can go on line with
> a beginning introduction on the subject?
>

Well, the original Ibid and Orbis printed manuals are your best guide,
but if you want to read up on the two types, the terms flat-file
database and free-form database would be the ones to look for.

Ask Sam is something of a hybrid: a free-form database system that
handles more tagged fields than Orbis, but correspondingly less flexible
(though adherents would no doubt disagree).

	Dorothy

*****
Dorothy Day			
School of Library and Information Science
Indiana University
day@xxxxxxxx	
*****
	"He also surfs who only sits and waits."