All our everyday activities are now heavily noted on Databases. You may not be aware of much of this, but lots of the actions we perform each day are recorded, filed & saved in a number of ways. 'Databases' store & produce 'data' on our country's complete economic system. Share values and property records are all enormous databases of information, & whilst a lot of important information is also saved in physical documents, it's also stored (or at least indexed) 'digitally' for easy access. Whenever you use a credit card or debit card to pay for something, that information is documented on a Database. Did you know that the reason you get specific money-off vouchers from your regular supermarket is because they have saved your buying patterns on their database & know what's very likely to tempt you? The actual DVLAs vehicle registration database can be used all over the place; call at a garage & request a part - and they will tell you the correct model from the car registration number. The Capital's congestion charging system, and the government's road-tax avoidance scheme also use this data, by working with the street cameras that we find almost everywhere.

Around the world, the leading database systems are Oracle and Microsoft 'SQL' Server. Many big installations still make use of the older 'Oracle' System, but 'SQL' Server is now the favourite System in the majority of commercial environments, & where on-line Databases are concerned it rules the roost. Naturally, as 'SQL' Server is owned by Microsoft, the organisation has built it into all of its platforms and programs. For all those planning to become vendor certified therefore, this is the natural path to take. Accreditations have now been updated, & the 'MCDBA' ('Microsoft Certified Database Administrator') has been succeeded by the 'MCITP' (Microsoft Certified IT Professional) & the MCTS ('Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist'). SQL Server '08 is beginning to gain some momentum, but it is not extensively used in the commercial arena yet. As a result, the MCITP DBA training uses the more popular SQL Server 2005. In keeping with several of Microsoft's other certifications, quite a few MCTS modules precede the full 'MCITP'.

We've shown that databases really are a major part of our society, so what sort of career-paths are there within this industry? Typically, from an I.T. point of view, there are 2 main aspects of Database professions: The first involves the formation and construction of the actual software that databases operate on, and the second entails the administration work needed to make use of the information filed on them. Database Administrators are more often referred to as DBA's, and this position is generally in most demand. Usually it is the mid to large establishments which need to employ DBA's, as they need them to over-see their operations on a daily basis. They'll handle the operations which impact the information, including 'security' & backing-up, & talk with management to provide reporting - so that the company can take advantage of that 'intelligence' to function better. The 'language' of Databases is known as SQL, which means Structured Query Language. DBAs need to understand this 'language' so that they can interrogate the database and extract the necessary information.

Both DBAs and DB developers are often decidedly thorough & orderly people, that have a great attention to the details, and enjoy doing work within small teams, or by themselves. The work frequently involves reporting to company managers, & so confident communication-skills will be required. Database Management is a very responsible career, as Security needs more and more vigilance in this field of work. A high standard of personal ethic and professional reliability will undoubtedly be necessary - and in some areas you may need some type of security clearance. Men and women who've recently worked in business 'processing' or accounting positions frequently prosper in Database Management. Many DBAs gain very good promotions to higher office because they inherently build up their business-management skills.

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