Tables are the basic structures within databases that
are used to store data. Each database table consists
of rows and columns. Each column in the database table
contains similarly grouped information while each row
in the database table contains associated data.
To illustrate the concept of the database table consider
the sample table design and data below:
lastname firstname dateofbirth
-------- --------- -----------
henry john 03/05/1960
smith adam 06/08/1974
johnson mary 04/01/1955
bailey harry 05/05/1980
morgan alex 09/09/1975
The sample table contains 5 rows of data. Each row contains
3 columns. As the number of customers grow, more rows
are added into the customer table - 1 row for each customer.
Each row contains the data associated with a single
customer. For example, the first row in the sample database
table contains 3 pieces of information - the last name,
the first name and the date of birth - associated with
a customer named John Henry.
Each column in the database contain similar information
although the belong to different customers. For example,
the first column in the sample database table contains
only last name information for all five customers.
