GlossaryGuide

In programming, engineering, and many other contexts, “entity” is used to refer to units, whether concrete things or abstract ideas, that have no specific names. One can draw something and refer to that drawing as the representation of an entity.

An integrated, technology-driven approach to managing enterprise resources, whether they are cash, raw materials, or personnel. ERP is a strategic tool to help an organization integrate all its business processes and data.

Refers to extraction, transformation, and loading of data from enterprise resource planning (ERP) (see below) systems to other data sources. Software tools that perform this function are generally batch or point-in-time products designed for initial or ongoing loading of data warehouses.

An organizational unit or entity made up of business functions, divisions, or other components that perform various responsibilities to achieve a common objective. The terms “enterprise database” and “enterprise modeling” are used, respectively, to describe data and the method used to understand their relationships across an enterprise environment.

A method of modeling linear features for various applications including highway analysis. Dynamic segmentation is a process for determining the locations of events on linear features (e.g., highway segments) at run time, straight from the tables of features for which distance measures are available and without changing the underlying data structure. For transportation infrastructure management,… Continue reading Dynamic Segmentation

Keeping track of stored documents that are either (1) created by a computer using word processing, spreadsheet, or other software; (2) scanned into a computer and converted to computer code by optical character recognition software; or (3) scanned into a computer and saved in a computer image format. Document management systems provide the ability to… Continue reading Document Management

A database that consists of two or more data files located at different sites on a computer network. Because the database is distributed, different users can access it without interfering with one another (see also interoperable database). In transportation agencies, distributed databases enable multiple individuals in separate locations to run different applications using the same… Continue reading Distributed Database

An information processing and analysis tool that accesses or queries the source database or data warehouse across a network using an appropriate database interface. The desktop application manages the human interface between data sources and data users.

A generic term used to refer to a computer system or software that supports data analysis, reporting, and other data processing capabilities to help an organization or enterprise (see definition of enterprise) make informed decisions.

Often used interchangeably to refer to hardware or software. Both uses pertain to the same principle—a database architecture prepared to receive requests from a third party, or client, and respond to those requests by delivering a particular type of information. In either case, appropriate software is the core of the system. Referring to a piece… Continue reading Database Server