Types of Database Users

Different Types of Database Users:

The users of a database system can be classified into the following groups, depending on their degree of expertise or the mode of their interactions with the DBMS. The users can be:

1. Native Users
2. Online Users
3. Application Programmers
4. Database Administrators

Native Users:

Native Users are those users who need not be aware of the presence of the database system or any other system supporting their usage. A user of an Automatic Teller Machine fails in this category. The user is instructed through each step of a transaction. He or she then responds by pressing a coded key or entering a numeric value.

The operations that can be performed by native users are very limited and affect only a precise portion of the database. For example, in the case of the user of the Automatic Teller Machine, the user’s action affects only one or more of his accounts. Native users are end users of the database who work through a menu-driven application program where the type and range of response are always indicated to the user.

Online Users:

Online users are those who may communicate with the database directly via an online terminal or indirectly via a user interface and application program. These users are aware of the presence of the database system and may have acquired a certain amount of expertise within the limited interaction they are permitted with a database.

Application Programmers:

Professional programmers are those who are responsible for developing application programs or user interface. The application programs could be written in a general-purpose programming language or the commands available to manipulate a database.

Database Administrators:

Database Administration is implemented by a person or group of persons under the supervision of a knowledgeable person called the Administrator. This person is known as Database Administrator (DBA). Is responsible for supervising the creation, modification, and maintenance of the database. The DBA controls the database structure and sets up the definition for physical as well as the logical implementation of the database.