Data storage and management functions of computers applied in organizations could be conducted by now outdated file-based and database approaches. The file-based system is a less sophisticated and more expensive method of data handling. A firm system under this manner has a variety of software applications, each of which is intended to process data files. These computer programs were created at the demand of the institution’s members. As new programs are required, they are incorporated (Watt, 2014). The database approach is a novel method for handling vast volumes of corporate data. That information might be typed, recorded, or stored on a computer using a variety of file types and formats. The ideal approach to save data is to use operational database software. This is an advanced software application that lets users save, change, and recover information (Watt, 2014). Thus, the file-based approach requires more work from the programmers due to its inability to operate with different types of files simultaneously, while database systems make it possible to use one software for all files.
Assuming there is a fictional retail business, a supermarket Volsen, both approaches would have influenced that organization’s data collection process. First, in the file-based approach, the programmers would have to create several applications for managing text and media files (for the marketing department’s advertisements) and for working with tables that store, for example, product and sales data. While the data would be optimized via a database approach, the file-based system could create multiple unnecessary copies of files. The database may allow making changes that are in all related materials, while the file-based data should be edited file by file. Finally, the database could secure the supermarket’s data, which is essential for competitive advantages, while available for all needed employees.
Reference
Watt, A. (2014). Chapter 1 before the advent of database systems. Pressbooks. Web.