In recent years, database management systems have grown increasingly unwieldy as software companies attempt to incorporate a wider and wider range of functionality. Now the trend is towards componentization -- "unbundling" these behemoths and repackaging their features so customers can select, pay for, and assemble only what they need.

Component Database Systems is a collection of papers from the researchers making the most influential contributions to this effort. Though these readings tend towards the theoretical, almost all represent the very practical directions taken by leading database vendors to establish a commercially viable componentization strategy. This book therefore has great appeal for practitioners with a stake in the near-future of the evolution of the database industry -- both technically savvy IT managers and product developers whose responsibilities require that they look ahead to technology likely to become widely available over the next two or three years.

Chapter 1 - Component Database Systems: Introduction, Foundations and Overview
Chapter 2 - Distributed Component Database Management Systems
Chapter 3 - All Your Data: The Oracle Extensibility Architecture
Chapter 4 - Extensible Indexing Support in DB2 Universal Database
Chapter 5 - Enabling Component Databases with OLE DB
Chapter 6 - An Architecture for Transparent Access to Diverse Data Sources
Chapter 7 Building Component Database Systems Using CORBA
Chapter 8 - The Architecture of a Database System for Mobile and Embedded Devices
Chapter 9 - Conclusions and Perspectives