One of the most fertile grounds for disagreement among database systems professionals is the appropriate usage of views. The way views can be utilized to provide the greatest benefit is somewhat disputed. Some analysts promote the liberal creation and usage of views, whereas others preach a more conservative approach.
Views are wonderful tools that ease data access and system development when used prudently. Views are basically simple to create and implement, but unfortunately a systematic and logical approach to view creation is not usually taken, thereby causing the advantages of views to become muddled and misunderstood. As you read this book you will come to understand that views are very useful when implemented wisely but can be an administrative burden if implemented without planning.
Along the way you will learn what views are, as well as how they compare with other, similar database structures. And a series of specific rules for view creation and usage will be presented to help guide your database and application development efforts.