This exceptional work provides readers with an introduction to the state-of-the-art research on data warehouse design, with many references to more detailed sou... » 

This exceptional work provides readers with an introduction to the state-of-the-art research on data warehouse design, with many references to more detailed sources. Giving a clear and a concise presentation of the major concepts and results of conceptual data warehouse design, it can also be used as the basis of a graduate or advanced undergraduate course. Malinowski and Zimányi explain conventional data warehouse design in detail, and additionally address two innovative domains recently introduced to extend the capabilities of data warehouse systems: namely, the management of spatial and temporal information.

Their presentation covers different phases, such as requirements specification, and conceptual, logical, and physical modeling. They include three different approaches for requirements specification depending on whether users, operational data sources, or both are the driving force in the requirements gathering process. The book also shows how each approach leads to the creation of a conceptual multidimensional model. The text is illustrated with many real-world examples and completed by sample implementations for Microsoft's Analysis Services 2005 and Oracle 10g with the OLAP and the Spatial extensions.

For researchers this book serves as an introduction to the state-of-the-art research on data warehouse design, with many references to more detailed sources. Providing a clear and a concise presentation of the major concepts and results of conceptual data warehouse design, it can also be used as the basis of a graduate or advanced undergraduate course. Finally, experts in spatial databases or in geographical information systems could benefit from the sample implementations and the data warehouse vision for building innovative spatial analytical applications. «