<specification, business, programming> (EJB) A {server}-side
	{component architecture} for writing reusable {business logic}
	and {portable} {enterprise} applications.  EJB is the basis of
	{Sun}'s {Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition} (J2EE).

	Enterprise JavaBean components are written entirely in {Java}
	and run on any EJB compliant server.  They are {operating
	system}, {platform}, and {middleware} independent, preventing
	vendor {lock-in}.

	EJB servers provide system-level services (the "plumbing")
	such as {transactions}, security, {threading}, and
	{persistence}.

	The EJB architecture is inherently transactional,
	{distributed}, {multi-tier}, {scalable}, secure, and {wire
	protocol} neutral - any {protocol} can be used: {IIOP},
	{JRMP}, {HTTP}, {DCOM} etc.  EJB 1.1 requires {RMI} for
	communication with components.  EJB 2.0 is expected to require
	support for RMI/IIOP.

	EJB applications can serve assorted clients: {browsers}, Java,
	{ActiveX}, {CORBA} etc.  EJB can be used to wrap {legacy
	systems}.

	EJB 1.1 was released in December 1999.  EJB 2.0 is in
	development.

	Sun claims broad industry adoption.  30 vendors are shipping
	server products implementing EJB.  Supporting vendors include
	{IBM}, {Fujitsu}, {Sybase}, {Borland}, {Oracle}, and
	{Symantec}.

	An alternative is Microsoft's MTS ({Microsoft Transaction
	Server}).

	{Home (http://java.sun.com/products/ejb/)}.

	{FAQ (http://java.sun.com/products/ejb/faq.html)}.

	(2000-04-20)

1. <database> One or more large structured sets of persistent
	data, usually associated with software to update and {query}
	the data.  A simple database might be a single file containing
	many {records}, each of which contains the same set of
	{fields} where each field is a certain fixed width.

	A database is one component of a {database management system}.

	See also {ANSI/SPARC Architecture}, {atomic}, {blob}, {data
	definition language}, {deductive database}, {distributed
	database}, {fourth generation language}, {functional
	database}, {object-oriented database}, {relational database}.

	{Carol E. Brown's tutorial
	(http://accounting.rutgers.edu/raw/aies/www.bus.orst.edu/faculty/brownc/lectures/db_tutor/db_tutor.htm)}.

	2. <hypertext> A collection of {nodes} managed and stored in
	one place and all accessible via the same {server}.  {Links}
	outside this are "external", and those inside are "internal".

	On the {World-Wide Web} this is called a {website}.

	3. All the facts and rules comprising a {logic programming}
	program.

	(2005-11-17)

<file system> An element of data storage in a {file system}.

	The history of computing is rich in varied kinds of files and
	{file systems}, whether ornate (e.g., {Macintosh file system}
	for a well-known case) or deficient (e.g., many simple
	pre-1980s file systems don't allow {directories}).

	However, the prototypical file has these characteristics:

	* It is a single sequence of bytes (but consider {Macintosh}
	{resource forks}).

	* It has a finite length, unlike, e.g. a {Unix} {device}.

	* It is stored in a {non-volatile storage} medium (but see
	{ramdrive}).

	* It exists (nominally) in a {directory}.

	* It has a name that it can be referred to by in file
	operations, possibly in combination with its {path}.

	Additionally, a file system may associate other information
	with a file, such as {permission} bits or other {file
	attributes}; timestamps for file creation, last revision, and
	last access; revision numbers (a` la VMS), and other kinds of
	{magic}.

	Compare: {document}.

	(1997-04-08)