What are Temporal Databases? How databases automatically retain history (temporal data).

A temporal database is one that includes special support for the time dimension, allowing it to store data with history and time as an inherent dimension of the data. It supports facilities for storing, querying and updating historical and/or future data. Using libraries like 4DFLib, an open source proof of concept we can easily create and manage time sensitive data stores. This video focuses on temporal databases conceptually, the next video in this series shows how a library like 4DFLib can be created to manage time sensitive data in any database system. You can see that video here: https://youtu.be/AzwVJLV9EWo

I personally believe that the reason we do not have full temporal databases as standard today where are all tables / entities automatically retain historical information is because there has not been a good implementation found at the database layer. I believe this implementation can exist as a lower level software layer above or part of the object relational mapping (ORM) layer. My open source library, 4DFLib is intended to be a proof of concept of how such an implementation might happen.

You can find the 4DFLib library here: https://github.com/briangormanly/4dflib

There is also an example java application that implements it to show how it can be used here: https://github.com/briangormanly/4dflib-bcs-example

I created a video tutorial using the example above that walks you through using 4DFLib:
Part 1: https://youtu.be/feeob229LIM
Part 2: https://youtu.be/qFVFb2ThnU8
Part 3: https://youtu.be/7RSItEj-S3M

I also have a related short series on ORM if you are not familiar with or would like to refresh on the concepts:
Part 1: https://youtu.be/W3nKP-X8B04
Part 2: https://youtu.be/kUwp5OgnYHk

This video is part of a full semester graduate course given on databases and application integration: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0_aoTs5sGaT_Wt2rVDcnADcHphvI40Co

Additional Reading / References:
Date, Christopher John, Hugh Darwen, and Nikos Lorentzos. Time and relational theory: temporal databases in the relational model and SQL. Morgan Kaufmann, 2014.

Snodgrass, Richard T. Developing time-oriented database applications in SQL. Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, 2000.

Please like this video and subscribe to my channel to receive updates on this project: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8fdekVhEilBTuBK322WjVw?sub_confirmation=1

Link to slides used in this presentation: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QloH0rd4Fr1uiAibQIyejqiZA29dBDaF/view?usp=sharing

Book used in this course: Garcia-Molina, Hector. Database systems: the complete book. Pearson Education India, 2008.
https://www.amazon.com/Database-Systems-Complete-Book-2nd/dp/0131873253/ref=sr_1_2?crid=38MK4U2O16QLU&dchild=1&keywords=database+systems+the+complete+book%2C+2nd+edition&qid=1597852607&sprefix=database+systems+the+compl%2Caps%2C155&sr=8-2

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