Entities

The modeling and analysis facilities in iBase are based on the concepts of entities and links. Entities are the things that are being represented, such as people, vehicles, and addresses. Links represent relationships between entities, such as owner, daughter, associate, or account holder.

The different entity types and the details that are held for each (in the entity fields) are already defined by the database designer in iBase Designer.

In Database Explorer, select an entity type to display the fields for that entity type in the Explorer Detail.

There is one record in the database for each entity and link in the database, and each record has a unique record number. Generally, you create entities and then the links between the entities.

You can add entities to the database or case:

On an individual basis
By importing them
By using a custom data sheet, in which case you can enter an entity and its links in one operation.

To speed up the entry of data, you can set up:

Session defaults to automatically insert data into those fields that are common to all the entities and link types in the database, for example for a source reference field.
Lists, such as code lists and pick lists, to include those values that you use frequently.