Distributed database meta-translation technology: review and potential

Since the mid-1980s the authors have been researching the development of query and schema inter-translation tools to facilitate inter-operability between database systems at member sites of heterogeneous distributed database (HDD) environments, using the automatic tool generation approach known as meta-translation the work has resulted in a query meta-translation system (QMTS) (D.I. Howells et al., 1987; 1988; W.A. Gray et al., 1990), for translating relational queries into non-relational or other relational form equivalents, and a schema meta-translation system (SMTS) (A. Ramfos et al., 1989; 1991), for translating non-relational, particularly object-oriented (O-O), schemas into relational equivalents. The usefulness of the technology developed has also been demonstrated by its successful application in an industrial context. From their experience, the authors are able to propose extensions and consolidations to this technology that will produce a fully integrated inter-site translation support environment (ITSE) for HDDs, which will facilitate complete inter-operability. The authors review previous research and briefly outline the way forward towards realising such a support environment