(computer science) A set of data items pertaining to information of one kind, such as months of a year.
| Sci-Tech Dictionary: data element |
(computer science) A set of data items pertaining to information of one kind, such as months of a year.
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| Computer Desktop Encyclopedia: data element |
The fundamental data structure in a data processing system. Any unit of data defined for processing is a data element; for example, ACCOUNT NUMBER, NAME, ADDRESS and CITY. A data element is defined by size (in characters) and type (alphanumeric, numeric only, true/false, date, etc.). A specific set of values or range of values may also be part of the definition.
Technically, a data element is a logical definition of data, whereas a field is the physical unit of storage in a record. For example, the data element ACCOUNT NUMBER, which exists only once, is stored in the ACCOUNT NUMBER field in each customer record and in the ACCOUNT NUMBER field in each order record. See field.
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| Military Dictionary: data element |
(DOD) 1. A basic unit of information built on standard structures having a unique meaning and distinct units or values. 2. In electronic recordkeeping, a combination of characters or bytes referring to one separate item of information, such as name, address, or age.
| Wikipedia: Data element |
In metadata, the term data element is an atomic unit of data that has precise meaning or precise semantics. A data element has:
Data elements usage can be discovered by inspection of software applications or application data files through a process of manual or automated Application Discovery and Understanding. Once data elements are discovered they can be registered in a metadata registry.
In telecommunication, the term data element has the following components:
In the areas of databases and data systems more generally a data element is a concept forming part of a data model. As an element of data representation, a collection of data elements forms a data structure [1].
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In practice data elements (fields, columns, attributes, etc.) are sometimes "over loaded" meaning a given data element will have multiple potential meanings. While a known bad practice, nevertheless over loading is a very real factor or barrier to understanding what a system is doing.
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