Library Manager Database

Project Title

Library Manager a simple command line database manager for handling library resources.

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to design and implement a relational database for managing a digital library system. The database will allow users to:

• Search for books
• View author information
• Borrow books
• Track loan history

This system is intended to streamline library operations and provide users with an intuitive way to interact with library resources.

---

Scope

The database will support the following core functionalities:

• Store information about books and their authors
• Manage user accounts and contact information
• Track book loans, including loan and return dates
• Enable search functionality based on book titles and author names

This project is designed for a single-user implementation but can be scaled to support multiple users and administrative roles in future iterations.

---

Entities and Relationships

Entities:

• Authors: Each author has a unique ID and a name.
• Books: Each book has a unique ID, title, and is associated with one author.
• Users: Each user has a unique ID, name, and email.
• Loans: Each loan record links a user to a book, with loan and return dates.

Relationships:

• One author can write many books (1:N)
• One user can borrow many books (1:N)
• Each loan connects one user to one book (N:1)

---

Entity Relationship Diagram

Note: Replace with actual diagram image filename once created.

---

Design Choices

• Normalization: The database is normalized to 3NF to reduce redundancy and improve data integrity.
• Foreign Keys: Used to enforce relationships between tables (e.g., author_id in books, user_id and book_id in loans).
• Indexes: Indexes are created on title in books and name in authors to optimize search queries.
• Constraints: Unique constraints on email in users to prevent duplicate accounts.

---

Optimizations

• Search Efficiency: Indexes on frequently queried fields improve performance.
• Data Integrity: Foreign key constraints ensure valid relationships between entities.
• Scalability: The schema is designed to be extensible, allowing future additions like genres, multiple authors per book, or user roles.

---

Limitations

• Each book is currently associated with only one author.
• No support for overdue tracking or fines.
• No administrative interface or authentication layer.
• No support for multiple copies of the same book.

---

Future Improvements

• Add support for multiple authors per book via a junction table.
• Implement overdue tracking and notifications.
• Add genres, publishers, and book reviews.
• Create a web interface for users and librarians.

---

Video Overview

YouTube Video URL : https://youtu.be/Z2M59WAXEoQ?si=IlSBgDfHQrqB-MFA

The video includes:

• Project title and author introduction
• ER diagram walkthrough
• Schema and query demonstration
• Summary of design decisions

name : samira mashti zadeh edx username : samira-dev-star github username : samira-dev-star email : sammashtizadeh@gmail.com

location : Ahvaz, khuzestan province, Iran today is : Aug. 29 2025