Directory (databases) 5515053 200337790 2008-03-23T17:57:20Z Soumyasch 792477 make the dab a dablink {{Unreferenced|date=April 2007}} {{dablink|This article deals with the term '''directory''' with respect to a computer [[database]]. The term also commonly refers to a [[Directory (file systems)|folder]] in a computer [[file system]].}} Generally, a '''directory''', as used in [[computing]] and [[telephony]], refers to a [[repository]] or [[database]] of information which is heavily optimised for reading, under the assumption that data updates are very rare compared to data reads. Commonly, a directory supports search and browsing in addition to simple lookups. A website which offer access to a categorized listing of other websites optimized for lookup, search, or browsing is a directory, a [[web directory]]. The [[Open Directory Project]] is an example of a web directory. Directory technology is often used in [[White pages|white page]] applications and network information services. [[WHOIS]] is a prominent example of directory service providing white pages. The [[Domain Name System]] (DNS) is a prominent example of directory service providing a network information service. DNS is also an example of a [[Distributed computing|distributed]] [[hierarchical]] [[directory service]] that only has simple lookup capabilities. The [[X.500]] and [[Lightweight Directory Access Protocol|LDAP]] directory services are examples of general-purpose distributed hierarchical [[object-oriented]] directory technologies. Both offer complex searching and browsing capabilities and are used for white pages, network information services, [[public key infrastructure]], and a wide range of other applications. ==See also== *[[Database]] *[[Directory service]] *[[Web directory]] *[[RSS directory]] [[Category:Databases]]