Business intelligence (BI) is a business management term, which refers to applications and technologies that are used to gather, provide access to, and analyze data and information about company operations. Business intelligence systems can help companies have a more comprehensive knowledge of the factors affecting their business, such as metrics on sales, production, internal operations, and they can help companies to make better business decisions. Business Intelligence should not be confused with competitive intelligence, which is a separate management concept.

The basic form of data or Information is stored in the data bases. When the amount of data is significant (i.e. > 10 GB), we transform it into a data warehouse. A Data warehouse houses several databases, typically from several engines. That is, a given company might be Oracle-specific, but then acquires another company that is SQL Server-specific, or even half SQL Server and half DB2. Therein lies the problem. A Data Warehouse ideally stores all these data and also resolves these differences in format and so on.

In the practical world of business or government, a report conveys information and (sometimes) recommendations from a researcher who has investigated a topic in detail.A report like this will usually be requested by people who need the information for a specific purpose and their request may be written in terms of reference or the brief. Whatever the report, it is important to look at the instructions for what is wanted
A report like this differs from an essay in that it is designed to provide information which will be acted on, rather than to be read by people interested in the ideas for their own sake.

XBRL is a language for the electronic communication of business and financial data which is set to revolutionize business reporting around the world. It provides major benefits in the preparation, analysis and communication of business information. It offers cost savings, greater efficiency and improved accuracy and reliability to all those involved in supplying or using financial data.

Query Analyzer is a great tool for developing SQL code. There are a number of little tricks that can greatly increase the amount of work you can do with very little effort.