Some definitions

Acronyms	Definitions
ETL	Extract, Transform, and Load: The process of taking data from a source system into a warehouse.
SQL	Structured Query Language: The basic language that databases such as Oracle and SQL Server understand. SQL is used to create data, create database objects such as tables, and to query data.
Performance Data	I use this term to describe any data which helps to speed up reporting performance. This includes creating aggregate tables, for example the Tournament Fact table. It also includes the use of subsets of data, partitioning of tables, and indexing.
Star Transformation	A special feature of Oracle databases is their ability to maximize the performance of a query that uses a star design table layout. Oracle can build a more efficient query than usual due to the fact that it knows all Dimensions join to the Fact table.
Hints	Hints are used to help an Oracle database to query the tables in the most efficient manner. This could include...