Many companies and large organisations have set up databases of information which can be interrogated by a user by means of a Structured Query Language (SQL).

The users may be on a network with the database stored on the file server.

There are some databases which may be accessed over the Internet. For example travel organisations can put arrival and departure times of trains or buses in a database. The user loads a web page and enters some information (places and dates of travel). the database is searched and the information uploaded to the user's computer.

Example 1 : A business might set up a database of all its customers and suppliers. Any employer in the company can access the database and retrieve information by using a workstation linked to the file server where the database is stored.

Example 2 : ECCTIS is an information retrieval package which gives details of university courses. A school using ECCTIS pays each year and receives a CD-ROM containing the latest courses or uses a modem and telephone line to access the data on a network.