Object-oriented database management systems (OODBMS) are expected to serve advanced application domains such as engineering design, office information systems, imaging systems, and multimedia. This book, based on a NATO Advanced Research Workshop, covers all aspects of object-oriented database systems from design principles to implementation of prototypes. Topics covered include model concepts, query optimization, query languages, functional programming formalism, storage systems, transaction models, interoperability, distributed computing, rule languages, open architectures, hypermedia systems, and many others. Designers and developers will benefit from the comprehensive presentation of the various modules of such systems, while practitioners will find examples of implemented prototypes.