Book excerpt: This book targets business and IT professionals who need an introduction to business intelligence and data warehousing through a simple question/answer format. Organized into 30 odd chapters, each on a different topic, the book contains approximately 500 questions with answers and tips. Topics include evolution and fundamentals, characteristics and process, architecture and objects, metadata, data conversion, ETL, data storage, infrastructure, data access, data marts, implementation approaches, planning, design, Inmon vs. Kimball, multi-dimensionality, OLAP, facts and dimensions, common mistakes and tips, etc. The book can also be used as a supplemental textbook, for various data warehousing/business intelligence courses.