I am so confused!

[whogivesa]

I just downloaded SQL Server 2005 express. I have no clue as to what I am doing, but I was told in order to have a database I needed to have a program that enabled me to build one, I was given a list and I choose SQL Server. Can anyone put into dummie terms what the relationship between databases and forums is? To my knowlage I need a database to store members of the forum(which I would very much like to have) however I do not know how to create a database or even exactly what a database is. Can anyone help me?

[Twey]

A database is a structured method of storing data. An SQL server is a server that allows clients (scripts, in this case) to connect and store/retrieve data using a Structured Query Language (SQL). This makes handling large amounts of data both much easier and much faster.
You'll find much more support for MySQL (http://www.mysql.com/) or PostgreSQL (http://www.postgresql.org/).