A database or user is a uniquely named permanent space that can store objects like tables, indexes, procedures, triggers, functions and other databases and users. (Views, macros, roles, and profiles do not consume space; their definitions are stored in the Data Dictionary, which takes up space in DBC.) Each database and each user may optionally contain one permanent journal.
A database is a logical repository for database objects, privilege definitions, and space limits. In Vantage, a user is the same as a database except it is an active repository that can log on with a password and establish a session.
Databases and users may own objects such as tables, views, macros, procedures, and functions. Both may hold privileges. However, only users may log on, establish a Vantage session, and submit requests.
A user performs actions; a database is passive. Users have passwords and startup strings; databases do not.
Creator privileges are associated only with a user because only a user can log on and submit a CREATE statement. Implicit privileges are associated with either a database or a user because each can hold an object and an object is owned by the named space in which it resides.