QBE

Originally refers to a relational database query.
It was developed at IBM by Moshé M. Zloof and means "search by example".
It actually comes from the area calculus and, in contrast to SQL, represents the query not with text but with a table structure. This can then be edited by special editors.
The graphic representation in the table structure is particularly suitable for occasional users who are not very familiar with complex queries and SQL.
Even today, QBE-like interfaces can be found as graphical front-ends for database systems.
These interfaces serve as a query function in DOS database programs, which were widely used in the years 1988-1995.