Hadoop and DI – A Platform Is Not A Solution

“Hadoop people” and “RDBMS people” – including some DBAs who have contacted me recently –  clearly have different ideas about what Data Integration is. And both may  differ from what Ted Friedman and I were talking about in our Gartner research note Hadoop Is Not a Data Integration Solution , although I think the DBAs’ concept isContinue reading “Hadoop and DI – A Platform Is Not A Solution”

Stack Up Hadoop to Find Its Place in Your Architecture

2013 promises to be a banner year for Apache Hadoop, platform providers, related technologies – and analysts who try to sort it out. I’ve been wrestling with ways to make sense of it for Gartner clients bewildered by a new set of choices, and for them and myself, I’ve built a stack diagram that describesContinue reading “Stack Up Hadoop to Find Its Place in Your Architecture”

2013 Data Resolution: Avoid Architectural Cul-de-Sacs

I had an inquiry today from a client using packaged software for a business system that is built on a proprietary, non-relational datastore (in this case an object-oriented DBMS.) They have an older version of the product – having “failed” with a recent upgrade attempt. The client contacted me to ask about ways to integrate thisContinue reading “2013 Data Resolution: Avoid Architectural Cul-de-Sacs”

Diary of an Asian Swing: Day 3

This was a day of transition. No meetings in Hong Kong, so after a leisurely breakfast and a look at the news, I settled down for a rare session of uninterrupted writing. It was still Sunday back home, so the email was relatively caught up and I could focus. Finished first drafts of some GartnerContinue reading “Diary of an Asian Swing: Day 3”

Diary of an Asian Swing: Day 1

I’ve never been a diarist. But as an exercise, I’m going to document this trip: two weeks on the road to Asia and Australia. Almost all work, though there is one day of weekend and recovery time built in. Friday, Nov 2. Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong. Business class. Comfortable, well-appointed cabin. Friendly, courteousContinue reading “Diary of an Asian Swing: Day 1”

Guest Post: Leading the Logical Data Warehouse Charge Has its Challenges

From my colleague Mark Beyer, who speculates about how leadership in moving toward the logical data warehouse (LDW) will be received:  The logical data warehouse is already creating a stir in the traditional data warehouse market space. Less than 5% of clients with implemented warehouses that we speak with are pursuing three or more of theContinue reading “Guest Post: Leading the Logical Data Warehouse Charge Has its Challenges”

Apache Hadoop 1.0 Doesn’t Clear Up Trunks and Branches Questions. Do Distributions?

In early January 2012, the world of big data was treated to an interesting series of product releases, press announcements, and blog posts about Hadoop versions.  To begin with, we had the announcement of Apache version 1.0 at long last, in a press release. Although there were grumblings here and there in the twittersphere thatContinue reading “Apache Hadoop 1.0 Doesn’t Clear Up Trunks and Branches Questions. Do Distributions?”

Decoding BI Market Share Numbers – Play Sudoku With Analysts

In a recent post I discussed Oracle’s market share in BI, based on a press-published chart taken from IDC data – showing Oracle coming in second. As often happens in such discussions, I got quite a few direct emails and twitter messages – some in no uncertain terms – about why the particular metric IContinue reading “Decoding BI Market Share Numbers – Play Sudoku With Analysts”

You Know You Have Big Data When…(Humor)

One of the more philosophical questions analysts like to ask is “What is Big Data?” It’s relative – it begs the question, “what’s big?” And that is a constantly moving number, and always assessed by comparison to the ridiculous amounts some companies work with. But Big Data as a concept in IT parlance today tendsContinue reading “You Know You Have Big Data When…(Humor)”

EMC Buys Greenplum – Big Data Realignment Continues

EMC’s acquisition of Greenplum, announced today as a cash transaction, reaffirms the obvious: the Big Data tsunami upends conventional wisdom. It has already reshaped the market, spawning the most ferment in the RDBMS (and non-R DBMS via the noSQL players) space in years. When I first posted on Greenplum over a year ago, I saidContinue reading “EMC Buys Greenplum – Big Data Realignment Continues”