June 2008 Archives

In a two-part post, we will illustrate how -- using a database query optimizer as an example -- the strategy of retrofitting databases in a distributed, shared-nothing grid computing architecture can fail. This argument will require some understanding of how centralized query optimizers work. Therefore, we will divide this discussion into two parts. The first installment will provide a background on centralized query optimization; the second installment will show why retrofitting a centralized query optimizer to work on the grid can lead to poor performance when evaluating queries. Continue reading "Designing Systems for the Grid: The Problem with "Retrofitting," Part 1" »

There will soon be a myriad of announcements of DBMS offerings in the cloud. Many of these will NOT be marriages made in heaven. However, the most innovative new DBMS software married to new cloud computing services are here today and truly take advantage of the cloud architecture in order to change the economics and the responsiveness of business analytics. Continue reading "DBMS innovations that will make analytics in the cloud a reality" »