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In this Issue |
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From the Editor: |
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by Tim DiChiara, Site Editor
Is the ODBMS a failure?
>From a market share perspective, that's a fait accompli. (Object-relational hybrids like Intersystems Cache have done much better.) But technically-speaking, should there a future for pure object-oriented database management systems?
Author and SearchDatabase columnist Fabian Pascal has tackled that question in several editions of his provocative "Against the Grain" series, most recently this month:
Since Fabian is a relational model evangelist, you might guess that he disdains the OO approach--and you would be right! He writes: "The whole point of databases is to be application-neutral, in order to serve multiple applications well--DBMSs are general purpose. Object databases, on the other hand, are application-biased, a sort of contradiction in terms." Later, he argues that "object orientation fails to provide a [general] data model analogous to the relational model and, thus, is inadequate for data management." That's Fabian just getting warmed up! He also decries the "fuzziness of object thinking" and "rampant logical/physical confusion."
Doug Barry--author, consultant, and SearchDatabase.com's resident ODBMS expert--would certainly beg to differ. He argues that there are two main advantages of the ODBMS over the RDBMS: you will write much less code during development (often 40% less), and performance will be much better with complex data (ten to a thousand times faster).
Agree? Disagree? What do you think about the ODBMS as a technology, or about its usefulness in your organization? Click over to our DBA Water Cooler discussion forum and let us know your thoughts. I'd especially like to hear from people who have had practical experience with object-oriented databases.
Thanks,
Tim
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Featured Topic: |
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Backup and recovery
by Tim DiChiara, Site Editor
The most important function of a DBA is storage management: the backup and recovery of business-critical data. But how do you keep up with emerging technologies such as DAS, SAN, and NAS? We have the answers you need inside...
Read more about this topic
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Expert Technical Advice: |
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Featured Expert Brian Peasland
Database Administrator, Ratheon, Inc
Category:Oracle
Brian is an OCP and has been in the IT field for 14 years working as a Computer Operator, Operations Analyst, Systems Administrator, Application Developer, and finally a Database Administrator. Ask him your tough Oracle questions!
View all Brian's answers
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This Week: In the forums
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SQL query
Description: Member "Dave" has a seemingly simple SQL query question but can't find the answer: How does one select just the column names of a table? Go to our "DBA Water Cooler" forum if you can help Dave. |
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Your thoughts about Java/ODBMS data management
Fabian Pascal says the whole point of databases is to be application neutral, yet object-oriented DBMS's are application-biased. What do you think? Go to our "DBA Water Cooler" forum to let us know your opinion. |
| Tip of the Week: |
| In "To a hammer, everything looks like a nail: Part II," Fabian Pascal continues his critique of the regressive trend to application-based data management originating in the Java/object programming world. He exposes what he sees as one of the fundamental flaws of object data management: "The whole point of databases is to be application-neutral, in order to serve multiple applications well; DBMSs are general purpose. Object databases, on the other hand, are application-biased, a sort of contradiction in terms. Products sold as ODBMSs are, in fact, application-specific "DBMS building kits." Agree? Disagree? Post your thoughts in our forum. |
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The fundamental flaw of the ODBMS |
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