Challenge Presented by Variety inherent in Big Data is Not an Issue with Infrastructure Software Solutions

Remarkable changes in technology hardware such as computing power and storage capacity have occurred in recent years. The difference between software and hardware is no chicken and egg debate. Evolution in hardware comes first and spurs similar revolutions in software. While storage capacity is taken care of with hardware, the article explains the software that deals with this aspect in, "Big Data: Are You Ready for Multimedia Information Systems?."

Most enterprise information systems are Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS). This Database management system not only stores data in tables but also the relationships between data are stored. Structured Query Language (SQL) is used for managing data and SQL places data in well defined structures using meta data.

The article explains how Not Only SQL (NoSQL for short) tackles the volume, velocity and variety of big data:

Using NoSQL and other tools such as HBase, Hive etc., it is possible to store, retrieve, and analyze very large data sets of multiple data types not just text and numbers. As a result, we are about to enter into an era of multimedia enterprise information systems not only capable of handling very large data sets in real time but also capable of handling multiple data types like sound, video etc.

This is happening in the enterprise now. Innovative infrastructure technologies such as PolySpot can rein in data from all sources and in all forms, whether it is video, images or audio.

Megan Feil, July 31, 2012