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Adrian Cockcroft , a cloud architect at Netflix , is running a series of posts looking at how different NoSQL databases handle common cloud computing tasks. All the usual disclaimers apply: SQL is good for some things, and different scenarios call for different NoSQL solutions. No one solution is necessarily "better" overall. However, as Cockcroft writes "We need a basis for comparison across them, so that we understand the differences in behavior."
NoSQL: Comparing the Different Solutions - ReadWriteCloud
Facebook & The Semantic Web
This week we've been exploring the emergence of the Semantic Web among companies like Best Buy and Google . It's all thanks to RDFa , code that is inserted into the HTML of web pages to add extra meaning. The increasing usage of RDFa was one of the main themes at the recent Semantic Technology conference in San Francisco. There is perhaps no better example than Facebook 's use of RDFa. We chatted to Facebook open standards evangelist David Recordon to find out more.
We are experiencing a big data explosion, a result not only of increasing Internet usage by people around the world, but also the connection of billions of devices to the Internet. Eight years ago, for example, there were only around 5 exabytes of data online. Just two years ago, that amount of data passed over the Internet over the course of a single month. And recent estimates put monthly Internet data flow at around 21 exabytes of data. This explosion of data - in both its size and form - causes a multitude of challenges for both people and machines. No longer is data something accessed by a small number of people.
The Age of Exabytes: Tools & Approaches for Managing Big Data
Every year ReadWriteWeb selects the top 10 products or developments across a range of categories. We kick off the 2010 'Best Of' series with our selection of the top 10 Semantic Web products and implementations of the year. This year we've chosen 5 products by semantically charged startups and 5 implementations by large organizations. The startups represent the cutting edge of Semantic Web. Each has made an impact on the Internet this year, with user growth and innovation.
Top 10 Semantic Web Products of 2010
Secrets of the LinkedIn Data Scientists
I suffer from severe data envy when it comes to LinkedIn. They have detailed information on millions of people who are motivated to keep their profiles up-to-date, collect a rich network of connections and have a strong desire from their users for more tools to help them in their professional lives. Over the past couple of years Chief Scientist DJ Patil has put together an impressive team of data scientists to deliver new services based around all that information. One of my favorites is their career explorer , using the accumulated employment histories of millions of professionals to help students understand where their academic and early job choices might lead them. Ali Imam's connection network, via Russell Jurney
In May last year we wrote about the state of Linked Data , an official W3C project that aims to connect separate data sets on the Web. Linked Data is a subset of the wider Semantic Web movement, in which data on the Web is encoded with meaning using technologies such as RDF and OWL. The ultimate vision is that the Web will become much more structured, which opens up many possibilities for "smarter" Web applications. At this stage last year, we noted that Linked Data was ramping up fast - evidenced by the increasing number of data sets on the Web as at March 2009. Fast forward a year and the Linked Data "cloud" has continued to expand.
The State of Linked Data in 2010
What Happens When You Deactivate Your Facebook Account
Facebook is a big part of millions and millions of peoples' lives, but what happens when you pull the plug? Last night I met a man who walked to the edge of the cliff and nearly deactivated his Facebook account. He took a screenshot of what he saw after clicking the "deactivate my account" link on his account page - and it is pretty far-out. That man considered quitting Facebook because it was having an adverse emotional impact on him and I'll spare him and his contacts from posting the screenshot he shared with me. I have posted below though a shot of the screen I saw when I clicked that button myself. Check it out.