Re: What is Oracle10G?

"Daniel Morgan" <damorgan_at_exxesolutions.com> wrote in message news:3F1ACFEA.671DCEF9_at_exxesolutions.com...
>
> A friend of mine at Oracle tells me that those that can't make the paradigm
shift
> from columns and rows to types and objects won't be employable in the future.
I

Shewt, I must be safe then! Made that 4 years ago... :D

> believe him. I think those that can't make the shift between the current data
center
> paradigm and one far more closely resembling the mainframe are also soon to be
> obsolecent.

I'm not sure about that "mainframe" thing. Having come from that background, I really don't see the similarity. Distributed data processing yes, but mainframe I doubt. Mainframes work in a different way. I'm not sure it even resembles them.

>
> Basically what I see, with RAC, N+1, grid, etc. is a recreation of the
mainframe
> from individual components. How else to compete with IBM and Hitachi? How else
to
> leverage investments that, for-the-most-part, sit idle.

Hmmmm, I'll need to digest this one. You implying that we're going the way of the "super-mainframe" made of lots of little processing nodes? The Sun mantra: the network is the computer? Are we there yet? I don't think so: RAC is not the solution and blades technology is nowhere near that.

The thing is: database servers deal with *managing* data. That is different from *processing* it. I can see something like the multi-tier model going the "Sun-way", but I can't imagine any advantages from being able to send a tablespace to Outer-Mongolia to have a table full scanned. Of course I'm exagerating to make the point, but that's the general idea.

As to competing with IBM and Hitachi: well, that's been on the cards since IBM was allowed to continue with its business model of ages ago. Anyone reading Gerstner's book that doesn't reach the same conclusion is functioning on vapours. Remains to be seen if they can do the same in the software arena: they never did.

> Does that mean we won't be treated to marketing hyperbole? Oh course not. The
> weasels need to make a living too. So they will rename SQL*Forms to Forms to
> Dev/2000 to Developer Suite to iDS, etc. and use meaningless waffle words
because
> ... well it works with management types and helps them make their quota. Don't
let
> it get you down. It beats having our taxes raised to cover their unemployment.
>

If I let them get me down, I wouldn't have been in this industry for so long! ;)

--
Cheers
Nuno Souto
wizofoz2k_at_yahoo.com.au.nospam