Re: Looking for a discussion about generic datamodels

schreurs_roel_at_hotmail.com wrote:
> Every now and then, I come across a IT-project that stores its data in
> a generic data model. Such data models basically consist of 4 tables:
> Entities, Relations, Attributes and Values. The Entities table contains
> a record for each table in the conceptual data model, Attributes a
> record for each column, etc.
> Invariably, the choice for such a data model is defended by the
> argumentation that new conceptual tables and columns can be added
> without modification of the data model.
> This all sounds very nice, but I always have the idea that this comes
> at a price that may well be higher then the benefits it offers.
>
> So, what I am looking for is a discussion, be it on line or in
> literature, about the pro and cons, as well as some list of
> recommendations to help me decide if such a model would be useful. Can
> anybody recommend a source of information?

This "EAV" model is one of my pet hates, which I ranted about a little here:

http://tonyandrews.blogspot.com/2004/10/otlt-and-eav-two-big-design-mistakes.html Received on Fri Sep 02 2005 - 21:40:10 CEST