They’ve become too easy.
It’s too easy to just dump any kind of data in there.
It’s too easy to query the database rather than cache data for a period of time in the app.
It’s too easy to join all the tables together rather than pick just the tables you need.
It’s too easy to write spectacularly, horrifically bad queries.
It’s too easy to copy/paste bad designs from the web that have gradually gained good SEO over time.
It’s too easy to install them and go live on really crappy hardware.
It’s too easy to scale for the first couple years because they just work.
Over and over, I see developers succeeding with specialized data storage platforms not because these new platforms are easy – but because they’re harder. Developers are wary of these new tools, so they’re careful. Developers pay close attention, read all the blog posts about it, the HackerNews links on it, and even dig into the source code.
If only they’d put that much time into learning relational databases.
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True that. In fact, I’m doing a session at PASS on selecting the right technology to process a given datum. Because not everything is a VARCHAR(MAX) or should be used with FileStream. 🙂
Who loves ya, Brent?
JESUS DOES!
Oh and you. Buck Woody. You can see how I would get those two confused.
I regularly expound to SQL Saturday attendees about what an AWESOME platform SQL Server is because Bean (9yo daughter) can take the install disk for SQL Server and click Next-Next-Next and she has a functioning database platform. Same with a third-party app install disk and she has an application running on that SQL Server. And with default EVERYTHING (and there are some DISASTROUSLY bad defaults) SQL Server will just keep on working hard to efficiently process your data and do an AMAZINGLY good job of it – despite HORRIBLE app design, code, lack of maintenance, etc.
But if your company is lucky you grow and reach a point where you need better SLA, response-time, scalability, concurrency, etc. Then you just got to stop doing things wrong/suboptimally and start doing things right/efficiently to get where you want to go. And again, SQL Server is an AWESOME product because there are SOOO many opportunities on both sides of that coin!!
It is indeed TOO EASY!!
Best,
Kevin Boles
The real problems with cars is they have become too easy.
Any fool can jump in turn the key press the pedal and drive straight into the swimming pool.
Fizzelen – absolutely, and I really applaud Volvo for their Volvo 2020 initiative. They’re aiming for zero deaths in Volvos starting in the year 2020 – they want to build cars that can protect the occupants from their own bad decisions and luck.
Now there’s a catch 22. I’m also for using technology to promote safety and save lives but not at the expense of good judgment. There was the lady last year who pointed her A-Class RV straight and then got up to use the bathroom and then won a law suit after it crashed. I recently talked to someone who told me that when her legally-blind daughter is of driving age in three years that Mercedes should have vehicles equipped to make that possible. For me, the jury’s still out on that one.
Somehow we got from SQL Server to cars. Can they build the certification exam software into the setup wizard? Seems like it would be a could pairing.
Paul – hahaha, yeah, THAT would be awesome. A multiple choice test as part of setup, and you have to pass first. (Although come to think of it, maybe that’s what Oracle does…)
This is a wonderful blog post. Succinct, almost Seth Godin like. Got me to thinking about Software. We write languages just to make it harder to do stupid things because we do stupid things with stunning alacrity.
Thanks sir! I appreciate it.