The new ISO 39075 Graph Query Language Standard is to hit the data streets in late 2023 (?). Then what? If graph databases are standardized pretty soon, what will happen to SQL? They will very likely stay around for a long time. Not simply because legacy SQL has a tremendous inertia, but because relational database paradigms […]
Say Hello to Graph Normal Form (GNF)
You thought you knew all normal forms? (And possibly also some abnormal …) Well, think again: There is also “graph normal form (GNF).” The diagram below is a fifth normal form graph concept model, which is just a few steps from GNF, so hang on: Where GNF comes from GNF is based on serious mathematics, […]
What Kinds of Data Languages Will We Need in the Future?
IBM had a pole position on the Database Management Systems (DBMS) market by developing “DL/I” in the 1960s as a means for defining and using hierarchical databases. Under the product names of DL/I and IMS (Information Management System) this dominated the database market for many years. Everybody, except for IBM followers, called the product “D-L-1,” […]
Tales of Data Modelers
Reading Larry Burns’ “Data Model Storytelling” (TechnicsPub.com, 2021) was a really good experience for a guy like me (i.e., someone who thinks that data models are narratives). I agree with Larry on so many things. However, this post is not a review of Larry’s book. Read it for yourself – highly recommended. Reading it triggered […]
Quick, Easy, and Flexible Data Model Diagrams
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. Many of us have a lot to do. And we have short delivery cycles, sprints, and a lot of peers to share data models with. In search of something lightweight, which is quick and easy, and may be produced (or consumed) by other programs? Stay with us on a […]
What’s in a Name? (aka Data Modeling What?)
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. This is a summer special, on the lighter side, but addressing a simply overwhelming issue at times. What Are You Talking About? Sometimes the obvious is not that … obvious. Many people know that I am on the graph-y side of the house. But explaining a simple matter like […]
Computing: A Human Activity!
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. I started at the University of Copenhagen in 1969. My professor was Peter Naur. He was in many ways an unusual man and a deep thinker. It is only now in recent years that I realize how much he influenced my thinking. 1969 was his second year […]
2021: Three Game-Changing Data Modeling Perspectives
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. Common wisdom has it that we humans can only focus on three things at a time. So, I had to cut down my January 2021 list of things of importance in Data Modeling in this new, fine year (I hope)! Looking at them from above, as we […]
Generally Accepted Data Modeling Principles
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. What can data modelers learn from accountants? Accounting is a solidly established practice that the world cannot live without. One of the established guidelines for accountants is called GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the US), and there are similar international setups. You might guess these standards […]
Learning from Complex Data Modeling Practices
Click to learn more about author Thomas Frisendal. Now is a good point in time to look at best practices in database design for SQL databases. Are there things that could have been easier to do if the SQL designers had had absolute foresight? Of course, the answer is yes. But what is most important […]