February 2020 Summaries

The Gartner report "The Future of Cloud Data Management is Multicloud" discusses how data and analytics leaders should prepare for a multicloud and intercloud world. It explains that multicloud refers to a service operating on more than one cloud, while intercloud involves integration between services on different cloud infrastructures. Developing an effective strategy requires understanding the technology implications and challenges of each style of cloud deployment. Most organizations use multiple public cloud providers, so selecting the right multicloud strategy is crucial for meeting business needs. The report also highlights the importance of data integration in a hybrid cloud world, as well as the need to support diverse topologies in hybrid integration platform strategies.

The Super Bowl is a significant event for money exchange, with an estimated $6.8 billion expected to be bet on the game. Peer-to-peer (P2P) payments have become increasingly popular in this cashless society, with 96 million people making such transactions in 2019. DataStax Enterprise (DSE), a payment platform using Apache Cassandra, experienced one of its largest peak days during the Super Bowl, handling smooth P2P transactions worldwide. Apache Cassandra is an open-source NoSQL database designed for modern applications, offering continuous availability, high performance, and scalability to deliver seamless digital experiences.

DataStax Co-Founder and CTO Jonathan Ellis predicts that over the next five years, databases will become more self-driving and optimizing, with AI playing a significant role in performance tuning. He also foresees an increase in cloud-native databases, leading to reduced administration efforts. Fully managed platforms are expected to become the norm, while open source software is returning as a pragmatic approach for adoption. The conversation around database hardware will be driven by the cloud, and graph features will likely be integrated into non-graph substrates to offer the best of both worlds.

The Gartner report "The Future of Cloud Data Management is Multicloud" discusses how data and analytics leaders must prepare for a multicloud and intercloud world, where managing data becomes more complex due to increased cloud usage. As more data lands in the cloud, challenges arise from using multiple CSPs. The majority of public cloud users are already employing more than one CSP, leading to potential issues with data silos and visibility. Embracing this multicloud reality can lead to opportunities for data synergies and cost optimization if proper investments are made in governance, metadata management, and data integration.

Apache Cassandra is a distributed database with peer-to-peer architecture that requires monitoring of all nodes for performance evaluation. In his DataStax Accelerate session, Wei Deng provided fundamental knowledge on understanding Cassandra's performance metrics and tools. The talk covered the importance of tracking client, coordinator, and storage node levels to get a comprehensive view of performance. Performance is measured through throughput (rate of operations) and latency (time for one operation). In high-velocity environments, histograms can be used to track latency metrics across large volumes of operations. DataStax Accelerate 2020 conference offers valuable sessions for developers, admins, architects, managers, CTOs, and more to share ideas and best practices on Apache Cassandra.

The DataStax whitepaper "Moving to a Modern Architecture" discusses eight key ways to prepare for and manage a modern data architecture. It highlights that microservices architectures are prevalent in developing modern applications, emphasizing the need for strong flexibility at the data layer. The paper also addresses polyglot persistence, stating that a multi-model database approach is more efficient than previous implementations. Furthermore, it discusses the importance of native cloud databases and their characteristics, as well as the requirements needed for a true futureproof data architecture. The whitepaper suggests that NoSQL databases are best suited for modern applications, but not all nonrelational databases can support the necessary requirements.

DataStax is now accepting nominations for the 2020 Stax Awards ("Staxies"), which recognize enterprises that achieve significant business results with DataStax Enterprise (DSE) and Apache Cassandra™. The awards will be presented at DataStax Accelerate in San Diego, where winners will receive two free passes to the event, a trophy, recognition by judges, and promotion on the DataStax website. Submissions are due by April 17th via an online form. Additionally, DataStax is hosting two Accelerate conferences this year: one in San Diego from May 11-13 and another in London from June 2-3, featuring speakers from top NoSQL professionals and discussions on Kubernetes, Kafka, GraphQL, and more.

DataStax is launching a Diversity Scholarship Program for its upcoming DataStax Accelerate events in San Diego (May 11-13) and London (June 2-3). The program aims to provide financial support for individuals from underrepresented groups in technology and open source communities. Successful applicants will receive complimentary passes to the conference, workshops, and a two-night stay at the conference hotel. Applications are due by March 20, 2020, with recipients notified on March 27, 2020.

The DataStax whitepaper "Moving to a Modern Architecture" discusses eight key ways to prepare for and manage a modern data architecture. It emphasizes the importance of designing a data blueprint that can withstand challenges, such as increasing data volume and user traffic. To future-proof a data design, it suggests utilizing a scale-out masterless database architecture with built-in redundancy in compute, storage, and data. Additionally, location independence is crucial for continuous availability and uniform customer response times. The whitepaper also highlights the need for DBMS systems that handle contextual transaction management, supporting transactional, analytical, and search workloads.

The world's largest Apache Cassandra NoSQL event, Accelerate 2020, is set to occur in two locations - San Diego (May 11-13) and London (June 2-3). This event will bring together enthusiasts from various fields such as admins, developers, architects, and C-suite executives. The San Diego event will feature keynote speakers including Rob Carter, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer of FedEx, Corey Quinn, Cloud Economist at The Duckbill Group, and more. Attendees can expect to learn from global leaders such as Adobe, Alibaba, Capital One, Cisco, Confluent, Constant Contact, Dell.com, Deloitte, Ericsson, FedEx, GE Digital, ING, Intuit, Target, Visa, and more. The event will also include hands-on workshops exclusively sponsored by AWS, a Cassandra contributor's lounge, sponsor kiosks, DataStax Meet the Experts, and more. Registration is open for both San Diego and London events with early bird prices available.

In 2019, major conferences and research groups focused on various aspects of database management systems (DBMS). Query processing papers covered voice-based OLAP queries, index selection, and auto-tuning systems like Querc. Other notable works included the SageDB system that uses learned models to pick data structures and algorithms for each sub-component of a DBMS, and LSM Trees with adaptive compaction strategies such as Dostoevsky, LSM-Bush, and Jungle. The trend towards specializing databases for specific workloads continued, along with the application of machine learning techniques to improve database behavior and performance.

Registration is now open for DataStax Accelerate San Diego and London, the world's largest Apache Cassandra NoSQL event. The conference will feature keynotes from Rob Carter, CIO of FedEx, and Corey Quinn, Cloud Economist of The Duckbill Group. Sessions will be led by global leaders such as Alibaba, Confluent, Dell.com, Ericcson, FedEx, ING Poland, Intuit, Target, and more. Accelerate is where the NoSQL and Cassandra community come together to explore trends, strategies, and technologies driving modern application development and data management. The event will cover topics such as building scalable global applications and using today's hottest tools like Kubernetes and Kafka. Developers, architects, database operators, managers, and executives are encouraged to attend for networking opportunities and knowledge sharing within the Cassandra community.

Cisco Systems, a multinational technology conglomerate, needed to upgrade their e-commerce platform to support over 1 million quotes and $2 billion in sales every quarter. They chose Apache Cassandra™ due to its cloud-native distributed architecture that enables better service for customers worldwide. The company uses Cassandra as a data store, Elasticsearch for search, Kafka and RabbitMq for streaming, and InfluxDB and Grafana for metrics and visualizations. Cisco's e-commerce system also benefits from unique ID generation using CAS operations and efficient data pipelines through Kafka.

The modern data architecture is evolving rapidly due to open-source solutions, cloud services, and the need for scalable systems handling structured and unstructured data. Key ways to prepare for this change include focusing on customer needs, ensuring data portability, promoting agility and flexibility, supporting edge computing, incorporating resiliency strategies, automating tasks, leveraging AI and machine learning, involving various departments in decision-making, and prioritizing cybersecurity. Adopting a modern big data architecture is crucial for businesses to protect their valuable data assets and deliver superior customer experiences.

The rapid growth of IoT devices is generating massive amounts of data that can overwhelm organizations across all industries. To manage this data effectively, companies need to invest in proper infrastructure and tools. With the rise of edge computing and AI, it's crucial for businesses to have a robust underlying infrastructure to unlock the full potential of these technologies. Microsoft Azure IoT solutions and databases like Apache Cassandra™ and DataStax Enterprise (DSE) can help organizations handle this data deluge by providing scalable storage layers that support time series data requirements and accommodate hot, warm, and cold data. These solutions enable efficient processing of large volumes of events per second and are essential for businesses to thrive in the IoT era.

The excerpt is from a DataStax eBook titled "Getting Started with NoSQL and Apache Cassandra™". It discusses how to migrate to Apache Cassandra™ and build powerful applications using it. The eBook provides a comprehensive guide on understanding Apache Cassandra principles, offers online training, certification, and full documentation. It also mentions that DataStax Examples provide sample code for developers. Additionally, professional services and support options are available to ensure the right level of development or deployment help whenever needed. Companies like Capital One, Cisco, Comcast, Delta Airlines, eBay, Macy's, McDonald's, Safeway, Sony, and Walmart use this technology. The eBook is designed for those who want to gain an expert understanding of Apache Cassandra and DataStax Enterprise principles related to their role. A certificate of completion can be obtained upon finishing a recommended sequence of courses curated by the curriculum engineers.

DataStax Enterprise (DSE) is designed to simplify the process of moving data between clouds. Traditionally, this has been a complex and time-consuming task due to incompatible architectures among cloud providers. However, DSE enables seamless transitions between clouds within minutes. A demo by Patrick Callaghan demonstrates this ease of migration. For more information on moving data with DSE, check out the provided resources.

Retail is undergoing a significant transformation driven by technology and data. The NRF 2020 conference highlighted this trend, with industry leaders emphasizing the pivotal role of data and technology in reshaping retail business models. Key takeaways from the event include increased use of AI and machine learning to leverage data, digital transformation enabling unique customer experiences, and a shift towards viewing stores as communities rather than just transactional spaces. Retailers are investing in tools that enable them to make sense of their data quickly and deliver stronger customer experiences, leading to more sales.