NoSQL standouts: New databases for new applications
Cassandra, CouchDB, MongoDB, Redis, Riak, Neo4J, and FlockDB reinvent the data store
NoSQL databases: How do you choose?
There's no easy answer. Most shops would be happy with any of them, even if they select the worst one for their needs. Choosing the best, though, is a bit harder because a good developer will want to balance the strength of the project, the availability of commercial support, and the quality of the documentation with the quality of the code.
The greatest divergence is in the extras. All of them will store piles of keys with their values, but the real question is how well they split the load across servers and how well they propagate changes across them. Then there's the question of hosting. The idea of a cloud service that will do all of the maintenance for you is seductive.
The stakes are higher because switching is more difficult than it is with the SQL databases. There's no standard query language in this world, nor is there a vast array of abstraction layers like the JDBC. These NoSQL databases have the power to lock you in. That's the price for all of the fun and features.
This article, "NoSQL standouts: New databases for new applications," was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Follow the latest developments in application development, data management, cloud computing, and open source at InfoWorld.com. For the latest business technology news, follow InfoWorld.com on Twitter.
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