Driving Forces in Database Technology

Several forces, with impacts so fundamental thatthey are akin to tectonic plate movements, are drivingthe commercial database marketplace. First ishardware commoditization: arrays of low pricedcomputers with high speed interconnects which yieldthe new cluster based computing capabilities referredto as 'Grid,' 'Utility,' and 'on-demand' computing, atprice points radically lower than standard Moore's lawprojections. The dramatic reductions in online storagehardware costs now makes it cost effective forcompanies to keep previously unimagined amounts ofcomplex data online. This will enable V/ULDBprojects with petabyte databases such as online imageapplications and data-driven supply chain managementapproaches (e.g. RFID) that store huge volumes ofhighly granular detail information in data warehouses(with significant history of temporal and spatialinterest).