The Data Wars

Jan 31, 2013 by Phil Simon

“What we can do now has never been possible before.

The next IT revolution is happening in the ‘I’ – the information – not the ‘T.’”

–Dr. Mike Lynch, Autonomy founder

The recent events in Newtown, CT are beyond disturbing. I won’t debate gun control laws or the Second Amendment on this site, but the fallout of the tragedy is playing out in very interesting ways. The weapon of choice among many: data.

Facebook’s Graph Search and the Data Card

Jan 17, 2013 by Phil Simon

“It’s the kind of product we love to build at Facebook: A big technology problem and big social problem.”

So said Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday when Facebook announced Graph Search.

What Does the Future of Big Data Have in Store?

Dec 20, 2012 by Phil Simon

Where do we store all of this data?

It’s a question that many CIOs are asking themselves these days. Relational databases just aren’t built to store petabytes of unstructured data. Today, the usual suspects include Hadoop and columnar, NoSQL and NewSQL databases. Yes, data storage costs have plummeted over the last fifteen years, but do we really need to store historical information?

Seinfeld, Data and the Other 16 Percent

Dec 13, 2012 by Phil Simon

It’s hard to find consensus in the business world. There are many different strategies, philosophies and tactics. I would have bet, though, that all executives use data to make business decisions.

And I’d be wrong.

Self-Quantification

Aug 16, 2012 by Phil Simon

A frequent topic of this blog these days is data tracking. Companies like Amazon, Apple, Facebook,  Google, and others are able to extensively log what we’re doing online so they can predict what we will do (or, perhaps more accurately, what we might buy.)

Facebook, User Trust and Effective Data Management

Aug 02, 2012 by Phil Simon

In my latest book, I write extensively about Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google (a.k.a., the Gang of Four). It turns out that these companies share many common characteristics, not the least of which is their use of the platform as a business model.

Big MetaData

Apr 12, 2012 by Phil Simon

Two years ago, I never even heard of Big Data. These days, it seems like I hear the term every day (although, admittedly, my antennae are now pretty attuned to that very phrase. It’s very much like platforms, but I digress.)

My, how times have changed.

On Babies, the Exposure Argument, and Frameworks

Aug 11, 2011 by Phil Simon

Count Seth Godin among the hundreds, if not thousands, of learned folks who have chimed in on the exposure argument. We independent data management professionals, writers, speakers, and consultants have heard the debate a million times before.

The Limitations of Google

Jan 06, 2011 by Phil Simon

I love Google. Love. I mean, in a pretty unhealthy way. In my new book, The New Small, there are something like 72 references to Google and Google-related products. I use Google on a daily basis for all sorts of different things, including email, document sharing, phone calls, calendars, and chatting. And one more little thing: search. I can’t imagine ever “Binging” something.