The Data Dewey Decimal System

  • Comments posted to this topic are about the item The Data Dewey Decimal System

  • I was thinking this weekend how Microsoft creates things that have already been done before.

    Any crowdsourcing platform has some relationship to a wiki.

  • It is a natural progression; cataloging follows search. This has been understood by Content Management Systems for some time.

    Gaz

    -- Stop your grinnin' and drop your linen...they're everywhere!!!

  • Google works exceeding well with the Boglehead's ( https://www.bogleheads.org/ )

    Maybe this is an implementation issue?

    412-977-3526 call/text

  • Sooo...

    It sounds like a database which contains the location(s) of data?

    I remember being taught the Dewey Decimal system back in grade school, but I'll admit I've completely forgotten all but the basics of it...

    And, anytime I hear it referenced, I'm always reminded of this bit from a movie:

    Conan the Librarian...

  • Oh no, perhaps we are stepping into the enterprise data governance, metadata arena... 🙂

  • In essence the Data Catalog is an index of the data sets that might be produced by your organization, with the information about the data filled in by the producer of data.

    I give it five minutes before the producers of the data stop filling this in, and then the system falls down.

  • Beatrix Kiddo (4/11/2016)


    In essence the Data Catalog is an index of the data sets that might be produced by your organization, with the information about the data filled in by the producer of data.

    I give it five minutes before the producers of the data stop filling this in, and then the system falls down.

    Maybe 10...

  • I think what we're really talking about here is a Data Dictionary, which isn't a new concept. A good dictionary isn't an auto generated report of tables, columns, and objects; it's a subject matter expert's description of each. For stored procedures, I also typically document each using a CRUD matrix along with input paraters and output columns (if any). If Microsoft and other industry leaders want to give us a framework that provides a standardized storage format and SOA interface, then that's great. But they didn't invent the concept of a Data Dictionary.

    "Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise. Instead, seek what they sought." - Matsuo Basho

  • Seriously though wouldn't it be nice for an analyst to be able to peruse a catalog and lookup their own data sources to support whatever they are tasked to do? Rather than interrupting me to find the data sources they need; unfortunately there are too many one-off non-SQL data silo's out there that our DBA group doesn't know about. Which leads to the necessity for enterprise level data governance to make this work; where maintaining a data catalog would be a business principle and policy mandated by the C-level on the business side.

  • Steve, thanks for writing this article. It sounds interesting and so I just gave it a try. I use my personal Microsoft account to try and log in. Its the same account I use to access my MSDN subscription, paid for by my work. Only in this case it's asking me for a business account instead of my personal Hotmail account. So, do I use my work email address? As far as I know it doesn't have an Azure account associated with it.

    Kindest Regards, Rod Connect with me on LinkedIn.

  • crlewis42 (4/11/2016)


    Seriously though wouldn't it be nice for an analyst to be able to peruse a catalog and lookup their own data sources to support whatever they are tasked to do? Rather than interrupting me to find the data sources they need; unfortunately there are too many one-off non-SQL data silo's out there that our DBA group doesn't know about. Which leads to the necessity for enterprise level data governance to make this work; where maintaining a data catalog would be a business principle and policy mandated by the C-level on the business side.

    I would agree. As mentioned, the big if - if people actually use it to register data sets.

    The more you are prepared, the less you need it.

  • If it isn't completely automated it won't work. It needs something along the lines of pestering the creator automatically until they document it or quarantining anything not registered.

  • Rod at work (4/11/2016)


    Steve, thanks for writing this article. It sounds interesting and so I just gave it a try. I use my personal Microsoft account to try and log in. Its the same account I use to access my MSDN subscription, paid for by my work. Only in this case it's asking me for a business account instead of my personal Hotmail account. So, do I use my work email address? As far as I know it doesn't have an Azure account associated with it.

    I have no idea. My Azure accounts are a mess I'm trying to straighten out. It might be like PowerBI, which requires a "corporate" address, so a work account.

  • colin.s.allen (4/12/2016)


    If it isn't completely automated it won't work. It needs something along the lines of pestering the creator automatically until they document it or quarantining anything not registered.

    This can't be automated. I think that would be a mess of too much information being surfaced without details.

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