> Isn't it ironic that whilst ISC have spent the last 10 years
> desparately trying to hide that "old-fashioned" underlying MUMPS
> database and add a whole layer of object orientation and schema to
> make it palatable to the marketplace, the rest of the world is
> increasingly realising that schema-less and hierarchical databases are
> actually what they're looking for in the modern, internet-focused
> world.

> Try Googling "schemaless database" and you'll very quickly find out
> about new databases such as Poseidon (http://www.brainwavelive.com/
> developers/applications/poseidon-database.html) and Amazon's SimpleDB
> (http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?node=342335011).  Indeed how
> even more ironic to see this quote inhttp://www.satine.org/archives/2007/12/13/amazon-simpledb/
> :

> "Schemaless - major cool factor for me here; items are little hash
> tables containing sets of key, value pairs"

> So, far from being old-fashioned and something that turns people away,
> the inherent schemaless nature of MUMPS is now something that can be
> promoted as a cool feature!  My prediction is that schemaless is soon
> to become the new schema!

> How about hierarchical databases?  You'll see less about this when you
> Google it, apart from sad arcticles explaining the bizarre lengths
> folks have to go to in order to store hierarchical data in relational
> databases.  However, check out Google BigTable and you'll find a new
> implementation of the hierarchical database model, and of course,
> because it bears the Google name, is automatically deemed to be cool!

> The hierarchical database comes into its own for storage of the
> naturally hierarchical structure of XML and, more recently, JSON.
> Check outhttp://www.rpbourret.com/xml/UseCases.htmfor  more info on
> so-called Native XML Databases.

> As both our own eXtc and EWD products have shown, the projection of
> the W3C XML DOM is so straightforward and natural that you'd have
> thought W3C had designed it to use a MUMPS engine!  As a persistent
> storage engine for data exposed and transported as JSON strings, again
> the MUMPS model is a perfect fit, and JSON is one of today's super hot
> technologies.

> So why am I harping on about this?  Because here we all are using a
> technology (in both Cache and GT.M) that, far from being something you
> should be apologetic about and trying desparately to hide, you should
> be shouting about from the hill-tops.  What you've been taking for
> granted for years, the rest of the world is now starting to realise is
> exactly what they need.

> Of course, at M/Gateway we've been saying this for years, eghttp://gradvs1.mgateway.com/download/extreme1.pdf.

> So here's the thing: the MUMPS database is a schemaless hierarchical
> database.  Both at once! How cool is that?!!  Imagine what you could
> do with that?!  Answer: stuff that the rest of the mainstream can only
> dream about but drool at the idea of being able to do.  And MUMPS is a
> tried and tested technology, not some "new kid on the block" barely
> out of a start-up's R&D labs.

> So now you know how cool a technology it is, get out there and tell
> the world about it....