Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Would Harry Potter use pureXML?

Last night I woke up around 3am and had this question in mind, strange but true. It is an interesting question and it probably came up because end of last year I read all Harry books start to finish.
  • To some, pureXML certainly can do magic by storing information that was not in the original database schema (there is always something unforeseen in your exciting life).
  • For others pureXML allows to trace back "dark magic" to its originator because (XML-based) messages can be stored as is without breaking them up and loosing information (application logging, compliance). In addition, just indexing critical parts of the XML documents and nothing more gives the performance needed when every millisecond counts (did you ever duel with someone?), for inserts and for queries.
  • Storing data as XML can also allow for rapid application development and deployment, giving competitive advantages (dueling again, my friends).
Looking at some of our customers, it seems likely that at least the Ministry of Magic (after the reforms :) would have used pureXML. Can you guess which departments and why? I will leave that to you to comment on.