To be clear, this article won’t be an indictment on the popular McDonald’s sandwich. Indeed, that was in itself a brilliant idea to combat flagging Friday sales in the predominantly Catholic neighborhood of a franchise owner. Due to most of his customers choosing to abstain from meat on Fridays, franchise owner Lou Groen famously made…
Category: Overall Design
Lessons From Childhood – The Three Little Pigs
For those not familiar with the children’s story, you can click here for an entertaining rendition, or read further. The story begins with three little pigs, each of whom chooses to build a home – one of straw, one of sticks, and one of bricks. The first little pig build his home out of straw. He…
The Set Theory of Data Warehouse Design
I love volleyball as much as I love data. However, as this is a blog about data, I’ll leave the theories I have related to setting the ball at the door and move forward on the topic of data. Believe it or not, you learned the basics of how a data warehouse works way back…
Thinking Inside the Box
When I was 19, I attended a leadership school where one of the sessions focused on trying to sell an otherwise undesirable product. In the workshop, we were given the opportunity to try and come up with reasons to purchase a bucket of excrement. Many of the people concentrated on the practical uses for poop….
The Game Theory of Warehouse Design – AKA – “What Would JJ Walker Do?”
In high school, I had the opportunity to play against a chess grandmaster. I can say without boasting that I soundly beat him … to the door. While playing, he told me in no uncertain terms around 40 moves into our game that he would have checkmate in twenty-something moves. As he went around to…
“Our Work Isn’t an Exact Science”
“Our work isn’t an exact science.” I heard this stated by someone in the data science field last week, and I can think of few things in our work that make me angrier than this – so prepare to hear a rant, as I often find myself on the wrong side of Brandolini’s Law. Simply…
Don’t Know Much About… NULL Values
The Best of Sam Cooke was the first CD I ever bought. One of my favorite songs on that CD, “Wonderful World“, begins with the iconic line “Don’t know much about history.” Through the rest of the song, Cooke sings about a number of the other things he “don’t know much about”. He then ends…
Be the Frank Lloyd Wright of Your Data Warehouse
I studied architecture in middle school (yes, I am that big of a nerd) and fell in love with the patterns of Frank Lloyd Wright designs. Widely regarded as one of the best architects in U.S. history, Wright’s designs are legendary for their attention to the smallest of details. He drew the plans, selected the…
Roll Up Your Sleeves, Not Your Counts
Rolling up your shirtsleeves has long been associated with the idea of working hard. I have zero issues with working hard – but you should work smart as well. I was reminded of this recently in a discussion with a colleague regarding a table that stores distinct record counts by day. The idea behind the…
Orion’s Belt Is a Huge Waste of Space – But a Data Constellation is the Inverse
I’ve long had a love affair with the stars. Seeing something so timeless and far reaching puts life in perspective. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been able to identify and appreciate a number of constellations as they run across the night sky. My kids have been able to identify Orion for as…
Those Who Don’t Know History Are Doomed to Repeat It…
In our daily work, we’re constantly bombarded with requests for short time periods – rolling 30 days, last month, last quarter, year to date, rolling 13 months, etc. All of these are fine for their defined purposes – reporting. It’s often called Business Intelligence, or Analytics, and there are some pieces of both within these…
Shoot for the Star Schema!
The phrase “Shoot for the stars!” has long been associated with trying to achieve something thought impossible, with the idea that while you may not get all of the way there, by aiming for something grandiose, you will at least achieve more than if you set your goals at something easily accomplished. In more recent…
Rock the Data! 