A Smarter Planet

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A Smarter Planet

Steve Jones - SSC Editor

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May 22, 2010 at 12:25 pm

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Comments posted to this topic are about the item A Smarter Planet

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ben.mcintyre SSCommitted Points: 1878 More actions · Answer 1

Iain M Banks, anyone ? Have you read 'Excession' ?

I suppose that's why I feel with software a lot of the time like I'm a caveman chipping pieces off a bit of flint with a rock. The tools I have to work with - even the lastest most flashy ones - are sooooo primitive. I can imagine and could probably design way better ones, but massive unification of architecture and code would have to be the first step to any kind of true interoperability.

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004409 More actions · Answer 2

I like the idea of smarter software around that can help me. I just am not sure that we are building it in a way that respects us as individuals.

That pretty much sums things up for me.

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

Tao Klerks SSCarpal Tunnel Points: 4297 More actions · Answer 3

Yep, totally agree; I suspect we need laws governing not only how companies need to treat data they have on individuals (as already exist in europe, however impractical and ill-enforced) but also giving individuals direct control over what data is available about them, what can be stored, the timelines by which it should be deleted, etc; Establishing these systems and laws is going to be a very complicated process, but the alternative really does seem to be the cyberpunk-style corporate anarchy we are headed towards...

An interesting move in the right direction (at least in rhetorical terms, we'll see how the implementation plays out) is Diaspora as a decentralized user-controlled alternative to Facebook's scary centralism for social networking tools. (see xkcd's amusing take: http://xkcd.com/743/)

http://poorsql.com for T-SQL formatting: free as in speech, free as in beer, free to run in SSMS or on your version control server - free however you want it.

James Stover Hall of Fame Points: 3393 More actions · Answer 4

Spam, phishing, scams, malware, personal data mining, identity theft, etc. Is this the "smarter planet" of which you speak? Makes me want to drop off the grid permanently.

James Stover, McDBA

umailedit SSCrazy Points: 2087 More actions · Answer 5

The first thing we must get smarter about is the format of this newsletter. I have a 24" monitor and this newsletter spans three horizontal pages in that. I hate horizontal scrolling.

chrisn-585491 SSCoach Points: 16006 More actions · Answer 6

What we really need is smarter, more responsible, more respectful people. 😛

Eric M Russell SSC Guru Points: 125562 More actions · Answer 7

Usage of the word "smart" within the technology industry is like using the word "fair" within the realm of politics. I mean, ask 100 random people to define their idea of a "smart" device or a "fair" tax system, and you'll get 100 different answers.

If you tell an engineer or a polititian to create a "smart" system, then you're really just handing them a blank check to create whatever system they think makes the most sense. My own personal idea of smart technology or smart politics is a system that sits in the background, invisible to those who don't want to know while also transparent in it's function to whose of us who do want to know, and performing some well defined task of limited scope with as little intrusion as possible in our daily lives.

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

Tao Klerks SSCarpal Tunnel Points: 4297 More actions · Answer 8

eric_russell 13013 (5/24/2010)
a system that sits in the background, invisible to those who don't want to know while also transparent in it's function to whose of us who do want to know, and performing some well defined task of limited scope with as little intrusion as possible in our daily lives.

Excellently put, I think I'm going to steal that line 🙂

http://poorsql.com for T-SQL formatting: free as in speech, free as in beer, free to run in SSMS or on your version control server - free however you want it.

Steve Jones - SSC Editor SSC Guru Points: 736494 More actions · Answer 9

eric_russell 13013 (5/24/2010)
Usage of the word "smart" within the technology industry is like using the word "fair" within the realm of politics. I mean, ask 100 random people to define their idea of a "smart" device or a "fair" tax system, and you'll get 100 different answers.

Excellent point. I think of a "smart" system as one that responds in amore effecitve manner to inputs and stimuli. Rather than simple IF..THEN actins, as most of our systems, but with more fuzzy type logic, or encompassing more decision logic to step beyond one reaction to the next, or a couple reactions. Kind of like the example later in the IBM video.

Like with a monitoring system. Don't ping me on 100% CPU, ping me when it's sustained 100% for more than 5 minutes, and it's not a backup, and it's not unusual for that time of day/week/month, and then don't keep pinging me, ping me a couple times, wait for a response, and then ping someone else in a similar way.

Eric M Russell SSC Guru Points: 125562 More actions · Answer 10

Steve Jones - Editor (5/24/2010)

Like with a monitoring system. Don't ping me on 100% CPU, ping me when it's sustained 100% for more than 5 minutes, and it's not a backup, and it's not unusual for that time of day/week/month, and then don't keep pinging me, ping me a couple times, wait for a response, and then ping someone else in a similar way.

Yes, I've written and supported job scheduled stored procedures and ETL extracts that would first check CPU utilization or something like the exec status of some other process, before it kicked off at some fixed time. I would feel as proud as a parent watching their kid knock a home run, whenever I came into the office after a full nights uninterrupted sleep, checked the run logs, and saw where a process politely re-scheduled itself and then completed normally rather than just failing and calling me at 2am.

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

Dave Schutz SSCarpal Tunnel Points: 4190 More actions · Answer 11

A "smart' system that monitors my movements makes me think of the movie Minority Report. I don't really want to be tracked all the time. The more data that's available on you the easier it is to track what you are doing. Also database security is not at the level where it should be considered safe. Too many data breaches, not enough controls.

Eric M Russell SSC Guru Points: 125562 More actions · Answer 12

Dave Schutz (5/24/2010)
A "smart' system that monitors my movements makes me think of the movie Minority Report. I don't really want to be tracked all the time. The more data that's available on you the easier it is to track what you are doing. Also database security is not at the level where it should be considered safe. Too many data breaches, not enough controls.

It is now entirely plausible to practically track our every movement using nano sized RFID chips or "nano dust", of the type developed by Hitachi, each of which contain a unique 38 bit GUID and tiny radio wave transmitter.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2007/02/achi_develops_r/

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

Nicole Bowman SSCommitted Points: 1555 More actions · Answer 13

It is now entirely plausible to practically track our every movement using nano sized RFID chips or "nano dust", of the type developed by Hitachi, each of which contain a unique 38 bit GUID and tiny radio wave transmitter.

That is just plain scary! I like my privacy. People being what they are, means that there is always someone out there with not so altruistic intentions.

Nicole Bowman

Nothing is forever.

bruce.dimon SSC Enthusiast Points: 197 More actions · Answer 14

I think someone stuck in a Google world, with Gmail, Google Calendar, an Android phone, Google Apps, etc. is the closest, but they are trusting a lot of their data to Google, stored on GFS file systems and processed on Google's servers. Who's to say that Google won't want to sell some of the analysis or results at some point to someone looking to market to you?

I am this person. Although I trust Google so far, I'm aware that I have no contract with them that prevents them from changing the status quo. As long as their services are provided free, they have the right to do anything within the boundaries of the law to monetize my data.

There are two options that I see.

1 - Change the laws and trust that the lawyers cannot find loopholes.

2 - Pay Google to enter into a contract that will protect my interests.

I could support a law that gives me ownership of data about me. Should such a law pass, it would remove a source of profit for many internet businesses. The end result would be fewer free services. As long as the costs remain low, that would be a good thing.