1. technology and computing

6
mystarjob.com, Saturday 30 May 2015
mystarjob.com, Saturday 30 May 2015
BIG DATA EXPLAINED
BIG DATA:
5 TOP
COMPANIES AND
THEIR PLANS
FOR 2015
IN LESS THAN 2 MINUTES...TO ABSOLUTELY ANYONE
By BERNARD MARR
editor@leaderonomics.com
T
HERE are some things that are
so big that they have implications for everyone, whether
we want them to or not. Big
Data is one of those concepts,
and is completely transforming the way
we do business and is impacting most
other parts of our lives.
It’s such an important idea that
everyone needs to have a basic understanding of what it is and why it’s
important.
What is Big Data?
“Big Data” means different things
to different people and there isn’t, and
probably never will be, a commonly
agreed upon definition out there. But
the phenomenon is real and it is producing benefits in so many different
areas, so it makes sense for all of us to
have a working understanding of the
concept.
So here’s my quick
definition:
The basic idea behind the phrase
“Big Data” is that everything we do is
increasingly leaving a digital trace (or
data), which we (and others) can use
and analyse. Big data therefore, refers
to that data being collected and our
ability to make use of it.
Of course, data collection itself isn’t
new. We as humans have been collecting and storing data since as far back as
10
THE past few years has seen an explosion in the number of platforms available for big data analytical tasks. The
open source Hadoop framework is free
to use, but is very technical to set up
and not specialised towards any particular job or industry. To use it in your
business, you need a “platform” to operate it from.
These platforms are commercial
offerings (you pay an ongoing service
charge), most of which take the Hadoop
framework and build on it, to provide
analytical services of practical use to
businesses and organisations.
So here are 10 of the best and
most widely used services. Like any
commercial product in a competitive
market, each has its advantages and
disadvantages, and you need to make
sure you are picking the right tool for
the job.
AMAZING
DATA
ANALYTICS
PLATFORMS
EVERYONE
SHOULD
KNOW 1
ABOUT
Cloudera CDH
Cloudera was formed by former
employees of Google, Yahoo, Facebook
and Oracle and offers open source as
well as commercial Hadoop-based big
data solutions with the label Cloudera
Distribution including Hadoop, known
as CDH. Their distributions make use of
their Impala analytics engine which has
been adopted and included in packages
offered by competitors such as Amazon
and MapR.
2
Hortonworks
Data Platform (HDP)
Unlike every other big analytics platform, HDP is entirely comprised of open
source code, with all of its elements
built through the Apache Software
Foundation. They make their money by
offering services, getting them running
and providing the results you are after.
3
Microsoft HDInsight
Microsoft’s flagship analytical offering, HDInsight is based on
Hortonworks Data Platform, but tailored to work with their own Azure
cloud services and SQL Server database
management system. A big advantage
for businesses is that it integrates with
Excel, meaning even staff with only
basic IT skills can dip their toes into big
data analytics.
“machine data to operational intelligence”. Internet of Things is key to their
strategy, and among other products
they provide the analytics behind the
Nest WiFi-enabled smart thermostat.
Their analytics also drives Dominos
Pizza’s US coupon campaigns.
6 Amazon Web Services
Although everyone thinks of them
as an online store, Amazon also makes
money by selling the magic that makes
their business run so smoothly, to other
companies. The business model was
based on big data from the start – using
personal information to offer a personalised shopping experience. Amazon
Web Services includes its Elastic Cloud
Compute and Elastic MapReduce services to offer large-scale data storage
and analysis in the cloud.
18,000 BCE. What’s new are the recent
technological advances in chip and
sensor technology, the Internet, cloud
computing, and our ability to store and
analyse data that have changed the
quantity of data we can collect.
Things that have been a part of
everyday life for decades — shopping,
listening to music, taking pictures,
talking on the phone — now happen
more and more wholly or in part in the
digital realm, and therefore leave a trail
of data.
The other big change is in the kind of
data we can analyse. It used to be that
data fit neatly into tables and spreadsheets, things like sales figures and
wholesale prices and the number of
customers that came through the door.
Now data analysts can also look at
“unstructured” data like photos, tweets,
emails, voice recordings and sensor
data to find patterns.
How is it being used?
As with any leap forward in innovation, the tool can be used for good
or nefarious purposes. Some people
are concerned about privacy, as more
and more details of our lives are being
recorded and analysed by businesses,
agencies, and governments every day.
Those concerns are real and not to
be taken lightly, and I believe that best
practices, rules, and regulations will
evolve alongside the technology to protect individuals.
But the benefits of big data are very
real, and truly remarkable.
8
Infobright
9
MapR
Another database management
system, again available in both an open
source, free edition and a paid-for proprietary version. This product is geared
towards users looking to get involved
with the Internet of Things. They offer
three levels of service for paid users,
with more users given access to the
helpdesk, and quicker email support
response times, for higher tier customers.
MapR offer their own distribution
of Hadoop, notably different from others as it replaces the commonly-used
Hadoop File System with its alternative
MapR Data Platform, which it claims
offers better performance and ease of
use.
Analytical
4 IBM Big Data Platform 7 Pivotal Big Data Suite Platform
10 Kognitio
IBM offers a range of products
and services designed to make complex big data analysis more accessible
to businesses. The company offers its
own Hadoop distribution known as
InfoSphere BigInsights.
5 Splunk Enterprise
This platform is specifically
geared to businesses that generate
a lot of their own data through their
own machinery. Their stated goal is
Pivotal’s big data package
is comprised of its own Hadoop
distribution, Pivotal HD and its analytics
platform Pivotal Analytics. Their
business model allows consumers to
store an unlimited amount of data and
pay a subscription fee which varies
according to how much they analyse.
The company is strongly invested in
the “data lake” philosophy, of a unified,
object-based storage repository for all of
an organisation’s data.
Like many of the other systems here,
this takes data from your Hadoop or
cloud-based storage network and
gives the users access to a range
of advanced analytical functions. Kognitio is used by BT
to help set their call charges
and by loyalty programme
Nectar for its customer
analytics.
Most people have some idea that
companies are using big data to better understand and target customers.
Using big data, retailers can predict
what products will sell, telecom companies can predict if and when a customer
might switch carriers, and car insurance
companies understand how well their
customers actually drive.
It’s also used to optimise business
processes. Retailers are able to optimise their stock levels based on what’s
trending on social media, what people
are searching for on the web, or even
weather forecasts. Supply chains can be
optimised so that delivery drivers use
less gas and reach customers faster.
But big data goes way beyond shopping and consumerism. Big data analytics enable us to find new cures and better understand and predict the spread
of diseases.
The police use big data tools to arrest
criminals and even predict criminal
activity. Credit card companies use big
data analytics to detect fraudulent
transactions.
A number of cities are even using big
data analytics with the aim of turning
themselves into “Smart Cities”, where
a bus would know to wait for a delayed
train and where traffic signals predict
traffic volumes and operate to minimise jams.
Why is it so important?
The biggest reason big data is important to everyone is that it’s a trend
that’s only going to grow.
As the tools to collect and analyse
data become less expensive and more
accessible, we will develop more uses
for it — everything from smart yoga
mats to better healthcare tools and a
more effective police force.
And, if you live in the modern world,
it’s not something you can escape.
Whether you’re all for the benefits big
data can bring, or worried about it, it’s
important to be aware of the phenomena and tune in to how it’s affecting
your daily life.
n Bernard Marr is a globally recognised
expert in strategy, performance
management, analytics, KPIs and big
data. He helps companies and executive
teams manage, measure and improve
performance. His latest books are
‘25 Need-to-Know Key Performance
Indicators’ and ‘Doing More with Less’.
To connect with him, email editor@
leaderonomics.com. For more leadership
insights, visit www.leaderonomics.com
7
Big data is undoubtedly getting bigger in 2015.
Last year saw it moving into the mainstream
as companies of all shapes and sizes started to
get to grips with the possibilities of using big
data, and this year will only see more of that.
Expect new product and service announcements from the established big names, as well
as a flood of innovative start-ups hitting the
headlines over the next 12 months.
This is a run-through of big data companies
I expect to hear great things in 2015. I’ve
started with the “big data giants” – established
names which have made data the foundation
of their business model.
Google
Google’s domination of search
continues, but 2015 will see continued
efforts to diversify into other areas of
everyday life. 2014 saw the acquisition
of home automation pioneers Nest –
creators of the smart thermostat.
In turn, Nest used their newfound
wealth to snap up Revolv, which
makes “home hubs” – used to
connect and control everything
from smart light bulbs to security
cameras and automatic gates.
Google is aiming to provide
the infrastructure backbone of the
modern smart home – a concept we
can expect to become more real in
2015.
Google is also expected to
announce versions of its core products
specifically tailored for use by children
– expect child-friendly versions of
search, Chrome and YouTube –
further positioning tech as part of
everyday family life.
Microsoft
Microsoft is hoping that its efforts to
bring data analysis to the mainstream
will start to bear fruit, with the latest
updates to its cloud-based PowerBI
analytics tools. PowerBI was launched
in 2013 with the aim of providing
analytics features to users of the
popular-as-ever Office productivity
suite.
It will be hoping that the new
features – such as a dedicated
iPad app to take analytics mobile,
dashboard analytics and the ability
to talk directly to good old SQL
databases, to an uptake in the use
of PowerBI (and analytics in general)
among all enterprises of all sizes.
IBM
IBM’s Watson Analytics has just
been made available to the general
public, and represents another step
towards taking data analysis into the
everyday mainstream. The name is
somewhat confusing as it is also the
name of IBM’s “artificial intelligence”
algorithms which beat Jeopardy
champions Ken Jennings and Brad
Rutter in 2011, prompting Jennings
to announce “I for one welcome
our new computer overlords.”
This is because it uses much
of the technology developed for
that application to power Watson
Analytics’ natural language processing
functions – meaning it can interpret
queries input in plain, spoken English
to a higher standard than previously
possible. It will be offered both as a
free online web-based service, and
a fully featured subscription-based
enterprise service, offering analysis of
higher volumes of data.
Facebook
Still the biggest social network
by a large margin, Facebook
has been losing ground to
competitors such as Twitter and
Instagram, particularly among
the younger demographic.
However, one surprising
acquisition made by the
company last year shows it may
be intent on taking the concept
of online communications in a
startling new direction.
The Oculus Rift virtual
reality headset is expected to
finally become available to
consumers. And although it will
initially be aimed at gamers,
founder Mark Zuckerberg has
made it clear that Facebook
means to undertake the task of
building virtual worlds we can
explore and interact with from
the mountains of data at its
disposal.
HP
HP, in line with other big data
service providers such as
Amazon and IBM, has made
its big data analytics platform
– Haven – available entirely
through the cloud. This means
that everything – from storage
to analytics and reporting – is
handled on HP systems which
are leased to the customer via a
monthly subscription – entirely
eliminating infrastructure costs.
This removes many of
the hurdles associated with
implementing a big data
strategy and vastly lowers the
barrier of entry. Competition
with Amazon’s Redshift and
IBM DashDB should keep
subscription prices low and
lead to a big increase in the
number of businesses employing
analytics to improve efficiency.