Re:Startups should use a relational database
by jwilliams on Sunday December 22, 2013 @05:25AM
(#6949938)
This comes up every now and then on HN. There are plenty of NoSQL horror stories.
Thing is. Most SQL database at scale is a bit of a horror too. Have you seen real-life production relational databases? Gawd. Hacks on hacks. Then you add another database. And another analytics database. And a bunch of point to point data feeds. Argh.
But hey. That's data.
If you think choosing SQL will solve your analytics woes down the line -- it's just not true. You're in for some pain no matter what you do.
... That's unless you get a porcelain schema first time. Which, if you're in a startup, probably means you're working on the wrong problem.
That's not an argument for using NoSQL (I used MongoDB daily, but I've got plenty of love for PostgreSQL). It's a rebuttal that SQL magically solves a different problem.
Thing is. Most SQL database at scale is a bit of a horror too. Have you seen real-life production relational databases? Gawd. Hacks on hacks. Then you add another database. And another analytics database. And a bunch of point to point data feeds. Argh.
But hey. That's data.
If you think choosing SQL will solve your analytics woes down the line -- it's just not true. You're in for some pain no matter what you do.
... That's unless you get a porcelain schema first time. Which, if you're in a startup, probably means you're working on the wrong problem.
That's not an argument for using NoSQL (I used MongoDB daily, but I've got plenty of love for PostgreSQL). It's a rebuttal that SQL magically solves a different problem.