From the Editor

 

First, let me apologize for the late issue.  Things have been quite hectic in the past few weeks.  Which, of course, is a very good problem to have.  Finally, after two years of little to no new projects, the IT industry seems to slowly be turning around.

 

This issue completes the Structural Inference Techniques series with the second article on data rules.  We investigate hierarchies and code/reference tables, including identification and validation techniques.

 

Also, we investigate new areas of data profiling with an article on dynamic meta data statistics and applications.  This is a promising area of data profiling that can affect other areas of IT and the business, including ETL specifications, continuous data quality efforts, and measuring risk in using certain data.

 

The focus of the newsletter, for the next issue, will shift slightly from data profiling techniques and methodologies to measurements and statistics.  As data profiling technology matures, I think that the vendors need to concentrate on adding new statistics that they capture as well as the ability to trend them over time.  These statistics can be used by a number of IT and business specialists to better understand the data they use and how they capture the data. If you have any measurements that you are using in projects or assessments, don't hesitate on submitting them.

 

Enjoy the newsletter.  Please send feedback and comments.

 

Joseph Novella,

Editor