MonetDB

Key Features

* MonetDB is built on the canonical representation of database relations as columns, a.k.a. arrays. They are sizeable entities -up to hundreds of megabytes- swapped into memory by the operating system and compressed on disk upon need. * MonetDB excels in applications where the database hot-set - the part actually touched - can be largely held in main-memory or where a few columns of a broad relational table are sufficient to handle individual requests. * MonetDB is designed for multi-core parallel execution on desktops to reduce response time for complex query processing. * MonetDB is designed to accommodate different query languages through its proprietary algebraic-language, called the MonetDB Assembly Language (MAL). * The maximal database size supported by MonetDB depends on the underlying processing platform, e.g., a 32- or 64-bit processor, and storage device, e.g., the file system and disk raids. * MonetDB has been strongly influenced by the scientific experiments to understand the interplay between algorithms and application requirements. * MonetDB supports a broad palette of application domains by hooking up external supplied libraries, e.g. pcre, raptor, libxml and geos. Several external file formats are being encapsulated into data vaults, which creates a symbiosis and natural bridge between database processing and legacy file-based processing prevalent in some science domains.