Customer Reviews

Metadata Solutions: Using Metamodels, Repositories, XML, and Enterprise Portals to Generate Information on Demand

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I've read other books on metadata and repositories, but Metadata
Solutions is the best in that it has actual examples of metadata
solutions, including code. Real case studies from named Fortune 50 Corporations also show that it is not a book on pure theory it illustrates pragmatic approaches that are real, and can be accmplished with short term timeframes. Overall quite practical. The company names are actually mentioned. Everybody
that has a need for exchanging and sharing data across divisions within an enterprise from disparate data sources whether supporting business end-users or I/T systems end-users and/or any interest in metadata should read this - it covers everything from planning and design through implementation. A must read.

This book is not only essential for architects involved with portal design, but also the supporting cast of data architects, business analysts and process modelers. If the "XML" or "portal" keywords in the title led you top this book and you are not exactly sure what a "metadata solution is", the following definition from the book succinctly describes it and the theme of the book itself: Metadata solution An organized and integrated set of related metadata, logically connected but physically separate, with common access points and methods."

The author covers the topic thoroughly, starting with an exhaustive discussion of information and its value to business that spans the first six chapters. Some excellent case studies are included to reinforce concepts. Part II consists of five chapters that take information up one level of abstraction and introduce metadata. Topics in this section start with requirements, and move to modeling. It's worth noting here that the OMG Open Information Model notation is heavily used in this section of the book. This should not be a problem because the notation is easy to follow and is widely known and used, reducing any learning curve to zero for experienced architects and modelers.

Part III's three chapters delve into the underlying infrastructure technologies and tools. I especially liked the chapter on repositories, as well as the one that provided a balanced view of standards. Part IV is where the pace picks up with four chapters devoted to factors you need to consider before designing the solution. The case studies that are included in some of these chapters are important reading because they portray the issues and challenges that are associated with the factors. The last chapter in this section leads you through the design selection process.

I especially like Section V, which is a catalog of solutions that thoroughly examine each aspect of the solution. It starts off with a chapter that describes a typical disaster, followed by viable solutions presented in a format that can be easily recast into design patterns. I also like Section VI, which covers post-implementation administration and maintenance. The three chapters in this section cover topics that are often overlooked until a solution is ready to go into production or (in too many cases) after it has been released into production.

Key points about this book: (1) It is unique in that it addresses the data abstraction requirements of portals, and does so comprehensively. (2) Provides an end-to-end view of metadata from concept to final solution using real life examples and sound techniques. This is a refreshing change from many books that address metadata, but are so abstract themselves that it is difficult to transform the concepts into a working solution. (3) Addresses post implementation issues, which is something I have never come across in a book on metadata.

This is an important work and is essential reading for key players in a portal design and implementation project. Five stars and my highest recommendation.

Metadata Solution Review:

As a practicing Data and Metadata Architect, I have noted with interest Ms Tannenbaum attempt to offer solutions to a very difficult problem namely first of articulating what metadata is and then managing it to make it useful in full understanding of the data/information/knowledge chain within an organization.

The book traces historical roots of the issue by introducing the data/ information systems developments in organization and respective development of complexity. She then introduces the world of metadata. The treatment of identification of what metadata is, various meta-metadata models is indeed in-depth but makes very dense reading (only data bigots will love these sections). Her treatment of solution is also covers a range of possibilities and various case histories at the end of book only go on to illustrate that metadata problems and solution are varied and complex.

The book suffers from two omissions. One, is that the definition of the metadata is leaves out a significant area namely that of the business metadata i.e. metadata that would adds further information/understanding to organized data e.g. reports. Examples of Business metadata are industry reports, internal documents and communication which form a major portion of the current metadata universe but receive scant attention.

The second omission is examples of what constitutes good metadata vs. mediocre (bad) metadata. Writing good definition is no trivial task. "Receipt_Date - Date when the goods are received" is typical of the definitions in any organization dictionary and yet these definitions are less than useless as they lead you believe that the data(s) are defined when in fact they are not. Take for instance an oil tanker disembarking it's cargo which may take over two days - what is the Receipt_Date?

Overall the book tries perhaps to cover too large an arena and fails to offer depth that would make it more useful.

Metadata books are finally starting to appear. I have read all of them because I am actively involved in the maintenance of a poorly developed metadata repository. I had a feeling that it was purchased prematurely and now after reading this book I am 100% convinced.

The title of this book accurately conveys its contents. Many of us forget why metadata is around - it is around to get us to and detail the information that we need to do our jobs. Do we care about metamodels? Only if we need to know about them in order to set up a place to get "information on demand". Ms. Tannenbaum takes this approach, which is perhaps why the book is not everything to everyone.

In order to build or buy a metadata solution, a full set of metadata requirements need to exist. These requirements are not what you find documented in the average data warehouse reporting tool - they are much more. Metadata Solutions explains what else needs to be considered, and takes you through the way to get them, organize them, and use them. She shows how each type of requirement matches the resulting metadata solution - which is good because it will let you know clearly what will suffer if you do not spend the time figuring out what needs to be done and how.

This book is for the person that is implementing a metadata solution. It is also for the person that needs to decide why the metadata solution that exists in his/her organization isn't what it could be. It represents a new way of thinking for some of us, but it is worth reading because it shows us what we all could have done better.

This book is probably the only one that handles the metadata process from start to finish.It begins by describing what we all did wrong (and I was one of them!) and then takes us through a corrective process. Requirements gathering metamodeling, architecture, how to decide which way to implement, organizational support set-up, and even how to maintain the solution. The thing that amazed me the most about this book was the fact that actual examples are shown, including real code. If you are interested in metadata, or if you actually have to deal with it, I strongly recommend this book. It is the best on the market!

Tannenbaum clearly knows the data storage and mining industry. She has produced a book that brings together a comprehensive view of metadata and of its parent, meta-metadata.

It is rather easy to find a book on the details of XML, for example. Or on SQL and its various commercial and open source implementations. And on database design.

But all these can be regarded as lower level details. What if you have several data warehouses, each with its own DBMS catalog, and the warehouses are not from the same vendor? Plus, there are manifold, quite separate application tools that read/write to these. You want to develop a coherent integrated view of the data, hopefully by using metadata descriptors. The type of texts mentioned above are of little help here. The vendor specific books typically orient you to their product alone.

Tannenbaum has striven to fill this market gap. She explains what metadata is, and what a metamodel is. All done at a high level that frees you from the syntax of XML or SQL. Though she does use UML in many diagrams, you do not need to know UML to understand them.

My only quibble is that perhaps some more detailed examples would have been instructive. The high level discussions are good. But some readers might miss the significances of some remarks. More explicit pedagogic examples might drive home the points.

It's about time that I found this book. I am responsible for dealing with a metadata mess in my agency and nothing out there seemed to get me clear on what the real problems are. This book not only explained what should have been done but also how to fix things. Highly recommended for those that need to do something

Those of us that have to implement something will really appreciate this book. THere are others on the market that introduce us to metadata concepts, but leave the implementation to vendors. Some of us know that this can fall short.

If you already have a vendor product and want to improve your situation, consider this book as a starting point. It covers a realistic definition of metadata in terms of not just data, but the world around data (programs, files, business rules, physical database catalogs, for example). Metadata Solutions also shows the reader how all of these perspectives are necessary in order to be successful.

Metadata can take on two flavors in today's world. The popular view uses it as a detailed description of data warehouse data. Ms Tannenbaum does not necessarily fault that viewpoint, but shows us how to some degree we are participating in a potential disaster by keeping copies of metadata that may already exist in a standalone data warehouse product. Likewise, a centralized metadata repository might also create the same problem.

Ms. Tannenbaum likes the portal approach, but she does show examples of virtually all metadata solutions, from separate standalone database, through XML transfer, through a fully integrated portal-based "search and retrieve" solution.

Is this for managers? Yes...but they don't need to read the whole thing..(in fact she even gives reading paths). Is this for data people? Definitely. Is this for developers? definitely. But most important, it is for anyone who thinks they know what metadata is about....surprise!

Metadata Solutions--Using Metamodels, Repositories, XML, and Enterprise Portals to Generate Information on Demand targets a wide audience, from CIO/CTOs through business users through project managers through developers, vendors, and consultants. The book has six parts.

Part I focuses on information. It begins by introducing data management, and briefly presenting data warehousing, object-oriented models, and directories as the integration technologies of the 1990s. A few 2-page case studies illustrate data warehousing, directories, and Web-based data management. Next it lays the groundwork for introducing metadata as the solution. Unfortunately, although some chapters mention packaged vendor solutions and ``tools, tools, and more tools'' (chapter 6), the lack of concrete examples keeps the discussion abstract.

Part II introduces metadata. These chapters present a methodology that begins with requirements, stakeholders and perspectives, and produces metamodels and a metadata architecture. Before introducing the architecture, the author also presents several options for storing metadata. This part also includes a discussion that contrasts vendor and custom metamodels. However, the lack of vendor model examples leaves the discussion unconvincing.

Part III discusses meta-metadata, shifting focus from the outside of a metadata solution to its implementation. The first chapter introduces meta-metadata and meta-metamodels. The following chapters present repositories, the Web, file managers and file systems, database systems, and class libraries as metadata-based technologies. This part concludes with a discussion of standards for metamodels, metadata exchange, and architectures and frameworks. The discussion covers efforts by the Meta Data Coalition, the Object Management Group, and the World Wide Web Consortium, among others.

Part IV continues the implementation discussion, but focuses on non-metadata aspects. As such it covers the non-technical environment, the technical environment, and technical support. Finally, it discusses several implementation options from the perspective of the metadata store, and sketches a brief answer to the ``Buy versus Build'' question. Case studies illustrate non-metadata factors and an XML-based solution. Again, although sometimes the discussion involves packaged products or tools, the author doesn't provide concrete examples.

Part V presents six sample metadata solutions. Generally case studies provide excellent vehicles to illustrate how reality impacts solutions presented on paper. Unfortunately, the case studies in this part are cursory and lack detail. As such, they do a poor job of showing how each metadata solution makes different tradeoffs to deal with its specific requirements. If you expect carefully dissected and thoughtfully presented case studies like in Software Architecture in Practice (by Bass, Clemens, and Kazman) you will be disappointed!

Finally, part V focuses on the phase of the lifecycle following implementation: metadata solution maintenance. As such, it covers beneficiaries, the metadata quality, and how metadata fits within a business strategy. However, this part leaves unanswered an important question that has crystallized throughout the book: what types of problems are unsuitable for metadata solutions? The absence of this analysis may wrongfully lead uninitiated readers to regard metadata as a solution to problems it cannot solve.

From a presentation perspective, the book has a distracting number of problems. The writing style uses passive voice and fairly long sentences. In addition, unlike most technical books, the text doesn't contain references. Instead, the author has chosen to supply a few additional readings for several topics at the end of the book. Moreover, most forward and backward references appear as footnotes. Finally, footnoting the ``5 Questions'' as copyrighted and trademarked each and every time they're mentioned comes off as a monotonous, repetitive, and tiring sales pitch.

If you're looking for MBA-level information about metadata solutions, this book will give you a better idea of the area. However, if you're looking for detailed technical information about designing custom solutions or evaluating COTS systems, this book won't fit the bill. All in all, Metadata Solutions remains an MBA-level book written by an MBA.

This book, without a CD, has more practical metadata information than any other one I've read. THere is a section, Part V, which shows actual solution implementations. In fact, each chapter represents a specific type of implementation including centralized repositories, information directories, centralized and distributed metadata stores (these by the way are not the same as repositories), metadata exchange (XML is the example used), portal-based information access.

I suspect that all of these practical solutions represent actual implementations. In some cases, the submitters are mentioned. Many of the chapters however were written by consultants from Adrienne Tannenbaum's firm.

If you are looking for something to plug into your CD-ROM, then don't get this book. But if you are looking for something that will help you get a job done, then I strongly recommend it.