A Platform to Support Object Database Research

By: Michael Grossniklaus, Stefania Leone, Alexandre de Spindler, Moira C. Norrie

Abstract

Databases play a key role in an increasingly diverse range of applications and settings. New requirements are continually emerging and may differ substantially from one domain to another, sometimes even to the point of conflict. To address these challenges, database systems are evolving to cater for new application domains. Yet little attention has been given to the process of researching and developing database concepts in response to new requirements. We present a platform designed to support database research in terms of experimentation with different aspects of database systems ranging from the data model to the distribution architecture. Our platform is based on the notion of metamodel extension modules, inspired by proposals for adaptive and configurable database management systems. However, rather than building a tailored system from existing components, we focus on the process of designing new components. To qualitatively evaluate our platform, we present a series of case studies where our approach was used successfully to experiment with concepts designed to support a variety of novel application domains.

Keywords

Object databases; Metamodel extension modules; Research platform.

Cite as:

Michael Grossniklaus, Stefania Leone, Alexandre de Spindler, Moira C. Norrie, “A Platform to Support Object Database Research”, Journal of Object Technology, Volume 12, no. 2 (June 2013), pp. 2:1-31, doi:10.5381/jot.2013.12.2.a2.