
There's Something About Redis - r11t
http://www.paperplanes.de/2009/10/27/theres_something_about_redis.html
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tptacek
Respectfully, it's posts like this that are keeping me from investigating the
new k-v stores for our (large) Rails app. I don't want "awesome", I don't want
a "lifestyle", and I'm certainly not motivated by the idea of replacing
something that is fast enough, but not as fast as it could be.

You've got every right not to care what I think of Redis (or Couch or
whatever), but if you do and you're wondering how to address people like me
--- ie, people who would rather add one more tiny feature to a product that
sells than talk about NoSQL --- can you tell me how Redis fits in alongside a
MySQL/AR setup? If I'm already committed to AR, where does Redis (or Couch or
whatever) make my existing app better?

~~~
kvstorefool
It's all about the use case. Duh!

"Using the right tool for the job!" --someone smart

No one claims that key-value stores will entirely replace relational
databases. But there are use cases for it where it doesn't make sense to use a
relational store, cause no relations are required. E.g., I've personally
created a property table in MySQL before. But a key-value store would have
been way more suitable for it.

And not just more suitable, but also faster. But don't worry, *SQL excels on
other fronts.

Also, Redis is not CouchDB, not even close.

CouchDB is not a key-value store but a documented oriented database. Suitable
in case it's hard to normalize your data (or you're fucking tired of doing it
again and again). It's also extemely fast on read and easy to integrate
(HTTP).

I suggest further reading. Less complaining. Maybe attend one of those
conferences. Don't waste your time on Hacker News. =)

~~~
tptacek
So your take is, I should run two whole seperate databases so I can store my
property tables in a k-v store instead of in a trivial table?

~~~
janl
The take is, just because you already have a database, it might not be the
best place to but all your data.

~~~
tptacek
In what way are my users going to notice that I stored a prop table in Redis
instead of MySQL? Because I don't think they're going to notice ever, but I
could be wrong.

~~~
kvstorefool
Ouch.

They'll notice when your application is faster and more robust. You don't use
a key-value store to impress your users.

Robustness can also lead to easier development, more features, better service,
whatever.

