tekArtist

From “Cybercluster - Cybertec Schönig & Schönig GmbH”

Cybertec is a PostgreSQL replication solution which makes sure that the database cluster is consistent at every point in time. We rely on a shared-nothing architecture which is perfectly suitable for synchronous multimaster replication.

I had somehow missed this newly open sourced (BSD license) solution from the list of accessories in the PostgreSQL 8.3 press release… That sounds like a great multimaster solution. Woohoo, one more tool!

Edit: Actually, that’s two more tools, since Mr. Icon also recommended me first hand to look into the wonders of using pgpool-II for persistent connections today, a product which also has a few replication and load balancing tricks of its own.

From “PostgreSQL 8.3 Press Kit“:

The PostgreSQL Global Development Group today announced the release of version 8.3 of the high-performance object-relational database management system. This release includes a record number of new and improved features which will greatly enhance PostgreSQL for application designers, database administrators, and users, with more than 280 patches by dozens of PostgreSQL contributors from 18 countries.

Please forgive me as I bathe in my own drool after reading the detailed features list and feature matrix.

Still have to rely on Slony-I for master-to-slave replication though…I also have to check into Postgres-R as a multimaster replication engine.

From the Blitzweekeend web site:

Blitzweekend is an unique experience where designers, developers, and entrepreneurs are challenged to create a working product in 48 hours. Find a solution to a current problem, meet and innovate with bright creatives, work in an environment built for rapid development, and get feedback from experienced entrepreneurs.

There are a lot of good people putting a lot of effort into organizing this great event. Just check out their blog and wiki, and you’ll get ample proof of this fact. I predict a total success and I know I’ll be happy to join in the fun.

From “OpenSocial or OpenGadget? - ReadWriteWeb“:

Steve O’Hear (who edits our digital lifestyle blog last100) has an interesting post on his ZDNet blog that questions whether Google’s OpenSocial initiative is at all about data portability, or if in fact it really just about widget standardization. O’Hear quotes heavily from a recent article by Marc Canter, who is a strong advocate for open standards and data portability, that ran on CNet.

I see the same issue with Facebook’s JS Client Library.

I love client-side technologies, but I’m increasingly thinking that the propagation of such libraries is calculated by the providers more in terms of securing data and activity custodianship, as an alternative to truly opening one’s data APIs, rather than with scalability and processing decentralization in mind, like some argue.

It’s not a bad thing by any stretch, but I’m not sure associating them with true openness and data portability is entirely appropriate.

From “Mukurtu Wumpurrarni-kari Archive :: An Indigenous Archive Tool“:

The Mukurtu Wumpurrarni-kari Archive is a browser-based digital archive created by the Warumungu community in Tennant Creek, N.T. Australia in collaboration with researchers Kimberly Christen, Craig Dietrich, Chris Cooney, and Tim Dietrich.

Doesn’t that sound like a perfect site to be accessed from an XO?

But obvious references aside, what is so special about this effort beyond the niche community it revolves around?

As the Beeb duly reports, it’s all about the social approach to accessing the knowledge made available through the archives.

It asks every person who logs in for their name, age, sex and standing within their community.

This information then restricts what they can search for in the archive, offering a new take on DRM.

Or what I would have labeled as SRM: social rights management. Using socially defined standards and volunteered information to filter the data, rather than credentials provided by a central authority to restrict access to it.

Puts a whole new twist on Praized Media’s “Trust your tribes” motto!

Via Slashdot.