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Schemaless database are a joy to use because they make it easy to iterate on your app, especially early on. And to be honest, the relational model isn't always the best fit for real-world evolving and messy data. On the other hand, relational databases are proven, robust, and powerful. Also, over time as your data model stabilizes, the lack of well-defined schemas becomes painful. How are we supposed to pick one or the other? Simple: pick both. Fortunately recent advances in Postgres allow for a hybrid approach that we've been using at Heroku. The hstore datatype gives you key/value in a single column, and PLV8 enables JavaScript and JSON in Postgres. These and others in turn make Postgres the best document database in the world. We will explore the power of hstore and PLV8, explain how to use them in your project today, and examine their role in the future of data.
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In the video titled "Schemaless SQL The Best of Both Worlds" by Will Leinweber, a member of the Heroku Postgres team, the discussion centers around leveraging the advantages of both schemaless and relational databases through PostgreSQL. Leinweber highlights that while schemaless databases simplify rapid iteration during app development by accommodating evolving data without strict schemas, relational databases provide stability and robustness required for mature applications. However, as the data model stabilizes, the flexibility of esquemas can become a limitation. **Key Points Discussed:** - **Background**: Leinweber's journey from using PHP and MySQL to discovering Rails and eventually working extensively with PostgreSQL. - **Comparison of Databases**: The pros and cons of both schemaless databases like CouchDB and MongoDB versus the strengths of relational databases like PostgreSQL, emphasizing that traditional SQL can be cumbersome for complex, evolving data structures. - **Enhancements in PostgreSQL**: Recent upgrades to PostgreSQL, such as the introduction of hstore and PLV8, allow users to adopt a hybrid approach, incorporating key-value storage and JavaScript execution within the database, respectively. - **Hstore Features**: Leinweber explains how Hstore provides a means to store key/value pairs within a single PostgreSQL column and how it can be indexed for efficient querying. He provides examples of using hstore syntax and showcases its flexibility in adapting to changing application needs without necessitating migrations. - **PLV8 and JSON**: The integration of the V8 JavaScript engine into PostgreSQL allows developers to run JavaScript for calculations and querying directly within the database, opening new possibilities for data manipulation and access. Leinweber illustrates this with practical examples, including performance comparisons to traditional PL/pgSQL functions. - **Practical Applications**: Real-world usage scenarios of hstore and PLV8 at Heroku to manage database health and flexibility in data observations, underscoring how these features significantly enhance the developer experience. - **Future Outlook**: A preview of forthcoming PostgreSQL features, including a native JSON data type and the ability to perform complex queries more efficiently, encourages developers to embrace advanced database functionalities without fearing vendor lock-in. **Conclusions**: The video concludes with an optimistic view on blending relational and document-oriented elements within databases, advocating that developers should not hesitate to leverage advanced features of PostgreSQL for improved performance and flexibility in their applications. The message is clear: databases are evolving, and embracing these changes can foster better application development. In summary, Leinweber encourages developers to harness the best aspects of both worlds in database design, thereby simplifying data management while enhancing application performance.
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