What is Big Data?

In today’s world, the amount of data that is being created, Stored, Maintained and used on daily basis is growing by leaps and bounds. This happens for various reasons and each of our day to day activity results in generating huge data. The growth rate of data generation has drastically increased and still on a raise as each day pass by.

What is Big Data?

Big Data is a collective name given to all the Data that is being generated and stored on daily basis from various sources. It includes processed or unprocessed data which may be complex in nature. It may be in different forms, types and may be in big volumes.

Sources of Big Data:

There are various sources from which Data is generated. In today’s digital world, all our activities result in some or other form of Data or digital trails which shall be stored. Smart phones are one of the sources of Big Data. The places we visit, the pictures we take, the activities we do online, the products we order online etc. is being recorded and stored as Data for various references. Other important sources include Data generated by various organizations, Surveys conducted by media, Data available in web, social media, public forums etc.

This information may be in the form of text documents, images, audio clips, software programs, or other types of Data. 

However the biggest challenge lies in getting the require Data at the required time from this huge pile of extensive and complex Data.

Usage:

Big Data is now being used by all Industrial sectors and commercial establishments across the globe and also in all fields. 

Way Forward:

The Data is growing at a very fast rate over a period of time it becomes much larger and more complex in nature. Considering this challenge, the demand for solutions as well as professionals to handle and process the Data also increases. A good solution shall have but not limited to the following features

• Flexible to process any type of Data.
• Should be able to integrate with any software
• Quick and Efficient
• Cost effective

New Innovations and Continuous efforts are needed to deal with this Data challenge. With the right Data available on hand, users can move forward and take decisions more confidently. In spite of multiple challenges that are being faced, the future of Big Data is more promising and if properly dealt with challenges, it has the potential to transform the way business is handled and also improves efficiency and profitability of organizations.

About the Author:

Sameera Nishat is an Electronics and Communication Engineer currently employed with PiLog as a Program Manager. Being an Ontology expert, she is in charge of the Material and Service master Dictionaries/Taxonomy which are currently being used by many leading organizations across the globe for Cataloguing their Material/Service Master records. As a Master data expert, she has vast experience in the field of Data management and ERP solutions and she writes blogs related to her area of expertise during her leisure.