pcplantdb

[Sean Maley <semaley@yahoo.com>]

--- Chad Knepp <pyg@galatea.org> wrote:
> version (0.3.1) of PIW on <http://dev.permaculture.info/>.  While your
> evaluation is highly accurate of the current live version I think very
> significant progress has been made on dev.  Specifically the advanced
> search addresses most of your concerns
> <http://dev.permaculture.info/advanced.html>.  Many of the features
> that Ad Vlems listed are available as well. 

I put either cordage or fiber in the uses box, but still get the entire 
dataset back.  Does this
mean that everything in Eden is useful for cordage and fiber?  I get more 
easily accessible
information from Google, which often leads me to PFAF.  Why should I use PIW, 
instead?  This
includes dev.

I don't like using Python.  I've been programming since the Z-80 days of CP/M 
and no longer have
any favorite languages/IDE (C was my long time favorite and Perl was great in 
a pinch).  If I want
to put nails in, I use a hammer.  I get a screwdriver for screws.  Currently, 
it is the switching
gears issue to take up Python.  I happen to have a day job using Sybase, 
Perl, and PHP (I'm the
DBA, but they give me extra work to help me look busy).  I'm putting my foot 
down to avoid
learning yet another tool.  Yes, I've read through your Python code and you 
have very clean
programming practices.

The database I saw, eden, was normalized minimally, though just a plant 
repository.  I'm hearing
OLAP concepts in the specification, but little discussion on measures 
(dynamic data like soil
measurements and harvest quantity/quality) and dimensions (static data like 
species and uses).  I
can see that no measures exist in the current DDL and little dimension, aside 
from PFAF plant
data.  Some of the dimensional subjects could be mined from PFAF, but so much 
more would be needed
for the full dataset of guild dynamics to be accomplished.  From past 
discussion, I'm sure I have
a larger scope in mind than others.  Perhaps I just don't see how much can be 
done with just
plants and no measures for PIW users to collect.  Are there even heuristics 
that I missed?


-Sean.

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