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Date: Wed, 29 May 2013 08:33:01 +0100
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Subject: Re: [PROPOSAL] MetaModel for the Apache Incubator
From: ant elder <ant.elder@gmail.com>
To: general@incubator.apache.org
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>From the subject line I thought this was going to be another attempt to
sort out the incubator  :-/

   ...ant

On Tue, May 28, 2013 at 7:20 PM, Henry Saputra <henry.saputra@gmail.com>wro=
te:

> Dear ASF members,
>
> We would like to propose MetaModel for the incubator.
>
> Matt Franklin will be the Champion for this project and the proposal draf=
t
> is available at:
>
> https://wiki.apache.org/incubator/MetaModelProposal
>
> Looking forward to all of your suggestions and feedback.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Henry Saputra
>
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------
>
> =3D MetaModel =96 uniform data access across datastores =3D
>
> Proposal for Apache Incubator
>
> =3D=3D Abstract =3D=3D
>
> MetaModel is a data access framework, providing a common interface for
> exploration and querying of different types of datastores.
>
> =3D=3D Proposal =3D=3D
>
> MetaModel provides a uniform meta-model for exploring and querying the
> structure of datastores, covering but not limited to relational databases=
,
> various data file formats, NoSQL databases, Salesforce.com, SugarCRM and
> more. The scope of the project is to stay domain-agnostic, so the
> meta-model will be concerned with schemas, tables, columns, rows,
> relationships etc.
>
> On top of this meta-model a rich querying API is provided which resembles
> SQL, but built using compiler-checked Java language constructs. For
> datastores that do not have a native SQL-compatible query engine, the
> MetaModel project also includes an abstract Java-based query engine
> implementation which individual datastore-modules can adapt to fit the
> concrete datastore.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Background =3D=3D=3D
>
> The MetaModel project was initially developed by eobject.dk to service th=
e
> DataCleaner application (http://datacleaner.org). The main requirement wa=
s
> to perform data querying and modification operations on a wide range of
> quite different datastores. Furthermore a programmatic query model was
> needed in order to allow different components to influence the query plan=
.
>
> In 2009, Human Inference acquired the eobjects projects including
> MetaModel. Since then MetaModel has been put to extensive use in the Huma=
n
> Inference products. The open source nature of the project was reinforced,
> leading to a significant growth in the community.
>
> MetaModel has successfully been used in a number of other open source
> projects as well as mission critical commercial software from Human
> Inference. Currently MetaModel is hosted at http://metamodel.eobjects.org=
.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Rationale =3D=3D=3D
>
> Different types of datastores have different characteristics, which alway=
s
> lead to the interfaces for these being different from one another.
> Standards like JDBC and the SQL language attempt to standardize data
> access, but for some datastore types like flat files, spreadsheets, NoSQL
> databases and more, such standards are not even implementable.
>
> Specialization in interfaces obviously has merit for optimized usage, but
> for integration tools, batch applications and or generic data modificatio=
n
> tools, this myriad of specialized interfaces is a big pain. Furthermore,
> being able to query every datastore with a basic set of SQL-like features
> can be a great productivity boost for a wide range of applications.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Initial goals =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel is already a stable project, so initial goals are more oriented
> towards an adaption to the Apache ecosystem than about functional changes=
.
>
> We are constantly adding more datastore types to the portfolio, but the
> core modules have not had drastic changes for some time.
>
> Our focus will be on making ties with other Apache projects (such as POI,
> Gora, HBase and CouchDB) and potentially renaming the =91MetaModel=92 pro=
ject
> to something more rememberable.
> This includes comply with Apache Software Foundation license for third
> party dependencies.
>
> =3D=3D Current status =3D=3D
>
> =3D=3D=3D Meritocracy =3D=3D=3D
>
> We intend to do everything we can to encourage a meritocracy in the
> development of MetaModel. Currently most important development and design
> decisions have been made at Human Inference, but with an open window for
> anyone to participate on mailing lists and discussion forums. We believe
> that the approach going forward should be more encouraging by sharing all
> the design ideas and discussions in the open, not only just the topics th=
at
> have been =93dragged=94 into the open by third parties.  We believe that
> meritocracy will be further stimulated by granting the control of the
> project to an independent committee.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Community =3D=3D=3D
>
> The community around MetaModel already exists, but we believe it will gro=
w
> substantially by becoming an Apache project. With MetaModel used in a wid=
e
> range of both open and closed source application, both at Human Inference
> (HIquality MDM), it=92s open source projects DataCleaner, SassyReader and
> AnalyzerBeans and by other parties (such as the Quipo data warehouse
> automation project), we believe that the critical mass to sustain a
> community is there.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Core developers =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel was founded by Kasper S=F8rensen in 2009. Later it was incorpor=
ated
> as a core library by Human Inference, meaning that more than 20 developer=
s
> have been involved in its making in this commercial setting. Furthermore =
a
> smaller number of contributors have submitted patches for the library.
> Others have started building other interesting data-oriented libraries on
> top of MetaModel, for instance the =91vasc=92 open source project by Will=
em
> Cazander, which is an implementation of the Java Persistence API (JPA) fo=
r
> all the datastores supported by MetaModel.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Alignment =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel already makes good usage of existing Apache projects such as PO=
I,
> CouchDB and OpenOffice. Furthermore developers from the Apache Gora proje=
ct
> have indicated a need for a project like MetaModel to solve specific
> uniform datastore access needs.
>
> =3D=3D Known risks =3D=3D
>
> =3D=3D=3D Orphaned products =3D=3D=3D
>
> The contributors and the contributing organization (Human Inference) have=
 a
> very strong dependence on MetaModel already and will continue to have tha=
t
> for a long time. The continued need for this vendor to support new types =
of
> datastores and maintain existing functionality will ensure that MetaModel
> is not in the risk of being orphaned.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Inexperience with Open Source =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel is already open source, and has been so for many years. Main
> contributors of the project have also contributed to other open source
> projects such as DataCleaner and Apache Mahout. The openness of Apache is
> arguably more extensive, but we are only encouraged and delighted to be
> handling the project in a more open manner.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Homogenous Developers =3D=3D=3D
>
> Frequent committers are currently located in Denmark, The Netherlands and
> India. They are used to working in a distributed environment.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Reliance on Salaried Developers =3D=3D=3D
>
> Initial committers for MetaModel will depends on salaried based developer=
s
> to contribute to this project, but given the dependence on MetaModel from
> both commercial and open source projects, the project would continue
> without issue if no salaried developers contributed to the project.
>
> The goal is build diverse community to contribute back to MetaModel
> project.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Relationship with Other Apache Products =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel depends on several Apache products including: commons-lang,
> commons-io, commons-codec, http-components, POI, CouchDB, OpenOffice and
> XMLBeans.
>
> Furthermore MetaModel is built by Apache Maven.
>
> =3D=3D=3D An Excessive Fascination with the Apache Brand =3D=3D=3D
>
> The ASF has a strong brand, and that brand is in itself very attractive.
>
> We are interested in joining the ASF in order to increase our contacts an=
d
> visibility in the open source world.
> Furthermore, we have been enthusiastic users of Apache Software Foundatio=
n
> projects, and would feel honored by getting the opportunity to join and
> contribute back to the community.
>
> =3D=3D Documentation =3D=3D
>
> Information on MetaModel can be found at: http://metamodel.eobjects.org
>
> =3D=3D=3D Initial source =3D=3D=3D
>
> MetaModel has been developed since 2009 and have undergone a couple of
> major changes (indicated by the 2.x and 3.x versions).
>
> The code is used in mission critical systems and is considered very stabl=
e
> and high performing.
>
> The source includes a fork of the xBaseJ project=92s code, which will be
> removed upon incubation. This code was originally GPL licensed, but grant=
ed
> with a special license to MetaModel to be forked and relicensed using the
> current LPGL license of MetaModel.
>
> Removal of the xBaseJ code will effectively mean that the Apache variant =
of
> MetaModel will not have support for dBase database files. We imagine that
> the dBase module could live on as a separate pluggable module under the
> LGPL license, outside of Apache.
>
> =3D=3D=3D External dependencies =3D=3D=3D
>
> The dependencies all have Apache compatible licenses. These include BSD a=
nd
> MIT licensed dependencies.
>
> =3D=3D Required resources =3D=3D
>
> =3D=3D=3D Mailing lists =3D=3D=3D
>
>  * metamodel-private (with moderated subscription)
>  * metamodel-dev
>  * metamodel-commits
>
> =3D=3D=3D Subversion directory =3D=3D=3D
> A subversion (http://svn.apache.org/repos/asf/incubator/metamodel/trunk/)
> or git (https://git-wip-us.apache.org/repos/asf/incubator-metamodel.git)
> repository is needed.
>
> Currently MetaModel=92s code is hosted at
> http://eobjects.org/svn/MetaModelbut will be moved to an Apache
> repository.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Issue tracking =3D=3D=3D
>
> JIRA MetaModel (METAMODEL)
>
> =3D=3D=3D Other resources =3D=3D=3D
>
> We would like to have wiki page located at:
> http://wiki.apache.org/MetaModel
>
> In later development phase a set of database servers (specifically MongoD=
B,
> CouchDB, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MS SQL Server (Express), Firebird) should be
> made available for integration testing.
> Currently this is done internally at Human Inference.
>
> =3D=3D=3D Initial committers =3D=3D=3D
>
> Kasper S=F8rensen (i.am.kasper.sorensen [at] gmail.com), Project Founder,
> works at Human Inference
>
> Ankit Kumar (ak.ankitkumar [at] gmail.com), works at Human Inference
>
> Sameer Arora (sameer11sep [at] gmail.com)
>
> Henry Saputra (hsaputra [at] apache.org)
>
> Juan Jos=E9 van der Linden (delostilos [at] gmail.com), works for Quipu
>
> Arvind Prabhakar (arvind at apache dot org)
>
> Matt Franklin (mfranklin at apache dot org)
>
>
> =3D=3D Sponsors =3D=3D
>
> =3D=3D=3D Champion =3D=3D=3D
>
> Matt Franklin (mfranklin at apache dot org)
>
> =3D=3D=3D Nominated mentors =3D=3D=3D
>
> Henry Saputra  (hsaputra at apache dot org)
>
> Arvind Prabhakar (arvind at apache dot org)
>
> Matt Franklin (mfranklin at apache dot org)
>
> =3D=3D=3D Sponsoring entity =3D=3D=3D
>
> The Apache Incubator.
>

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