It’s one thing to log data; it’s another to actually do something with it. A recent IDC survey of 100 Australia CIOs highlights the areas where data is most likely to be ignored. While newer and more complex forms of data such as video are neglected, we’re also not doing much with plain web log files.
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The study, part of broader research into data management commissioned by CommVault, included a question about the data that was collected and whether that data was analysed. Here are the full results for Australia:
| Data type | % that capture | % that analyse |
|---|---|---|
| User-generated text (forms, emails) | 87 | 82 |
| Transactional data | 83 | 76 |
| Log files | 74 | 67 |
| Machine/sensor data | 62 | 58 |
| Web logs | 52 | 42 |
| Video | 49 | 28 |
| Audio | 39 | 18 |
| GPS data | 33 | 42 |
| Social network chatter | 26 | 17 |
Analysis for its own sake is pointless, but taking advantage of big data starts by creatively utilising existing sources. Just checking financial data won’t help with that.