Question 1

Data warehouse administrators (DWAs) do not need strong business insight since they only handle the technical aspect of the infrastructure.

Accepted Answer

This statement is false. Data warehouse administrators (DWAs) do need strong business insight to understand and meet the needs of the business and make informed decisions about the technical infrastructure. They must have a deep understanding of the data and how it is used by the business to design and maintain an effective data warehouse system.

Question 2

In the Isle of Capri case, the only capability added by the new software was increased processing speed of processing reports.

Accepted Answer

The Isle of Capri case mentions that the new software added capabilities like data mining, generating reports in different formats, and improved accuracy of reports, in addition to increased processing speed.

Question 3

Without middleware, different BI programs cannot easily connect to the data warehouse.

Accepted Answer

Middleware software is used as an intermediary layer between different BI tools and the data warehouse. It helps to ensure compatibility and enables communication between different software systems. Without middleware, it would be challenging for different BI programs to connect to the data warehouse. Hence, the statement is true.

Question 4

Subject oriented databases for data warehousing are organized by detailed subjects such as disk drives, computers, and networks.

Accepted Answer

Subject-oriented databases for data warehousing are organized around major subjects of the enterprise, like customers, sales, and products, rather than focusing on detailed operational aspects like disk drives, computers, and networks.

Question 5

The ETL process in data warehousing usually takes up a small portion of the time in a data-centric project.

Accepted Answer

The ETL (extract, transform, load) process is one of the most time-consuming aspects of a data warehousing project. It involves extracting data from various sources, transforming it to fit the data model of the data warehouse, and loading it into the warehouse. This process can take up a significant amount of time, especially for large and complex data sets.

Question 6

OLTP systems are designed to handle ad hoc analysis and complex queries that deal with many data items.

Accepted Answer

OLTP systems are designed for effective transaction processing and handling high volumes of simple and routine transactions. They are not optimized for complex queries that involve many data items or ad hoc analysis. OLAP systems are designed for these types of tasks.

Question 7

One way an operational data store differs from a data warehouse is the recency of their data.

Accepted Answer

An operational data store (ODS) typically contains real-time or near-real-time data that is more current than the data found in a data warehouse. Data warehouses are designed for historical analysis and may contain older data that has been aggregated and transformed for business intelligence purposes.

Question 8

Organizations seldom devote a lot of effort to creating metadata because it is not important for the effective use of data warehouses.

Accepted Answer

This statement is false. Metadata is crucial for the effective use of data warehouses, as it provides vital information about the structure, content, and context of data. Without appropriate metadata, it can be challenging to find, understand, and use the data effectively. Hence, organizations devote a significant effort to creating and maintaining metadata in their data warehouses.

Question 9

The "islands of data" problem in the 1980s describes the phenomenon of unconnected data being stored in numerous locations within an organization.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. The "islands of data" problem in the 1980s refers to the issue where data was stored in various separate locations within an organization, which resulted in difficulty accessing and utilizing the data effectively.

Question 10

A well-designed data warehouse means that user requirements do not have to change as business needs change.

Accepted Answer

User requirements may still need to change as business needs change, even with a well-designed data warehouse. However, a well-designed data warehouse can facilitate easier and more efficient adjustments to user requirements in response to changing business needs.

Question 11

Moving the data into a data warehouse is usually the easiest part of its creation.

Accepted Answer

Moving data into a data warehouse may involve a variety of challenges such as data cleansing, transformation, and integration, which can make this process quite complex and time-consuming.

Question 12

Two-tier data warehouse/BI infrastructures offer organizations more flexibility but cost more than three-tier ones.

Accepted Answer

Two-tier data warehouse/BI infrastructures typically involve direct access from client tools to the data warehouse or data marts, reducing the complexity and potentially the cost compared to three-tier architectures, which include an additional middle tier for OLAP servers or application servers, adding more complexity and cost.

Question 13

Bill Inmon advocates the data mart bus architecture whereas Ralph Kimball promotes the hub-and-spoke architecture, a data mart bus architecture with conformed dimensions.

Accepted Answer

Ralph Kimball advocates the data mart bus architecture with conformed dimensions, while Bill Inmon promotes the hub-and-spoke architecture, which is centered around a normalized enterprise data warehouse.

Question 14

The hub-and-spoke data warehouse model uses a centralized warehouse feeding dependent data marts.

Accepted Answer

The hub-and-spoke data warehouse model is a type of architecture that uses a centralized warehouse (the hub) to feed dependent data marts (the spokes). The central warehouse contains all the data from various sources and is responsible for data integration, while the data marts represent specific business units or areas and contain a subset of the data. The model is designed to improve data consistency and reduce redundancy by having a single version of the truth in the central warehouse.

Question 15

Data warehouses are subsets of data marts.

Accepted Answer

Data warehouses are larger and more comprehensive than data marts. Data marts are typically subsets of the data warehouse that are focused on specific business units or departments.

Question 16

Because of performance and data quality issues, most experts agree that the federated architecture should supplement data warehouses, not replace them.

Accepted Answer

Federated architecture has its own set of advantages and limitations. While it allows for a distributed and decentralized approach to data management, it also comes with challenges such as slower performance and data consistency issues. Therefore, experts recommend using the federated architecture in conjunction with data warehouses to leverage the benefits of both approaches.

Question 17

Because the recession has raised interest in low-cost open source software, it is now set to replace traditional enterprise software.

Accepted Answer

While the recession has indeed increased interest in low-cost open source software, it is not set to replace traditional enterprise software entirely. Open source software offers cost-effective alternatives and fosters innovation, but traditional enterprise software still remains crucial for many businesses due to its specialized features, support, and security assurances.

Question 18

The data warehousing maturity model consists of six stages: prenatal, infant, child, teenager, adult, and sage.

Accepted Answer

The data warehousing maturity model indeed consists of six stages: prenatal, infant, child, teenager, adult, and sage, which represent the evolution and maturity of an organization's data warehousing capabilities over time.

Question 19

In the Starwood Hotels case, up-to-date data and faster reporting helped hotel managers better manage their occupancy rates.

Accepted Answer

The statement is true.

Question 20

Large companies, especially those with revenue upwards of $500 million consistently reap substantial cost savings through the use of hosted data warehouses.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Large companies, especially those with revenue upwards...

Quiz 3: Data Warehousing