AI Interfaces: The Key to Keeping MultiValue Relevant
I. Introduction
Artificial intelligence (AI) has become the cornerstone of innovation, reshaping industries and defining the future of how businesses operate. Large-scale initiatives like the $500 billion Stargate Project exemplify the commitment to advancing AI on a global scale. These investments are driving transformative change across sectors, enabling unprecedented levels of efficiency, automation, and insight. While AI is shaping the future, technologies that are perceived as 'legacy,' such as MultiValue (MV) databases, risk being left behind unless they adapt and evolve.
The MultiValue database community, with its rich history of providing scalable and efficient solutions, is at a crossroads. To stay competitive and relevant, it must integrate with AI. This integration is not just a way to modernize; it is essential for survival in an era dominated by AI-driven technologies. The question now is how the MV community can leverage initiatives like Stargate to adopt AI and redefine its role…
Well I started Picking away in Feb. 1985 working for a small Software House in Johannesburg, South Africa. We had a Manufacturing and Distribution ERP type system with a few clients. Worked out of a house and our computer was an ICL Clan which was a so called mini computer. I thought it was some kind of air conditioning unit when I first saw it. My experience to that point had been with massive systems that took up large amounts of space. My new job involved learning Pick and Pick BASIC and we were in the process of converting from a PRIME based system to R83. Since then I moved around a bit and picked up experience with AP , UNIVERSE, UNIDATA etc. and am currently working mainly with D3, which I first learned about when my family and I moved to Los Angeles nearly 26 years ago. Experience with applications have ranged from Distribution/retail, Manufacturing, Insurance, Logistics to name a few. So as some wet behind the ears college kid one told me, when we met for the first time, , "I didn't know their were any Pick dinosaurs left" , I was a bit taken aback and didn't quite know what to say, but should have said "yes and we're T-Rexes and eat people like you." :)