XML for Analysis (XMLA)

Should you use dimensional relational or OLAP for your ETL system?

Ralph Kimball dives into the deployment step of building a Extract-Transfer-Load (ETL) system in his April 27, 2007 Intelligent Enterprise article entitled, "Dimensional Relational vs. OLAP: The Final Conundrum".  Ralph suggests the best time to consider such a deployment decision and explores the pros and cons of both relational and OLAP technologies for ETL systems.

Will XMLA's widespread adoption help align the market with regard to OLAP APIs?

Joy Mundy talks about OLAP and ROLAP for analytics in her October 8, 2002 Intelligent Enterprise article entitled, "Relation to OLAP: OLAP and ROLAP are a continuum, not competitors".

Joy postulates why OLAP technology has not dominated the market with its ability to deliver complex analytics and great query performance, giving market fragmentation as one answer.  She continues to suggest that the widespread adoption of XML for Analysis may help align the market.