LBS III: Connectors Require Baby Sitting
May 29, 2009
Question: My enterprise search system came with a connector to Lotus Notes and Domino. When I try to suck email into the search system, some data arrive, some don’t. I have to do a lot of baby sitting. Is this an exception or commonplace.
Answer: This Little Baffler in Search is one that few people talk about. Connectors, filters, or import routines are a menagerie, not a single elegant show dog. Many vendors license connectors from Oracle, Entropy Soft, or one of the other firms in this business. Some vendors create their own connectors. Others turn to third parties to code up what’s needed to move content from a source like a Notes repository to the search system’s content processing component. Much can go wrong. There is no single fix. I have a library of connectors, chunks of code that has worked wonders in the past, and a stable of coders in a far off country. You will find that some vendors charge “extra” to work out the glitches in their connectors. Others provide referrals to specialists who can resolve problems. No easy answer. Transformation of content is a budget killer. Test before you buy. Ignore this step, you will live with sudden connector syndrome for months, maybe longer. Keep in mind that source material formats may be tweaked when upgrades are installed for that system. Hassles, hassles everywhere. So, baby sitting is normal.
Stephen Arnold, May 30, 2009
Comments
-
- Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive
-
