> Datomic is a database of flexible, time-based facts, supporting queries and joins, with elastic scalability, and ACID transactions. > Datomic can leverage highly-available, distributed storage services, and puts declarative power into the hands of application developers.
What does that even mean? I'm pretty good at databases, and I know what transactions and queries and joins and stuff, but this explanation does a pretty poor job of explaining what Datatomic is and why I should use it.
What's a "time-based fact"? What does putting "declarative power in the hands of application developers" mean? Don't all databases support queries? Don't most relational databases support joins and transactions?
It just seems like a buzz-word filled fluff phrase that says "Datatomic is a database," but I don't know why I would use it over, say, MySQL or Mongo or whatever.
I had to go to Cognitect's site (http://cognitect.com/datomic) to get a better explanation:
>Datomic is built on immutable data; facts are never forgotten or overwritten. This means complete auditability is built in from the start - including the transactions that modify your database. And because Datomic is built on immutable data, you can explore possible future scenarios by issuing transactions against a database and decide to commit them only after verifying the results.
Ok, that makes a little more sense, but it's still not clear what differentiates this from other database systems.
I'm not affiliated with them at all, but I think SiftScience.com does a great job of explaining their product simply and efficiently: https://siftscience.com/
> Fight Fraud with Machine Learning > Sift Science monitors your site's traffic in real time and alerts you instantly to fraudulent activity.
Simply detects fraud. Done.
Or EasyPost.com:
> Shipping for developers > EasyPost allows you to integrate shipping APIs into any application in minutes.
Don't just spit buzz words and technical terms at me. Tell me what it does.
> Datomic is a database that, among other things, specializes in tracking data over time, allowing you to test a transaction before saving the data. True accountability from the beginning!
Probably not even accurate (again, I don't understand Datomic's premise), but that sounds more explanatory than their current buzz word-filled blurb.
To any startups watching: have something on your front page that is an ELI5 description of your product.