Dice mentioned several big-data-specific projects like Hadoop, and a bunch I never heard of, but 'R' is a relatively mainstream tool. If you are interested in big data, you may want to look into it. http://news.dice.com/2013/12/12/interview-answers-big-data-architects/?CMPID=EM_SV_UP_JS_AD_LC_AD_&utm_source=Cheetahmail&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=Advisory_Lifecycle&om_rid=AAGso-&om_mid=_BQI8$-B8tYqRPk&dadv&om_rid=AACYL-&om_mid=_BSswozB83QeqWD&dice 'R' - not just for academics and pirates anymore! <g> Rob -- Rob Echlin, B. Eng. 613-266-8311 - Ottawa, ON http://talksoftware.wordpress.com - http://picasaweb.google.com/coderoller