Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: A system and method for facilitating execution of one or more data integration projects in multiple environments or an environment that undergoes changes. Each project has a set of project parameters, which are bound to environment variables. Each environment has a corresponding environment representation with environment variables and corresponding values. Each project is mapped to an environment representation. Values of environment variables are provided to projects with corresponding parameters. When one or more projects are changed to a different environment with a different corresponding environment representation, the environment variable values of the new environment representation are provided to the projects. When an environment change is reflected in the environment representation, the changed variable values are provided to mapped projects.

Abstract: Executable content for use is preemptively loaded in order to allow the content to be used when requested by a user without the significant download delay which would otherwise be required. The executable content is downloaded without the user's specific request. When the content is to be used, additional data, such as license data or a password which may be purchased, may be required to access the full functionality of the executable content. Where the executable content is a game, the preemptive loading may be to a personal computer rather than a game console, in order to take advantage of the storage space traditionally available in such a personal computer. Content is loaded based on system information, which may include, without limitation, information about the system, the user of the system, and/or community information regarding a community the user belongs to or users similar to the user, among other information.

Abstract: A script driven infrastructure is provided in order to selectively move structure and data from a source database to a target database. The structure and data is moved using a data transfer mechanism, where the data is contained in disk files stored on the source database and it has corresponding script files describing the structure of the data. The transfer of the data is driven by the script files which allows for selective transfer of structure and data. In one aspect of the invention, the disk files are stored in SQL format and the script files are saved in SQL format and XML format, where the script files saved in SQL format create objects and relational constraints in the target database, and the script files stored in XML format drive the transfer process of the data stored in the disk files.

Abstract: The operation of a data flow is improved by providing for validation of the consistency of the data flow with the external data files it works with, even in the face of changes in those external data files Metadata is stored regarding the external data files. Because external data files may change, this metadata is used when determining whether the external data files are still compatible with the data flow. In such performing such validation, the metadata tracks what changes in the external data files have occurred, and allows increased flexibility in presenting the user with options or in automatically fixing the data flow to correspond with changes in external data files. When the external data files are not available, the stored metadata can be used to validate the data flow to the last information regarding the external data files. The external metadata can be resynchronized to the data flow or to the external data files to provide updated external metadata for later validation.

Abstract: A system and method for use with a data mining application for a large database having a large number of records. A selection attribute is chosen from one of a plurality of attributes contained by records within the database. Records are scanned in the database and a randomizing function is applied to the selection attribute of each record to create a randomized record value. A selection criteria is then applied to identify records for inclusion within a subset of records (smaller than the original data set) by comparing the randomized record value of each record with the selection criteria. The subset of records having a randomized record value satisfying the selection criteria approximates the entire database but takes up less memory and can be evaluated or scanned much more quickly.