[xquery-talk] Does XQuery fit anywhere in this landscape.

[Michael Kay]

> 
> Look to history. How did relational databases supplant CODASYL. Firstly the biggest fish in the pond IBM had a product and backed the technology to the hilt. Then there was a sustained and successful campaign initiated by Codd and Date but grew momentum to differentiate between a proper relational database and a database that just had a relational veneer. 

But the biggest factor was probably that the move to minicomputer architecture created a discontinuity that forced people to consider change. You need to do two things: convince people that the new technology is better (or at least, is cool), and give them a big kick up the backside to get them out of their comfort zone.

Michael Kay
Saxonica