Over the last several months, we’ve been fortunate to have the opportunity to interview a number of CouchDB Developers. A primary question pertained to the top benefits of using CouchDB as a database solution.

The number one slot for the top benefits to using CouchDB as a database solution went to sync. 

PouchDB developer, Nolan Lawson referred to sync as CouchDB’s superpower, going on to state that, “CouchDB isn’t a database; it’s a sync engine.” Developer Joan Touzet calls sync the “killer feature” of CouchDB, sharing that whether you’re doing offline-first client development, running a clustered database or distributing data between various server installations, CouchDB’s master-master replication is better than anything she’s ever used.

Speaking of replication, it didn’t take long to figure out that replication had secured second place in our top benefits list.

Garren Smith mentioned that CouchDB was not just a database you can trust but that CouchDB’s replication, combined with PouchDB, allows developers to build interesting applications that work even when the user is offline. Nick Vatamaniuc mentioned that few databases support the feature of master-to-master replication. He likes that it allows creating custom clustering topologies with various availability and scalability trade-offs.

As for third place? Well, that’s anyone’s guess.

The versatility of the responses speak loud and clear to the gamut of lovable CouchDB features. These include CouchDB’s built-in web interface, its powerful and versatile secondary indexing capabilities, its application data model consistency, support for clustering, schema flexibility and much, much more. Stay tuned to hear more developer details on the benefits of using CouchDB as a database solution.

We look forward to digging a bit deeper on some of the benefits mentioned here. If you’d like to add a benefit to our list or there’s something particular you’d like to see covered on the CouchDB blog, we would love to accommodate. Email us!

For more about CouchDB visit couchdb.apache.org or follow us on Twitter at @couchdb. 

When you think of a therapist’s office, what comes to mind?

Lying down on a couch, staring into space, and telling a bookish old man with thick glasses and an indeterminate European accent all about the inner workings of your unconscious mind. Or something like that. The point is, that couch is probably front and center in your mental picture. But why is that? Like many things in psychology, it all goes back to Freud. He supposedly received his couch (pictured) from a female patient who wanted to show her gratitude.

Freud quickly saw the potential benefits. A fully relaxed patient would be more willing to say what’s on their mind, providing the therapist with unparalleled, unfiltered insights. Freud called this technique “free association”, and it popularized both the ideas of psychoanalysis and the therapeutic couch. In fact, the couch became so central to psychoanalysis that a thriving industry popped up to meet the demand. In Brooklyn, the Imperial Leather Company made out like gangbusters, selling tons of therapeutic couches during the “golden age” of psychoanalysis that spanned the 40s, 50s, and early 60s.

With the rise of hippie culture and new, more effective mental health treatments, Freud’s ideas fell out of favor. But the couch lived on in the realm of pop culture. Cartoonists have used it for years, and still do. Why? Because the therapeutic couch is an enduring symbol. People immediately recognize what it is and what it represents.

Freud may not be the belle of the psychiatric ball anymore, but his influence lives on. The id/ego/superego, the Freudian slip, and a bevy of complexes are still part of the vernacular of mental health. As for the couch, it exists not as a physical presence in the therapist’s office, but as a metaphor for relaxation, openness, and healing.  

Sometimes you’ve just got to relax and have a bit of fun. Stay tuned for more from the Couch of Ages blog series and please, feel free to email us if there’s something you’d like to see covered in this space. Have a great day and try to find a bit of time to relax.  

For more about CouchDB visit couchdb.org or follow us on Twitter at @couchdb. 

Image credit: Freud Museum, London

Source: How Freud’s Couch Became a Pop-Culture Phenomenon