| Data mining basically means pulling out important | | | | following types of relationships: |
| information from huge volume of data. Data | | | | - Associations - simple relationships between the |
| mining tools are used for the purposes of | | | | data |
| examining the data from various viewpoints and | | | | - Clusters - logical correlations are used to |
| summarizing it into a useful database library. | | | | categorise the collected data |
| However, lately these tools have become | | | | - Classes - certain predefined groups are drawn |
| computer based applications in order to handle the | | | | out and then data within the stored information is |
| growing amount of data. They are also | | | | searched based on these groups |
| sometimes referred to as knowledge discovery | | | | - Sequential patterns - this helps to predict a |
| tools. | | | | particular behavior based on the trends observed |
| As a concept, data mining has always existed | | | | in the stored data |
| since the past and manual processes were used | | | | Industries which cater heavily to consumers in |
| as data mining tools. Later with the advent of | | | | retail, financial, entertainment, sports, hospitality |
| fast processing computers, analytical software | | | | and so on rely on these data methods of |
| tools, and increased storage capacities automated | | | | obtaining fast answers to questions to improve |
| tools were developed, which drastically improved | | | | their business. The tools help them to study to |
| the accuracy of analysis, data mining speed, and | | | | the buying patterns of their consumers and hence |
| also brought down the costs of operation. These | | | | plan a strategy for the future to improve sales. |
| methods of data mining are essentially employed | | | | For e.g. restaurant might want to study the eating |
| to facilitate following major elements: | | | | habits of their consumers at various times during |
| - Pull out, convert, and load data to a data | | | | the day. The data would then help them in |
| warehouse system | | | | deciding on the menu at different times of the |
| - Collect and handle the data in a database | | | | day. Data mining tools certainly help a great deal |
| system | | | | when drawing out business plans, advertising |
| - Allow the concerned personnel to retrieve the | | | | strategies, discount plans, and so on. Some |
| data | | | | important factors to consider when selecting a |
| - Data analysis | | | | data mining tool include the platforms supported, |
| - Data presentation in a format that can be easily | | | | algorithms on which they work (neural networks, |
| interpreted for further decision making | | | | decisions trees), input and output options for data, |
| We use these methods of mining data to explore | | | | database structure and storage required, usability |
| the correlations, associations, and trends in the | | | | and ease of operation, automation processes, and |
| stored data that are generally based on the | | | | reporting methods. |