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Learn Hadoop with online courses and programs

Hadoop is a software that allows many computers to process big data simultaneously, making it a useful tool to understand for those interested in a career in data science.

What is Hadoop and Hadoop architecture?

The Hadoop ecosystem is a set of open-source utilities that provide an architecture for multiple computers to simultaneously process upwards of petabytes of data.Footnote 1 A petabyte is the equivalent of quadrillion bytes.Footnote 2Learn Hadoop Footnote Hadoop is also known as Apache Hadoop, because it’s produced by the Apache Software Foundation (ASF).

How does Hadoop work? The Hadoop ecosystem has four primary components known as modules, which are software that provide network-specific functions.Footnote 3 The Hadoop Distributed File System (HDSF) provides Hadoop with its architecture. A file system is the method and data structure by which an operating system stores and retrieves data, and a distributed file system spreads those files across more than one server or location.Footnote 4 Footnote 5

The HDSF advertises several advantages over traditional file systems: higher data throughput, which is the ability to deliver data from one location to another; higher fault tolerance, an operating system's ability to respond to software or hardware failure; and large datasets are native, meaning that support for large datasets is built into the HDSF.Footnote 6 Footnote 7

Additionally, Apache Hadoop has three other key features. With Yet Another Resource Negotiator (YARN), users can manage and monitor networks and resource usage, as well as schedule jobs as tasks. MapReduce is a layer in the software’s structure, also known as a framework, that helps programs perform parallel computation, so multiple processes can run on the same dataset at once. Finally, there’s Hadoop Common, which provides Java libraries (aka files) that can be run on all the modules, which is software that provides network specific functions.Footnote 8

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Why learn Hadoop?

The Hadoop ecosystem is one of the more commonly used big data technologies for performing big data analytics. What is big data analytics? It is the use of technology to study big data to discover information such as patterns, trends, correlations, and more.Footnote 9 Companies that utilize Apache Hadoop can benefit from its scalability, flexibility, speed, and adaptability.Footnote 10

What is covered in a Hadoop tutorial?

Beyond learning what Hadoop is used for, Hadoop courses are likely to teach how to use Hadoop with other programs. For example, students may study Apache Spark, a processing engine for big data just like Hadoop’s MapReduce. A Hadoop tutorial will reveal that the two are not in competition and that you can use Apache Spark instead of MapReduce with Hadoop as its underlying framework.

Uses for Hadoop are varied since big data can be found in fields as diverse as psychology and finance. As a result, some people learn Hadoop with no IT background, especially those transitioning from one career field to another. However, people with no programming skills who decide to learn Hadoop will likely encounter programming languages like R and Python, which are used for analyses, and Java, which is used for development. Linux and SQL can be helpful too. As such, professionals are encouraged to work on developing basic programming skills as they train on Hadoop.

Hadoop developer jobs

A Hadoop developer uses the Hadoop ecosystem to code big data technologies just like any other developer. What does big data mean to the average person? Big data allows for more accurate weather forecasting, enables digital assistants to perform personalized functions, and leads to internet users seeing more relevant advertising. Companies ranging from Cloudera to Amazon use Apache Hadoop. 

Earning a bachelor’s or master’s degree could also help a professional build knowledge of Hadoop, but learners should review whether it’s covered in the curriculum. If not, there are multiple paths to learning Hadoop that can help lead to a career in this field. 

How to become a Hadoop developer online

Pursuing a data science career may require a bachelor's in computer science or data science or a master’s in data science. Some professionals may also benefit from a data science boot camp. It’s possible to get Hadoop training online using self-guided Hadoop courses, which may also end with the awarding of a Hadoop certification.

Hadoop certification in particular may be appealing to a hiring manager because it specifically demonstrates proficiency in the Apache Hadoop ecosystem. Additionally, having relevant programming skills and a working knowledge of Linux can be appealing to a hiring manager.

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