Solr and LucidWorks Enterprise: When to use each
From the post:
If LucidWorks Enterprise is built on Solr, how do you know which one to use when for your own circumstances? This article describes the difference between using straight Solr, using the LucidWorks Enterprise user interface, and using LucidWorks Enterprise’s ReST API for accomplishing various common tasks so you can see which fits your situation at a given moment.
In today’s world, building the perfect product is a lot like trying to repair a set of train tracks while the train is barreling down on you. The world just keeps moving, with great ideas and new possibilities tempting you every day. And to make things worse, innovation doesn’t just show its face for you; it regularly visits your competitors as well.
That’s why you use open source software in the first place. You have smart people; does it make sense to have them building search functionality when Apache Solr already provides it? Of course not. You’d rather rely on the solid functionality that’s already been built by the community of Solr developers, and let your people spend their time building innovation into your own products. It’s simply a more efficient use of resources.
But what if you need search-related functionality that’s not available in straight Solr? In some cases, you may be able to fill those holes and lighten your load with LucidWorks Enterprise. Built on Solr, LucidWorks Enterprise starts by simplifying the day-to-day use tasks involved in using Solr, and then moves on to adding additional features that can help free up your development team for work on your own applications. But how do you know which path would be right for you?
Since I posted the LucidWorks 2.0 announcement yesterday, I thought this might be helpful in terms of its evaluation. I did not see a date on it but it looks current enough.