a. BLOB
In computers, a BLOB (binary large object), pronounced BLAHB and sometimes spelled in all lower case, is a large file, typically an image or sound file, that must be handled (for example, uploaded, downloaded, or stored in a database) in a special way because of its size. According to Eric Raymond, the main idea about a BLOB is that the handler of the file (for example, the database manager) has no way of understanding the file in order to figure out how to deal with it - it might as well be a large piece of coal, but there it is and now what? Other sources emphasize that the term was coined to refer to big data objects and to connote the problems they sometimes present in handling them. One application that deals with BLOBs is the database storage of large multimedia objects, such as films and television programs.
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Expert response: Converting LONGRAW to BLOB
Expert response: Storing video clips
Expert response: Updating a BLOB column without BFILE/create directory options
Expert response: Blocksizes for BLOB table
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This was first published in September 2003