I was recently introduced to .parquet extension files. Let me share with you what I learned! Parquet files are popular for storing and processing large datasets in big data environments.
Introduction: a few words about the .parquet
Parquet file is a columnar storage file format that is commonly used in big data processing and analytics.
parquet files == data usage
Parquet files are designed to be highly efficient for reading and writing large datasets. They are optimized for use with distributed processing frameworks like Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark and can be used with various programming languages, including Python, Java, and Scala. (We will also see that you can leverage them with R, which I also like to use occasionally).
Benefit of using parquet files
One of the key benefits of using Parquet files is that they can be compressed, significantly reducing storage requirements and improving query performance. Additionally, because the data is stored in a columnar format, it can be more efficiently processed and analyzed than traditional row-based storage formats.
Questions you might ask yourself about parquet files
Are .parquet better than .csv?
We usually use .csv files because they are easy to work with, but are .parquet really better than .csv?
When using .parquet file?
We already compared .parquet with .csv, but when should we use a .parquet file and in which case?
When using .csv file?
We already compared .parquet with .csv, but when should we use a .csv file instead of a .parquet one?
How to save a .parquet file with Python?
We saw that .parquet is mainly used for data analysis and big data, so how can a .parquet file be saved in Python?
How to save a .parquet file with R?
Saving a .parquet file in Python is possible, but what about in R? Could R be helpful for us to manipulate .parquet files?
How to read a .parquet file with Python?
After learning how to save .parquet in Python, let's see and learn how to read data from a .parquet in Python.
How to read a .parquet file with R?
Saving a file in .parquet is possible, but can we read one with R? Spoiler: yes, it's possible!