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A Daily Lexicon of Trustworthy Data

005·76

consistency

/kənˈsɪs.tən.si/ - n.

1 [colloq.] The state of two systems agreeing, usually because no one has joined them yet.Keep. Punchy.This is the problem.

Working definition

2. The degree to which the same fact holds the same value across systems, records, and points in time without contradiction.

Evidence

Seen in the wild · 3

OpenTelemetry standardized the labels. The business meaning still lives outside the trace.Metric Theater
Moving Revenue Into A YAML File Does Not Give It An OwnerOwner Missing
Master data management returns wearing an AI badge. The job description has not changed.Definition Drift

See also

data quality dimensionOne of six words a vendor promises to measure and a scorecard promises to average into a single reassuring number.
reconciliationThe monthly ritual of explaining why two numbers differ, after which both are kept.
single version of the truthThe truth that everyone agreed to, and then maintained a personal copy of, just in case.