I've always thought the main reason NoSQL solutions became popular is that developers could finally get at and manipulate the data the way they wanted to. I've

I've always thought the main reason NoSQL solutions became popular is that developers could finally get at and manipulate the data the way they wanted to. I've known some very, very prickly DBA's in my time who referred to the databases they looked after as "My database". So they would say things like "Don't put junk in my database" And would give you endless grief over how you wrote your queries or asked you a million questions about why you needed a new table and why your proposed design was shit. As a result, many of us devs tended to view SQL Databases as some sort of dark art. So in this regard, NoSQL is freeing at first glance. But if I'm honest, once I got over my fear, the "pros" of NoSQL solutions in comparison to good ol' SQL seem to be relatively feeble. I think it's easier to get up and running with a NoSQL solution because there is far less friction when it comes to rapid prototyping of ideas, but things get complex pretty quickly. I'd also say that for the vast majority of applications out there, the difference between the two will mostly be a wash.