Comparing the latest ranking techniques: pros and cons of flexible skylines, regret minimization and skyline ranking queries

TL;DR

This paper compares recent ranking techniques—flexible skylines, regret minimization, and skyline ranking queries—highlighting their similarities, differences, advantages, and disadvantages to guide their application.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive comparison and analysis of these three emerging ranking methods, which had not been previously contrasted.

Findings

Identifies key differences and similarities among the techniques.

Discusses advantages and disadvantages of each approach.

Provides insights into their potential applications.

Abstract

Long-established ranking approaches, such as top-k and skyline queries, have been thoroughly discussed and their drawbacks are well acknowledged. New techniques have been developed in recent years that try to combine traditional ones to overcome their limitations. In this paper we focus our attention on some of them: flexible skylines, regret minimization and skyline ranking queries, because, while these new methods are promising and have shown interesting results, a comparison between them is still not available. After a short introduction of each approach, we discuss analogies and differences between them with the advantages and disadvantages of every technique debated.