Efficient sorting techniques facilitating the creation and use of dataset summary metadata

Abstract

The present disclosure provides techniques and solutions for sorting data. In a particular implementation, a sorting technique is provided that places values in a sorted order by adding an offset value to values that are not in a sorted order. The resulting sorted set of values is not truly sorted, in that the set of modified values is sorted, but the underlying data itself is not sorted. In another implementation, a sorting technique can use multiple streams or sets. When an out of order element is encountered, it can be added to a new stream, if such a stream is available. The sorting techniques can be used for a variety of purposes, including provided sorted data for use in generating summary data, or for providing sorted data to be used in determining an intersection between two datasets.