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davidshq 
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 Topic: Database Options.
Posted: 15 December 2004 at 3:42pm |
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So, we have a bunch of databases. The big names like MySQL and Access
(in web applications anyways) and then we have all these other
databases that are lesser known. Now, I've used Access for scripts
before...What I'm wondering is, if a database program creates ODBC or
JDBC compatible databases, does that mean I could use their databases
for my scripts just like I use Access? Connect through ODBC or JDBC and
use the same sort of SQL commands? If so, why does everybody use Access
for scripts since it isn't free/open source (not that everything has to
be open source or free...but for widest availability, I mean).
David.
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Gullanian
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Posted: 15 December 2004 at 6:36pm |
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Some databases for various reasons don't support various SQL queries,
but these are usually ones that don't often need to be used. You
would need to check the manual and the application code to make sure
you're not using any unsupported queries.
People use Access because it's got a good user interface, is simple to
use and is from a trusted brand. It's a good piece of software
but just doesn't meet up to standards when developing larger software
applications to run off it.
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Mart
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Posted: 16 December 2004 at 2:14am |
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The only reason it doesn't meet up to standards is that it's not
designed to run large web applications, that's important to
remember.
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davidshq
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Posted: 16 December 2004 at 3:48pm |
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Hmmmm...so, one more question then. Is there no free/open source
database with a good interface? Notably, one that does not require
special software installed to use it? Eg., not having to have their
proprietary server software installed on the web server in order to
access it (as per the instance of MySQL and SQL Server)?
David.
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Gullanian
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Posted: 18 December 2004 at 6:01am |
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I don't really know much or have experience with non-MS databases (I
probably should try some of them out), but do a Google search on open
source databases and look through all of them seeing which one tickles
your fancy.
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dpyers
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Posted: 18 December 2004 at 12:50pm |
I've used ldap on unix boxes for hierarchical (tree) data bases. Runs pretty fast. You'd need an ldap provider other than active directory under windows though, which isn't normally part of a shared hosting package.
For relational db's, you might want to look into xml. Most db's can export to an xml format and you can use built in os capabilities to manipulate the contents. For example, under IIS you can use ADO to work with xml just like it was an access or ms sql db. Similar capabilities exist under unix.
XML db's work in a similar fashion to Access db's in that the entire file gets loaded into memory. You can extract your record set and close out the original file load but you still take the initial memory hit. Locking can become difficult if you do though.
IMHO, XML db's are more appropriate for metadata lookups rather than interactive db's. So you might use it to store data that an admin updates and is only read for use elsewhere - like text on a page - rather than something that 30 people might be updating at once.
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Gullanian
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Posted: 18 December 2004 at 2:10pm |
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David, also remember that a good interface isn't really an important
feature of a good database, it can be worthwhile playing with databases
that lack good GUI's as it can pay off in the long run.
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davidshq
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Posted: 18 December 2004 at 11:55pm |
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Thanks for the thoughts. I probably will end up moving to a Linux/Apache/MySQL/Java base in the near future.
David.
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