Re: Database decision

My personal opinion is that Interbase is in a position to be the most powerful OpenSource RDBMS software--if it ever becomes an OpenSource RDBMS. But I will not use it until it's an actual OpenSource product. Right now, it's a binary-only in-limbo distribution. Really pathetic...you'd think in 6 months they'd have hammered **something** out so we could see the source. Until we can really check out Interbase, the "next best thing" IMHO is PostgreSQL. I must say, though, that if the Interbase developers (and just who are these people?) don't watch out and speed things up a bit, Postgres is in a position where it could seriously trounce the currently fictional OpenSource Interbase. The Postgres team is working nothing short of miracles lately. Everybody knows the limitations of Postgres...and the development team seems to be eradicating them like a raging wildfire clears away brush. But none of this should be taken as being "against" MySQL! MySQL has gotten a newfound influx of help with the Andover.net(?) group working with them. The limitations of MySQL will soon be programmed out of existence. They've finally gone GPL. MySQL already had the raw speed advantage, and it already has some facilities built in for database replication. It is far more advanced than even I like to give it credit for. I must admit that it is kind of fun, though, to harp on its (soon-to-be former) lack of subquery support. If you've reached a point where MySQL cannot handle your data, you might need to consult with someone to analyze your needs and current situation. It could be, as you suggest, your app. It could be server MySQL runs on. It could be the network (if your web server is not the same machine as the one that houses your database). It could be so many things... There are some obvious and sometimes not-so-obvious techniques that you might use to at least extend the life of your current system while you revisit your choice of RDBMS platform. An extremely simple example is generating infrequently changing pages. Another fairly simple example (which applies only if your web server is not the same machine as your database host) is to keep infrequently changing data on the web hosts themselves. Why make a call to the database over the network for a list of, for example, the 50 states that make up the United States? My suggestion in any case would be to try to analyze your app to see what kinds of things are either 1) expensive operations unnecessarily done over and over again or 2) amazingly time consuming. Work out solutions to those. You may find that MySQL will be more than capable of handling the remainder of your app. When you're positive your app is not the culprit, then look into OS/DBMS/HTTP Server platform, networking, and hardware issues. Doug At 12:36 PM 7/17/00 +0200, Alexander Lohse wrote: >Hi, > >I do not want to start a big arguing here but still i am kinda curios >what you say is the most powerfull DB-Engine to run on a Linux-Intel >based PHP4 System. > >The project I have is an article based system. Many relational >cross-references for using articles in different online projects. >Well, I need a decision now for what I system I should use. >I guess a cannot afford the 5000$ for an Orcale, but if you say that >this would be the one and only choice ... > >Currently I use MySQL for doing things like that, but I think I have >reached a point where MySQL will come to it's limits. > >Or what would you say would be the maximum a MySQL-Based thing can handle? > >Maybe it not MySQL is coming to it's limits but, rather my >programming skills are??? > >Anyone one of you know a place to look for advanced php programmers >who would be interested in working on a job like that? > >Thank you very much, in advance > >Alex