Mysql and Oracle

[Rod Heyd]

On 4/16/06, Nathan England <nathan at paysonlinux.org> wrote:
>
> All,
>
> I'm not tottally up to date on the whole MySQL and Oracle problem going
> on, so
> correct me if I'm wrong. MySQL is buying up companies to get a new DB
> engine
> to replace the current one from Sleepycat, so that Oracle can't stop them
> in
> their tracts... (?)



I think there's been a little too much rumor and innuendo surrounding this
issue with little comment provided by the people at MySQL AB.  So I think I
would be careful of drawing too many conclusions from it.  I'm not defending
anybody's actions here, I'm just saying that there are a lot of people
talking what-ifs, with little or nothing concrete behind it.  Just my 2
cents.  There's also been a lot of stray electrons expended over some of
MySQL's licensing practices, but I'm not about to open that can of worms.


Is PosgreSQL completely independent of other projects? Would it be the
> better
> DB to use? Or does it still depend on the type of project you are using it
> for? ie. mass transactions vs. mass reads


Well, like all software, Postgresql has it's set of dependencies, but as far
as I know, there aren't any dependencies on third parties for functionality
in the database itself. So, in that sense, I would say it qualifies as an
independent project.

As for which one to use.  Large flame wars have been fought over this.  I've
used both, and in my personal experience, I've found mysql a little easier
to set up and maintain and a little faster for the projects that I've worked
on, so that is my preference.  PostgreSQL is more fully featured than MySQL
(although the gaps in functionality are slowly closing) so if you need the
extra functionality you should probably go with Postgresql.  I think they
are both good databases to use, and one of them is likely to be a better fit
for a given project, but that's really a decision that you have to make
based on a lot of different technical factors.

I don't think either of the databases are going away anytime soon, so I
think they are both suitable for use, and I would be careful of allowing
hyperbole to affect your decision.


-Rod
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