Databases Archive

"Version 4 of MySQL has been in development since 2001. By the time you read this, MySQL 4.0 should be a stable release (or at least be in late-beta -- not finished yet, but still quite suitable for development work that you expect to deploy later this year)." Read the article at LinuxMag. On other database news, mSQL 3.3 was released.

The PostgreSQL Global Development Group announced yesterday the release of PostgreSQL v7.3, now available for download. Numerous changes include: support for the SQL 92 Schema spec, enhanced dependency tracking for complex databases, prepared queries for maximized performance on common requests, expanded logging options, supports data in many international characters sets, dozens of performance enhancements. Update: A report at eWeek about mySQL & PostgreSQL's progress.

Ever wanted to clone your database for testing? This article gives you the basics of cloning DB2 database for Linux and UNIX Operating System.

This is an interview with IBM's expert Matt Huras on DB2. He shares a sneak preview of the new release of DB2 version 8 and its technical highlights, including it's high-availability features, improved administration tools, performance advice, and multidimensional clustering, which allows data to be clustered according to several different "dimensions" simultaneously. There's a free download of DB2 v8.

The new version of mSQL, 3.0, includes tunable memory use, higher performance, enhanced Indexing, single process and multi-process Servers and more.

IBM has released DB2 v8.1 for Linux, HP, AIX, Solaris, os390 and Windows today. New features include multi-dimensional clustering (queries and analytics nearly 100% faster), self-configuring, self-healing, self-optimizing, self-protecting, and the ability to consolidate Web Services queries through a single SQL statement.

Jason Lam has submitted a step by step guide (PDF format) to securing MySQL on FreeBSD, which he recently wrote for FreeBSD 4.5, to fulfill his SANS GCUX certification. The original submission can be found at BSDForums.org.

Firebird is a relational database offering many ANSI SQL-92 features that runs on Linux, Windows, and a variety of Unix platforms. Firebird offers excellent concurrency, high performance, and powerful language support for stored procedures and triggers. It has been used in production systems, under a variety of names since 1981. Firebird is a commercially independent project of C and C++ programmers, technical advisors and supporters developing and enhancing a multi-platform relational database management system based on the source code released by Inprise Corp (once known as Borland Software Corp) under the InterBase Public License v.1.0 on 25 July, 2000. Version 1.0 of Firebird was released just yesterday for many platforms including MacOSX and Linux.

After almost a full year of development since PostgreSQL v7.1 was released, the PostgreSQL Global Development Group announced the availability of the latest development milestone, PostgreSQL v7.2. In a related note, OSNews had a review of the "Practical PostgreSQL" book just a few days back.

From the press release: "Sleepycat Software, Inc. today announced the release of version 4.0 of the award-winning data management system, Berkeley DB. Version 4.0 delivers new services and significant performance enhancements for high-end mission critical applications. Berkeley DB 4.0 provides a new feature required by developers building mission-critical applications: High Availability. Designed for applications that must run around the clock, High Availability uses a technique called "replication" to keep multiple copies of a database, stored in different places, up to date. In the event of a hardware or application crash that causes one of the copies to fail, applications can use the remaining copies to continue operating without interruption. Application developers can also use the copies to answer queries during normal operation. As a result, applications can support more users more reliably than ever before."

"Looking to jump-start sales in the face of stiff competition and a nasty economy, Oracle is set to disclose plans for new software and a revamped version of its flagship database-management application at a customer conference in San Francisco next week. The new release of Oracle 9i database, which will be available early next year, will better handle XML (Extensible Markup Language) data, a Web standard for data exchange that lets companies construct e-commerce and new Web services applications, said Oracle executives." In related news, Microsoft released Service Pack 2 for SQL Server 2000. Because SQL Server Service Packs are cumulative, SP2 includes all fixes from previously released Service Pack 1 (SP1), and can be applied to an original installation or to one where Service Pack 1 (SP1) was previously applied.

FileMaker Pro 5.5 Unlimited is now certified for Apache Web Servers running Red Hat Linux 7.1 and the powerful new Mac OS X Server. FileMaker Pro 5.5 Unlimited offers the same powerful database features found in FileMaker Pro 5.5, including two-way ODBC capabilities, record-level access privileges and more. However, in contrast to FileMaker Pro 5.5, it sets no limits to the number of Web Browsers that can access a FileMaker Pro database published on the Web.

"Databases were once the forgotten stepchild of the open-source family. Companies like Red Hat Inc. included database software with their Linux distribution disks, but the main focus was on the operating system, the kernel and the graphical interface. A database was just another add-on, like a Minesweeper clone. But now, companies and users are scrambling to realize the value locked up in quality, open-source database software," ComputerWorld writes. Following the discussion we had recently on mySQL and PostgreSQL, the article seems to agree that professional closed-source database systems still have the lead on the open source counterparts.

"To many people, PostgreSQL and MySQL seem like similar, alternative databases. Both are quickly gaining popularity. Based on the track records of older versions, there's a lot of debate over the speed of PostgreSQL and the durability of MySQL. But times have changed and each database has progressed. On both counts, the two packages are the closest they've ever been, so when deciding which to use in a Web application, a developer doesn't always have a clear winner. If you're looking for a database to prop up a Weblog or portal, you'll find that many such packages rely on MySQL. It should be possible to port them to PostgreSQL, but if you're looking for a turnkey package, chances are you're not interested in doing too much porting work. If you're migrating from Oracle, Sybase, or Microsoft SQL Server, I suggest PostgreSQL. Like those databases, PostgreSQL has triggers, stored procedures, and a rich set of built-in functions (including many functions for date manipulation). Also, PostgreSQL procedural language is easy to learn if you're familiar with Oracle's PL/SQL and SQL Server's Transact-SQL." Read the whole shootout article over at WebTechniques.