Subject: Re: Abisuite databases
From: NW (neilwin@cableinet.co.uk)
Date: Sun Aug 26 2001 - 05:27:35 CDT
Phil Stracchino said
Snip
There are already two perfectly good, robust, open source databases for
Linux -- MySQL and PostgreSQL. (No, please let's not turn this into a
religious war between the two.) For commercial environments that just
can't overcome the urge to spend Ridiculous Amounts Of Money on their
database engine, there's Oracle 8.
Why re-invent the wheel?
snip
Yes, I know about these two powerful databases, and others, but the
point is that they are not the type that users coming from Windows will
expect or understand. (Or, for that matter, users who are neither
knowledgeable about nor interested in the finer points of computing, but
who just want to get on with their job.) Let me quote from "Database
Application Programming with Linux" published by Wiley.
"....most of the SQL databases for Linux are client server. There is a
tradition in Windows of having application development and database
features presented as a single (monolithic) tool. Examples of this are
Fox Pro, Access and Filemaker. Although these tools can work with
client-server databases, they also have their own databases engines, and
as such there is a more complete integration between parts of the
program such as GUI builders and an SQL database."
Personally, when I was working in Windows I used Paradox which is the
same, monolithic, type. There are to my mind two important results from
using a database system like Paradox. It is easy to create a GUI for the
database (everything to do that is present), and that is what users
expect. (Can you imagine trying to tell non-computer-literate users that
they have to learn SQL in order to use their nice new database?).
Secondly it is easier to create the database tables, reports, forms,
table links etc. because it can all be done graphically. All the
complicated stuff is done for you behind the scenes.
I speak as a writer of databases for small companies, I have created
many for very different types of concern, and they all expected to work
with a GUI system. They would never have accepted anything else.
So to answer the question above, why re-invent the wheel?
Well that is the point, I am not asking for another database of the same
type as Postgresql et al. I am asking for a monolithic type database
similar to Access and Paradox which, as far as I can see, does not yet
exist in Linux. And, IMHO, it is something that is desperately needed if
we are to move more (ordinary, non-technical) users across to Linux.
Sorry to keep on but I think that this is an important topic.
Neil Winchurst
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