Over the next few weeks I will be covering the major databases contenders (read Warriors) in a series of articles as an analysis proceeds to conclusion. Right now in the IT development arena, one of the hottest arenas beyond AJAX/Web 2.0 vs RIA(Rich Interface Application like Flash, Adobe PDF, Java J2ME/Swing/ vs Microsofts Smart Clients vs Traditional Web GUI ) – is certainly databases and associated development tools. It is sparked by nearly $Zero pricing available from Open Source and the major commercial databases plus a flood of new technologies including innovations in:
+ scale-up parallelism
+ scale-out clustering
+ XML/XQuery native support
+ greater SOA and Web Services integration
+ auto maintenance, backup and self-repair
+ long transaction and replication functionality
+new pluggable engine and extensions
and lots of other database inventiveness. So database users have a richness of tools to tryout, develop with and most importantly even deploy some medium scale applications (50-200 concurrent users) with low/no cost. Think IBM DB2 Express, Oracle 10gExpress, MySQL 5.x, Ingres and others as the Database Warriors.
So what our analyses will do is download, install, and deploy various applications using the Warrior Databases. Our parent site will feature reviews and tutorials about the install, develop and deploy processes along with tips on the syntax of the underlying databases SQL and procedural languages. These tips and tutorials are part of expanded coverage of SQL, XML, and SOA that TheOpenSourcery.com will be featuring over the next 6-9 months.
No Coverage of Micrsoft SQL Server and .NET
There will be no coverage of SQL Server 200x or .NET X.x Frameworks. I believe that Microsoft has gone down the wrong path with its development strategy. And Redmond has compounded the problem by not just developing their applications for Windows only but also by working overtime to ensure that there are tight and exclusive couplings between Windows Applications and Services. This is the shortsighted consequences of “apps must run best in Windows” philosophy. That philosophy has won out over the promise of a easy to use and easy to integrate systems. Meantime while users wait for the next Redmond Cairo or Nirvana – they have been treated to reliability, scalability, security, plus artificial manageability and integration problems of the highest order.
However, I believe that Microsofts SQL Server developers were serious when they said back in 1998 and again in 2000 that it would not be a Herculean task for them to convert SQL Server to operate in Linux or other operating systems. If Redmond should develop a cross platform version of SQL Server or even better open-source the program, then coverage will commence immediately. Finally, on .NET , the approach is “does Redmond eat its own dog food ?”. Sadly own a very few system projects and Applications use .NET and its secure Managed code as their overall development tool. Only parts of Visual Studio 2005, BizTalk 2006, and SQL Server 2005. I rest my case on .NET coverage.
But there are plenty of great systems tools developing around the database arena – not just the databases but also great application servers and broader applications. For example, there is an open contest to see what languages will develop as the glue for Web plus desktop plus detached/mobile experiences – and its not necessarily out of the question that a databased stored procedural or scripting language may not emerge front runner for overall Systems and Services Glue language.
In sum, I suspect that databases and how they are developed and used will strongly influence how broad IT development is done over the next 8-15 years. In sum, databases have become like OS, the new essenial enablers to all computing – mobile thru desktop to enterprise, so watch for expanded coverage here.
(c)JBSurveyer 2006