Results of EnterpriseDB Open Source Database Survey

EnterpriseDB announced the results of the survey they did a few months ago at OSCON. Now, take the results with a grain of salt as it was done by EnterpriseDB. EnterpriseDB is based on Postgres so there is a vested interest in making Postgres sound good. Results can be skewed depending on how the survey is worded, what options are available as answers and who the respondents are.

The results summary is available for free.

Some key facts:

500 respondents. The download page says "500 corporate IT leaders". Or maybe, 500 open source developers. ;-)

Only 9% of respondents indicated that they preferred commercial solutions over open source solutions. I would guess that a majority of those responding were open source database people anyway. This is also one place where I think the wording of survey questions makes a difference. I'd like to see the survey again and compare the results to the survey itself.

The survey shows that respondents are using open source to migrate away from Oracle and SQL Server. It says that less than 1% is using open source to migrate away from DB2. Since DB2 is a major investor in EnterpriseDB, that doesn't surprise me. Again, the target users of the survey make a difference as well as the questions themselves.

Of course, Postgres was chosen more than any other open source database for transactional applications and high reliability. Again, not surprising based on who wrote the survey and what they sell.

Before I put very much value on this survey, I would want to see more than just a hand-crafted summary of the results. A spreadsheet of all the questions and the answers chosen would be, at least somewhat, valuable. Without that though, it's just marketing. I can't find anything on the site indicating the full results will be made available.

Technorati : database, enterprisedb, mysql, open source, oscon, postgres, survey

Take an Open Source Database Survey

LewisC's An Expert's Guide To Oracle Technology

Do you know which open source feature is the most important? Do you know which open source database rocks and which one sucks? Is MySQL better than Postgres? Is Ingres worth considering? How does Firebird compare? Have you used, or have you considered using, an open source database?

Take a survey. It's only 15 questions so it takes just a few minutes.

I'll post a link where you can get the results once they have been compiled and prepared.

BTW, this isn't my survey. I'm just passing on the link.

LewisC

32 Bit ODBC Drivers in Vista 64

This post isn't really PostgreSQL specific. It also happens with MySQL and Ingres (and any other 32 bit driver).

I am running Vista 64 on one of my machines. I installed Postgres 8.3 and the ODBC drivers. When I tried to setup an ODBC connection, the windows ODBC administrator program ODBCAD32.exe did not list Postgres. I noticed that it also did not list MySQL or Ingres even though I knew I had installed drivers for those databases also.

After a bit of research, I tracked down the issue. My ODBC drivers did in fact install. Microsoft, in all their wisdom, has 2 versions of odbcad32. A 32 bit and a 64 bit. They are both named odbcad32.exe.

It gets better. They put the 32 bit odbcad32.exe in the syswow64 directory. They put the 64 bit odbcad32.exe in the system32 directory. 32 bit apps will pick up the 32 bit registry setting and 64 bit will pick up the 64 bit registry setting. system32 comes before syswow64 in the system path so the 64bit software runs before the 32 bit software.

So, when I manually ran odbcad32.exe in the syswow64 directory, I was able to configure my connections and everything worked hunky dory. I know have a shortcut to syswow64\odbcad32.exe on my desktop for working with 32 bit databases.

I wonder how stable the system would be if syswow64 was in the path before system32? I don't plan to find out.

LewisC

ODBC postgresql

MySQL vs Postgres Wiki

There is a new wiki comparing MySQL to PostgreSQL. Because it's a wiki, hopefully it can be kept updated so that it's current AND accurate. The wiki is MySQL vs PostgreSQL. Personally, I'd like to see this grow into a universal comparison site that the community could keep updated. LewisC

postgresql mysql

10 PostgreSQL versus Everything Else Comparisons

Feature comparisons, in addition to being somewhat lame and almost always biased, are very dependent on versions. If you throw in performance considerations, they are also dependent on hardware and configuration. Even so, I like to read comparisons, for historical information if nothing else. Here are some comparisons that I have found. I make no recommendations or even commentary about them. Read through them as if you are a database anthropologist. Dig for the nuggets that increase your existing base of knowledge but remember that a human, probably one with an agenda, put these comparisons together. I have also found that PostgreSQL is most often compared to MySQL and not to one of the large commercial databases such as Oracle or DB2. Update: August 27. A new comparison: PostgreSQL vs Firebird, August 2007 (and hopefully it will remain updated)

1. PostgreSQL or MySQL - Feb 15 2005, a fairly nice comparison actually.
2. PostgreSQL vs. MySQL vs. Commercial Databases: It's All About What You Need - DevX April 12, 2004
3. PostgreSQL vs MySQL: Which is better?, DatabaseJournal Dec 16, 2003
4. PostgreSQL vs. SQL Server: PostgreSQL is right for the Microsoft stack, SearchEntepriseLinux May 15, 2006
5. PostgreSQL vs. Oracle: Users speak out, SeachOracle April 6, 2006
6. PostgreSQL vs MySQL with Rails, June 18, 2005
7. Oracle 10g vs PostgreSQL 8 vs MySQL 5, This one I wrote, Aug 22, 2005
8. Firebird vs Postgres, Forum Post, April 23, 2002
9. PostgreSQL vs. MySQL (Web Techniques, Sep 2001), Dr Dobbs, Jan 1, 2002
10. MySQL vs. PostgreSQL, Aug 9, 2005

Enjoy, LewisC

postgresql list comparison mysql firebird oracle

PostgreSQL vs MySQL

Have you ever wondered why you should choose one open source database over another? What features would make the most sense for your Organization? Maybe you're a developer looking to learn a database and can't choose where to start?

The folks at PostgreSQL have put together a wiki, Why PostgreSQL instead of MySQL. It's, by no means, complete at this time but it is a good start. The wiki is not editable by the public but it is open for reading. The wiki entry compares PostgreSQL 8.1 and MySQL 5.0. Some of the points raised are:

• Data Integrity - MySQL has improved with a "strict mode"

• Database Engine Core - No comparison is complete without a bit of FUD: "It is worth observing that the database engine is part of the core of PostgreSQL, whereas InnoDB is a dual-licensed product currently licensed from Oracle Corporation. It's uncertain how Oracle may alter InnoDB in the future as they act in competition with MySQL AB, whereas PostgreSQL has no such conflict of interest."

• Foreign Keys - MySQL: "the CHECK clause is parsed but ignored by all storage engines"

• Speed - MySQL is faster but PostgreSQL is narrowing the gap

• Application Portability - sparse now but hopefully will grow

I hope this is frequently updated by the PostgreSQL community. It will make a great resource. It would be nice if the people at the PostgreSQL.org website would give a few MySQL developers write access to enter counterpoints to the details in the wiki. An alternative would be for MySQL to answer with their own wiki.

postgresql mysql comparison