Database

Blog Taragana gives us a bird's eye view on particulars of an open source database, along with a few management systems. A little warning friends, do not be intimidated by some of the technical terms, just grab one of those "technical dictionaries" online and you'll be fine.



What Server-Based Databases Accomplish

Open Source Server based database management systems have become a common choice for organizations over the stand alone desktop databases. The server based databases or RDBMS such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft SQL Server are designed to be used on servers and it can be easily shared by multiple users. Most evidently, server-based DBMS are used in nonprofit sector for Web-based databases. Some of these organizations use server based DBMS for their interactive Websites, providing content and data to their sites. Server-based DBMS also hold a purpose to underlie large shared databases, such as financial packages and client management databases.

If it's a sensitive financial package, it is crucial to be mindful of virus protection programs. After all, being shared in a network has both advantages and disadvantages.



MySQL for Open Source Database

Now for those using Access in their organization may set up a Linux-based database and use an ODBC (Open Data Base Connectivity) connection between the desktop Access databases and the server database. This would imply that Access is used on the front end and make the back-end more robust and secure with server based database. After an extensive research we sorted out the top 7 Open Source Server based database management systems, have a look.


1. MySQL

For a web based use MySQL is the top choice, as it is the most often the only DBMS available in virtual hosting accounts. It runs on several platforms. It allows users to download the server and client software as well as a MySQL ODBC diver and a bunch of other MySQL tools from this page. MySQL is simpler and smaller, and therefore generally faster than other databases servers.

MySQL open source database is a multi-faceted aid for both home or office use. Needless to say, you have to orient yourself with the different tools associated if you want to fully benefit from the system.

2. PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL is an Open Source server-based database management system that runs well on UNIX based systems such as Linux. It is much more robust, scalable, and standards compliant than MySQL, and it can handle multiple transactions easily. However, the Postgres Plus Standard Server supports the most popular environments, including Linux 32, Linux 64, Windows, and Mac OS X.


3. Firebird

This is an Open Source relational database offering many ANSI SQL-92 features that runs on Linux, Windows, and several Unix platforms. It features high SQL compliance, stored procedure and other advanced database features.

Regarding PostgreSQL, I agree that it is more scalable than MySQL, but not in the "robust" part.

Using or developing an open source database is not exactly brain surgery, but it's not child's play either. For you to gather advanced knowledge on it, studying up on it (online, offline) is a must- there is no quick fix. However, let me give you a quick enumeration of some other top management softwares courtesy of this article.

If you have been writing programs for some time, you know just how important it is to keep an organized system for recording, storing, and managing all the codes and information. Having to update data, ensure that there are no duplicate records, and retrieve data within a certain criteria is taxing and cumbersome without a good database management system (DBMS). Although there are many mainstream database management systems around, such as Oracle and MS Access, it’s good to know that you can get the same features and performance using an open source database. Here is a brief discussion on its advantages.

Benefits of using an open source database

As with other open-source applications, an open source database costs much less than its copyrighted counterparts. Aside from that, the freedom granted to users and developers to tweak and improve its source code and other components significantly helps an open source DBMS become more reliable and consistent. It provides the same quality of service that its more expensive proprietary equivalents can give.

Well-known brands of open source database

The most popular server database MySQL is an open source DBMS. Apart from MySQL, PostgreSQL, the Java-embeddable Apache Derby, Firebird, GNU SQL Server, SAP MaxDB, ScimoreDB, DXstore database system, HSQLDB, and CloudDB are among the leading brands of open source database management systems today. Drizzle and MariaDB are among the fork versions of MySQL.

Whether it is for personal or commercial use, an open source database can prove to be a reliable database management system. The best thing about using them (instead of proprietary databases) is that they are not as pricey, which is very important when you’re working on business management programs that are supposed to cut costs.

Software & Support Media announced the second Open Source Database Conference which will be held in Frankfurt, Germany on November 6 to 8, 2006. More than 500 IT developers from different parts of the globe attended the first conference. Over 15 speakers were present in the first conference which included luminaries and visionaries and numerous businesses that has reaped the benefits of the event.

The conference aims to provide the proper setting where the community can meet together. A place where experts could meet their peers and for businesses to show what they can offer to potential partners in networking. It is expected that the conference will attract delegates with different professional background; from database developers, administrators, architects to project managers. The event also provides an opportunity for one to share knowledge and brainstorm new ideas that will help in the development of open source. Several quality speakers will also be invited to discuss topics such as: the business of open source, database intelligence, database fundamentals and case studies. According to the schedule plan, the regular session will take about 70 minutes while the tutorial could last between 3 to 6 hours. This is a great opportunity for budding open source developers to get some insights in the business from the more experienced members of the open source community.

Imagine working as an inventory clerk in a big China wares warehouse. If you were making an initial inventory list of all the available items, it would take you a lot of time to catalogue at least 25,000 items. There must be an easier system to count and catalogue large number of items.

Making a written list may be appropriate but time-consuming. What about if you were tasked to not only make a list but also make a description of each item? An entire shelf of files might not suffice. These problems can be made lighter by using computer database systems. Database computer systems allow automated monitoring and filing of data.

You may imagine a data base as a filing cabinet with many files organized into categories. Files are organized for easier retrieval. Different categorizations may be employed but the most common is the alphabetical categorization.

The two main differences between file-cabinet system and a database system are in terms of bulkiness and in terms of efficiency in filing and retrieval. Furthermore database allows multiple formatting and categorization. Using database system is more convenient considering that the files are in electronic format which are also accessible through networks.

Information is useful as far as you can understand it. A volume of information, on the other hand, is only useful if you can manage it. A disorganized volume of information is nothing but a heap of junk. The main function of database software is to manage information. Archiving or filing and retrieval are the two main tasks which involve categorization, ranking and labeling of information. Examples of information are the pay roll of a big corporation or an inventory of books in a library which may need continuous updating. There are opens source database such as the SQLBase which is fast and easy to use software for Windows and Linux.

Information or data are not useful if they are unorganized and thereby cannot be retrieved or manipulated. The two main functions of data management are storing and retrieving data for useful purposes. A database is a digital or computerized filing system used for managing data. FoxPro and MS-Access are examples of database application software which can store, organize, retrieve, manipulate large amount of data such as payroll, inventory catalogue, mailing list, store transactions, orders and purchases, etc. The traditional file-cabinet system is becoming obsolete because of database. The main advantage of database over file-cabinet system is accessibility even over computer networks.