Re: I'm Looking for a Database Wizard! -- Firebird? Delphi? Also

["Bryan J. Smith" <b.j.smith@ieee.org>]

On Wed, 2004-02-11 at 13:20, hcrouch@mchsi.com wrote:
> All PeeCees in this company use Windows 2k.  That means I need a database that
> works under Windows.  MySQL, I understand, works under windows, so it might be a
> candidate.  Linux isnt an option at this point.  There is one Linux advocate in
> MIS.  He has installed a Red Hat server and is planning on installing a second,
> but he can only push so hard.  No, Johnathon, BSD is not an option either.  :-(

- MS Access:  Data Component Hell and Longevity Challenged

Someone mentioned here that they use MS Access 97 on Windows 2000 at
their company.  Well, that's a nice solution unless you also use another
application, possibly from a 3rd party, that also uses another version
of MS Access -- or even another version of MS Office.  Then you run into
what I call "Data Component Hell."  ADO, MDAC and other components from
different versions -- _even_ if you run MSSQL as your server backend.

Microsoft has refused to address this issue to this point.  Microsoft
has seemingly chosen to purchase VirtualPC to address this, which is
probably the least ideal -- running virtual machines with multiple
copies of the same Windows versions so they have libraries that don't
conflict.  Really sad.

There are endless other issues with the MS Access + MSSQL combination. 
They largely revolve around the fact that MS Access is a _single_user_
database (what is also known as an "object oriented spreadsheet" ;-),
and not really much beyond that except a form designer.  I know it seems
quick'n powerful, but it's not the best way to reach MSSQL IMHO.

Especially if you're looking to make your "front-end" a "long term
solution."  About *EVERY* semi-complex form I've built with MS Access 97
was *TOASTED* when I upgraded to MS Access 2000, and then _again_ when I
upgraded to MS Access XP.  This is _unacceptable_ from a TCO standpoint
-- _totally_ unacceptable.


- The cross-platform "visual" tools:  ReKall and Delphi/Kylix

As someone else has already mentioned, TheKompany's ReKall is an
Access-killer.  It is now GPL, and runs on both Windows and Linux. 
Built for visual database form design and reporting, it can also be
extended programmatically with Python.  This gives you the ultimate in
re-usability.  And yes, it has a _native_ Windows version.

Unfortunately, the official server back-ends GPL ReKall supports is
limited at this time.  Supposedly the GPL is fully DB agnostic, any
ANSI92 SQL server backend should be supported, but I'm not aware of full
support beyond MySQL and PostgreSQL.  It may work with MSSQL, but don't
quote me.  An ODBC connector is available from TheKompany for around
US$50.

More "royalty-free" is the "tool" even those most pro of Microsoft
professionals _prefer_ once they try it.  And that "tool" is Borland
Delphi -- and it's sister on Linux, Kylix (which is both C++ and Delhpi
language).  Once a "Visual Basic" developer tries Delphi, they don't go
back to Microsoft "Visual" solutions.  Even Microsoft has modeled VB.NET
after a lot of Delphi approaches and components (which is a radical
change for VB).

[ http://www.borland.com/delphi_net/ ]
[ http://www.borland.com/kylix/ ]

The great thing about Delphi is the re-usability, especially across
platforms with Kylix.  Their "pure SQL" approach with dbExpress (aka
DataCLX) is a sweet, two-tier DB approach that Borland now recommends
over their aged, three-tier, middleware-based and ODBC-centric Borland
Database Engine (BDE).  Once you write for dbExpress, you can switch
your connector to _any_ database, including MSSQL, MySQL, PostgreSQL,
Interbase, DB2, Oracle and even Firebird (see below).  That means you
can develop now for Windows front-ends and MSSQL back-ends, then switch
later if and when you move to Linux on _either_ the front-end or
back-end.

[ NOTE:  Different, _official_, "Borland supported" connectors come with
the "Professional" and "Enterprise" versions.  Delphi Pro (less than
$1K) comes with MySQL, Interbase and MSSQL, Kylix Pro (less than $400)
comes with MySQL, Interbase and PostgreSQL standard.  Enterprise
versions come with DB2, Oracle, etc...  Various, 3rd party/free
connectors _are_ available for _both_ platforms, including PostgreSQL
for Delphi and MSSQL for Kylix. ]

I cannot recommend the Borland approach to custom front-end development
enough.  You don't have to be a "programmer" to do so.  The Delphi/Kylix
manuals do a very good job of introducing both form development and even
include a standalone reporting tool (even for Linux now).  For more
intermediate-level, there is an _excellent_ book from Eric Harmon called
"Delphi/Kylix Database Development" that is _entirely_focused_ on
developing database front-ends with Delphi/Kylix and DataCLX/dbExpress. 
[ http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/067232265X ]

Maximum reuse and royalty-free client development.  Sure, only about 5%
of developers use Delphi, but it is what 50% of the various ISVs
(independent software vendors) use for developing "shrink wrapped"
business/vertical apps that you'll find on the shelf at CompUSA!  Why? 
Delphi is VB ease-of-development with C++ execution speed, reduction in
resource usage and reliability (about 6x each).  It is _the_
professional RAD (rapid application development) tool for _professional_
applications.


- The "third" Open Source database:  Firebird

A recent ZD columnist got reamed when she failed to mention Firebird as
one of the available open source databases, after going into MySQL and
PostgreSQL, and rightly so.  Firebird is no longer just Borland
Interbase open sourced -- it's been improved and forked into its own,
beast.

MySQL, while multi-platform, is built for speed, not transactions (even
though it now does the latter).  For an Internet DB, I like MySQL.  For
an Intranet DB, I like PostgreSQL.  But PostgreSQL only runs under
Cygwin, not an ideal Windows approach.  So what does that leave us with?

Firebird.  Like PostgreSQL, Firebird is a full-up, ACID-approach DB from
the get-go.  I believe it's lineage is also Postgres (most commercial
DBs either are, or are based on Postgres' predecessor, Ingres).  It runs
on a wealth of platform, and the latest version 1.03 is considered
production quality.

[ http://www.firebirdsql.org ]



-- 
Bryan J. Smith, E.I. -- Engineer, Technologist, School Teacher
b.j.smith@ieee.org



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