Re: [stellation-res] Database abstraction

[Dave Shields <shields@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Tue, Aug 13, 2002 at 02:06:39PM +0000, Mark C. Chu-Carroll wrote:
> 
> So... I'm looking at trying to create a database abstraction layer that
> will work accross Postgres, DB2, Oracle, MySQL/InnoDB, and
> Firebird. 
> 

I don't think it's worth that much effort trying to parameterize DDL generation. I suggest
making createRepository() a method in the interface AccessPoint (it currently isn't), and
letting each implementor provide a complete definition. It would be easier scanning over
the hundred or lines of SQL needed than trying to decipher some abstraction layer.

The *real* need is to find an open-source relational database that is *easy* to install and provides
*acceptable* performance. Postgres is easy to install, but its performance is lacking.
I found DB2 harder to install, and sufficiently hard to work with that I don't really have
much of a feel for what performance we can expect, and DB2 isn't open-source.

By "acceptable performance" I mean something able to handle projects up to 100K lines of code.
In the long run we of course want to handle much larger projects, but having this level of
performance should suffice to let us continue our work.

Having to install a relational database just to play with Stellation as a developer is, 
I think, a real barrier to entry. We need to find a better relational database soon.

dave
-- 
Dave Shields, IBM Research, shields@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.