I made reference previously to Testing/Trialing new MySQL Releases using VMWare.

Well, I’ve just about completed my own Image for the lastest MySQL 5.0 (given I’m now running MySQL 5.1). I’m interested in sharing my experiences, and even providing some images for users if there is any demand out there.

What I’ve decided on is to use the VMWare supplied Browser Appliance which is Ubuntu 5.10. The great thing is the image autoboots into graphical mode, auto logins and loads a browser. My goal now is to get a suitable startup page describing the MySQL environment, links, manual etc.

The only requirements to run would be the …

Have a look at InnoDB. Well, ok your lazy, so here’s a screen print below.
Plastered thoughout the top section is the word MySQL. It’s in the core banner blurb, there’s a logo, and even links to the MySQL Documentation. And right in the middle of all this is “Innobase OY is an Oracle Company”, with the standard Oracle Logo.

So my question would be, is this a good thing or a bad thing from a MySQL advertising perspective?
Does it help or hinder MySQL?
Does it show Oracle as being in partnership with MySQL? Is this good for MySQL to increase it’s exposure into the Oracle world?
Does inclusion of InnoDB now within Oracle traffic and links improve exposure to MySQL within search engines?

Frankly, I’m a little surprised that Oracle Legal hasn’t got onto this, I’m sure somewhere there would …

Some recent posts regarding Oracle (See Smart moves by MySQL AB and Larry Ellison still doesn’t understand open source) leads me to put in my 2 cents worth.

My background I’m sure like a lot of experienced MySQL people is in Oracle, and indeed in Ingres before that (starting in 1988). I have also worked for a number of years at Oracle Corporation. Ironically I started as their resident Ingres Specialist, in an international research project of DMS (Design & Migration Services) of re-engineering Ingres applications into an Oracle Designer Repository some 10 years ago in 1996. I of course moved into a number of other Oracle roles for clients following that. I still retain some …

AUSTRALIA PRESS: Telstra To Charge More For Fixed Lines

great - I get to pay more for a service I DON’T WANT! I just want internet, not a phone line (which I aparrently have to have to get ADSL).

Oracle bought 2 companies which develop 2 open source storage engines that MySQL uses. Those storage engines are both transactional.

There’s the possibility Oracle does the stupid (from a PR perspective) move of making those databases proprietary. But it’s OPEN SOURCE right now. Which means that it’ll branch.

Worst case scenario? The developing stops here, and InnoDB and BDB never get any more functional than they currently are.

The “bad” scenario? MySQL is a company. With hired staff. They pay the hired staff to get familiar with the source code for those engines and continue to develop them. Hence the branch.

The likely scenario? 1) Oracle tries to have a pluggable storage engine architecture like MySQL. Oracle Express or Lite or whatever would be free with those engines, pay with the original. 2) Oracle tries to go on the good partnership of “we support MySQL by developing their architecture, we’re …

Folks, I‘m going to be involved in (giving the first, available for questions on the second) webcasts on Java and MySQL related topics, so if you read this blog because you‘re interested in those topics, you should check them out (they‘re free).

The first, For Java Developers Only: Developing and Deploying JDBC-based Applications with MySQL is on March 2nd. I‘ll be covering some common pitfalls, new features available with MySQL-5.0 (including XA and stored procedures), and a look at what‘s coming in JDBC-4.0.

The second on March 9th, Cost-Effective Enterprise Content Management Using Alfresco and MySQL is a webcast from Alfresco‘s founder and CTO, John Newton. Alfreso is an open source, enterprise content management system that …

Folks, I'm going to be involved in (giving the first, available for questions on the second) webcasts on Java and MySQL related topics, so if you read this blog because you're interested in those topics, you should check them out (they're free).

The first, For Java Developers Only: Developing and Deploying JDBC-based Applications with MySQL is on March 2nd. I'll be covering some common pitfalls, new features available with MySQL-5.0 (including XA and stored procedures), and a look at what's coming in JDBC-4.0.

The second on March 9th, Cost-Effective Enterprise Content Management Using Alfresco and MySQL is a webcast from Alfresco's founder and CTO, John Newton. Alfreso is an open source, enterprise content management system that happens to …

Folks, I‘m going to be involved in (giving the first, available for questions on the second) webcasts on Java and MySQL related topics, so if you read this blog because you‘re interested in those topics, you should check them out (they‘re free).

The first, For Java Developers Only: Developing and Deploying JDBC-based Applications with MySQL is on March 2nd. I‘ll be covering some common pitfalls, new features available with MySQL-5.0 (including XA and stored procedures), and a look at what‘s coming in JDBC-4.0.

The second on March 9th, Cost-Effective Enterprise Content Management Using Alfresco and MySQL is a webcast from Alfresco‘s founder and CTO, John Newton. Alfreso is an open source, enterprise content management system that …

The topic at hand is Oracle buying one dual license open source company after another. This is getting a lot of people worried. Of course it also got me thinking.

Dual licensing is a business model associated with companies distributing their code under two very different licenses. One license is a classic proprietary license. It usually includes all the goodies like warranties and the right to embed the code into own proprietary code without any additional requirements.

However the same code is also provided through some open source license, usually one of the so called reciprocal licenses (GPL and friends). Reciprocal means that these licenses require that any code that is linked with …

With Oracle Corporation purchasing InnoBase, the company providing the InnoDB Storage Engine, and now reliable rumors of the acquisition of SleepyCat, the BDB Storage Engine, both key transactional storage engines for MySQL are effectively owned by a competitor.

While the is a strange and probably unchartered territory for both organisations, I’m personally concerned. I use InnoDB extensively, however if there was a comparable alternative within MySQL I’d consider switching out of principle. Is Oracle purchasing these organisations a bad thing? We don’t know. That’s the problem. While MySQL will undoubtly continue to provide these storage engines as part of the MySQL Database I believe a call to arms is needed.

It’s true that Oracle helped more general adoption of Linux …