Latest Version Leverages Windows Volume Shadow Service (VSS) to Backup Open Files and Open Standard Formats for Data Compression and Encryption.

The Amanda Project, a ZmandaTM sponsored and community-supported open source collaboration, announces the availability of Amanda 2.6.0p2. This latest version provides open file backup and recovery for Windows XP, Vista desktops and laptops and Windows 2003, 2008 servers, enabling system administrators to perform backup without impacting users and applications. By leveraging the standard zip format for backup images, Amanda 2.6.0p2 gives users the flexibility to recover their data with or without Amanda software. This version, complete with a Windows Installer and a 15-minute configuration guide, is available for free download. With this Zmanda-led release, Amanda further extends its leadership as the most comprehensive and popular open source network backup and recovery software …

It is good practice to manage changes to MySQL configuration files (/etc/my.cnf) by using a version control system. I usually use a home-brewed (not brewed by me!) svn+cfengine application to propagate my.cnf (and other configuration file) changes to defined classes of machines (classes are based on application role, replication role, etc). When managing hundreds of [...]

Old Town White Coffee is a place we’ve been hanging out a lot at. Its got wifi, power sockets, couches, good food and drink, great eye candy (bonus!), and is open till late.

Today, we found out that all their PCs that hold the orders (order{1,2,3,4}) have Samba shares. Open to all, naturally.

They use Crystal Reports. Have a custom front-end, with appropriate touch screen drivers, but the back-end is pretty stock. They use MySQL, Connector/ODBC 3.51.12 and also use SQLyog 5.30. I know the system is designed and deployed by NIT, it looks like their F&B POS.

Their use of MySQL (schema wise), includes using VIEWs, stored procedures and triggers (on UPDATE and DELETE).

I wonder how many point of sales systems are powered by open source software. This one runs Windows, but at least within the …

So Google Chrome – Google's attempt at an open source browser, came out yesterday and I took it out for a spin. At its heart is the Webkit engine (also open source) and Google Gears, powered by SQLite (can MySQL rival SQLite in applications like this?). Here are my thoughts.

• Fast – Chrome loads extremely fast, blazing even. Granted, my Firefox would probably load fast if I didn't have any addons as well. Sites like Amazon or …

As expected, many people are interested in the "what" behind our new Enterprise Monitor 2.0 w/Query Analyzer, and again, as expected more than a fair number are asking "OK, so when can we try it?" With that in mind, here is a quick update on where things stand:

- MySQL Enterprise subscribers can download build 7038 (soon to be 704x) and all of the docs from the MySQL Enterprise customer site. It has been a popular download and we should have a refreshed build very soon.

- We are planning to post a public beta in the next 2-3 weeks, most likely after we (the Enterprise Tools engineering team) all return from our annual Engineering meeting (this year it is in Riga, Latvia). That event wraps up on 9/24.

- I am doing a webcast on Query Analyzer for our friends in EMEA tomorrow. You can learn more and get registered …

Reggie Burnett is one of the those engineers at MySQL who deserves greater recognition. At a company dominated by LAMP-stackers, Reggie stands up and shouts for what some inside MySQL would view as a minority: developers using Windows to develop MySQL applications.

The funny thing about this is that Windows developers aren't really a minority at all are they? Both MySQL and Sun have statistics which show that more than fifty percent of developers use the Windows as their primary development platform. Whether or not the applications they develop get deployed on a Windows server, developers are actively utilizing a Windows development environment, typically using the Visual Studio IDE.

So, one thing that bothers Reggie, and me, is the lack of quality resources that we have to help support the MySQL on Windows developers. Hopefully, together we can change all that.

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A novelty, compared to past edition, is an embedded MySQLCamp within the conference. It will be an open space, driven and organized by the community, oriented to developers and advanced users.

Sometimes there are funny communication styles between people who are geographically distributed and working together all the time. Recently one of our team members echoed back to me some answers I gave over a chat session:

Q: Is it OK for me to buy quad-core servers? A: The old man walks slow but carries much, whilst [...]