For a couple of months there have been no updates to our msl patch, however recently I managed some time to change this. The functionality was extended a little bit and what?s even more important the patch is available for all the recent MySQL releases.

To remind anyone who has not yet come across this piece of code. msl (microslow) patch was developed a few years ago to allow more precise logging of query execution times into the slow log. Originally MySQL database offered a second time resolution and also a 2 second minimum for the query to get written, that is when you set long_query_time=1. After applying the patch you could see whether the time was 0.005s or 0.9s, which can make a substantial difference for the database and application performance. Over time msl patch grew with new features to let people learn more details of query execution, normally hidden from everyone's eyes. Currently it?s used by many DBAs and developers to help …

It occurred to me today that open-source infrastructure providers (e.g., commercial providers of open-source operating systems, databases, application servers, etc.) may have much in common with telecommunications infrastructure providers (like cable, wireless, etc. providers).

Everyone uses their stuff, and generally at a rate that doesn't quite match the value of the benefits derived from it.

Early on we pay a premium for broadband Internet or support for still-buggy but cheaper open-source software. Over time it becomes commodified and our willingness to pay decreases.

What's a company to do?

...

As I'm occasionally reminded, MySQL didn't start out as open source. In fact, MySQL's original license was very similar to what it is trying to achieve today: Free for noncommercial use, but not-so-free for commercial use. It didn't decide to go open source (GPL) until 1999.

So for those of us that get caught up in MySQL's decision to keep some extensions closed to paid subscribers, perhaps a refresher course in MySQL history will make it seem a bit less shocking. (Also be sure to check out the early 2001 brouhaha over trademark violations surrounding MySQL.org. Fascinating stuff.)

With that said, there's an ongoing tension between commercialization and adoption that MySQL (and …

Having already blogged about loading data from flat files to MySQL, it's time to post a similar case for PostgreSQL, as the manual seems to lack a real life example ...First of all the table to be loadedCREATE TABLE target(code character(3) NOT NULL,"name" character varying(50) NOT NULL,amount numeric,CONSTRAINT pk_1 PRIMARY KEY (code))WITH (OIDS=FALSE);as you can see one of the column names is a

mysqlsla v1.8 is available at:
http://hackmysql.com/scripts/mysqlsla-1.8-DEBUG
I am releasing it publicly without updating the mysqlsla web page or documentation because, instead, I am waiting until I finish mysqlsla v2. After working with v1.8 I realized the code needed a major re-think and overhaul. v2 will reflect this and will be a far superior log hacking and analyzing tool, capable of far more than v1.8 is now.

But for now, 1.8 fixes several good (or bad?) bugs:

• –only-hosts did not work for general logs
• Multi-line comments using /* */ caused everything after the first line to be ignored in raw logs
• “Change user” commands were not handled in general logs
• CHANGE, DROP and RESET statements were filtered out
• A certain variant of the Connect command in general logs was not handled
• A few …

The "2008 MySQL Conference and Expo" previously known as the "MySQL Users Conference" is over and I finally have time to blog.

What I really like with the MySQL conference is that it shows the loyalty that MySQL has from it's users and community. Year after year I get the change to meet the same friendly (!) faces and every year the group grows notable bigger (more than 2000 attendees this year). It really feels amazing for me to that I have had a small share in making this happen!

A lot of things happened during the conference, some good, some bad and some ugly.

Lets start with the bad parts and then go to the good stuff.

The Ugly

The ugly part was of course the announcement that MySQL was planning to change the MySQL server from open source/free software to crippleware by only giving out key parts of MySQL online backup (a server component) as closed source within the …

The Users Conference 2008 is over.

Had a quiet day in Monterey with Jay and Beat, where we enjoyed a few hours of walking in the woods and some spectacular views, like these baby seals.

Back at the hotel, it was business as usual, where coders and beers coexist peacefully.

Thanks to the attendees, and thanks Jay Pipes for another splendid performance!

It’s very weird having mail arrive at different times… e.g. when in the US, it’s less likely for some peolpe to mail you in the middle of the night US time.

Back home… common to get response between local time 2-5am… which is rather not 2-5am their local time.

But my habit of pulling mail in the morning after having done so late at night…. hard to break.