Re: Oracle vs Sybase

"H.Mouratidis" <ELP99HM_at_sheffield.ac.uk> wrote in message news:38DFC79C.A636D1F7_at_sheffield.ac.uk...
> I'm quite new to databases and I have two questions,probably very easy
> for all you out there.
>
> 1) Why should I use an Oracle server instead of a sybase one(or even
> MySQL)??
> 1) What Oracle offers me that sybase(MySQL) cannot?
>

There are a couple of factors:

• Oracle is the most recognizable database in the world. Skills in Oracle open up many job opportunities.
• Sybase lacks many of Oracle's features, and it is not as tunable as Oracle.
• PL/SQL is the strongest database programming language of all the products I have been exposed to.
• MySQL does not support true transactions.
• Skills in MySQL are not directly transferable to other databases.
• Oracle runs on everything from mainframes to Linux boxes.

If you are looking for a good free database, use Postgres- not MySql. If you need MySQL for something like Bugzilla or a freeware web utility then by all means, install it. MySQL is small and fast. However, its dialect of SQL is very limited, it doesn't scale, and it has no mechanisms for disaster recovery such as archive log mode in Oracle.

Some drawbacks to Oracle:

• Oracle is a resource pig!! It can consume every bit of hardware you toss at it. Oracle is very sensitive to disk performance.
• Oracle is very difficult to administer for beginners. A bad setting in the init.ora file can cripple your database performance. Back up every configuration file or setting before you modify it.
• Oracle's other products are terrible - Oracle forms, Designer, Developer, App server, etc. Oracle Corp. claims its products provide a complete solution. This is very far from the truth.
• It is much easier to get mediocre performance from Sybase than it is for Oracle.
• Oracle is very expensive-> Around $1800 per concurrent connection or $150 per CPU per MHz.

I chose to gain Oracle expertise five years ago. My income has tripled in five years.

Chris
chris_at_intralect.com Received on Mon Mar 27 2000 - 00:00:00 CST