Re: ODBC platform availability?

markb_at_sipl4330a (Mark Bernstein) wrote:
>We're looking into the use of ODBC as an underpinning for custom
>programs to access a database. Trouble is, the customer isn't
>using Windows as their client platform. They're using Solaris
>2.3, same as the server platform. (This customer's database
>is using Oracle 7.1.4.)
>
>I called Oracle tech support, asked about the availability of
>ODBC interface libraries for Solaris, and was told that it
>was not available, and that ODBC drivers were only available
>for Windows and RDB (VMS). But I thought I saw at least one
>posting here a little while back saying that Oracle did have
>ODBC available on Unix.
>

Oracle does not offer such a product directly, however a third-party ODBC for Unix is available (I think from Visigenics). But WHY do you want to use ODBC on a Unix platform? To ensure compatibility with some future MS-Windows version of your system??

ODBC, as currently released, fails to support many features of the Oracle 7 server but compiling your program with the normal Oracle libraries allows both local and remote access with full functionality. See the PRO*C manuals for further details (or PRO*Ada or PRO*Fortran or PRO*Cobol or ....)

IMNHO ODBC on Unix is a waste of time EXCEPT to maintain source code compatibility with MS-Windows versions of an application.

Of course my opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it and your mileage *will* vary :-)

-- 
Bill Meahan  wmeahan_at_sun1.fsic.ford.com
Ford Motor Company -- End User Support - North America
Not an official statement of Ford Motor Company or anyone else
except the author (though my dog tends to agree with all I say)