Re: Nonproprietary file format for storing data in a relational database

Hi Christopher!

Get you point, but in order to access a proprietary database you are still
dependent of e.g. a "database-engine" and a JDBC-driver, and maybe that's not for free! And maybe accessing that particular database using a JDBC-driver is much slower than accessing the database in the "native" database-language.

Let's say that you were using SAS (Statistical Analysis System). Accessing
data from within SAS is very quick, but I guess that accessing data from
outside SAS, e.g. from Java using a JDBC-driver is much slower (haven't
tried it though).

If you are using e.g. Java, then I was thinking of some kind of nonproprietary (in the sense open-source) "native" Java-database
file format, that could be used without any JDBC- or ODBC-bridging to obtain
quicker access.

In other words: Does e.g. Java have it's own database structure, or is this question nonsense?

Regards,
Jesper

Christopher Browne <cbbrowne_at_acm.org> wrote in message news:<2te8trF1vk9lvU1_at_uni-berlin.de>...
> In an attempt to throw the authorities off his trail, jespersahner_at_hotmail.com (Jesper Sahner) transmitted:
> > Is there a nonproprietary file format for storing data in a relational
> > database? - and which is the most accepted? - and does XML play a
> > role?
>
> This oughtn't be a relevant question.
>
> If a relational database provides a way of serializing data from the
> database in a "nonproprietary form," THAT is the condition that is of
> value.
>
> I don't want to need to care how a DBMS stores tables, indexes, views,
> and such; if the maker of the DBMS can use clever means to improve the
> storage mechanisms, so the system is [faster|more powerful|more
> reliable], more power to them, as that's more utility FOR ME.
>
> What I care about is that there be some good way to get data out of it
> so that my data is not held "hostage" by the vendor.
>
> Since XML is so woefully verbose, isn't actually a "file format," and
> since there are no standardized ways to serialize database systems in
> some XML-based form, the answer is clear: No, XML does not play any
> role in this.
Received on Sun Oct 17 2004 - 06:24:32 CDT