Re: [pgsql-advocacy] MySQL gets $19.5 MM

Quoting Josh Berkus <josh(at)agliodbs(dot)com>:

> To be completely blunt: MySQL the database will not easily survive the
> demise
> of MySQL AB. Their development is still centrally and very corporately
> controlled; they are more a commercial company using the GPL as a
> distribution mechanism than a real Open Source project. And while Open
> Source is hard to beat in the marketplace, MySQL AB is easily beaten or
> consumed by larger, fiercer commercial competitors. Particularly since the
> company has shown anything but astuteness in their commercial relationships.
>
> Think about this: What would happen if Microsoft or Oracle purchased MySQL AB
>
> in order to shut it down? What would happen to the MySQL Project? The same
>
> thing that's happening to the SAP-DB project?

To be even more current- just look at what is going on with Oracle vs.
PeopleSoft & JB Edwards

http://quicken.com/investments/news/story/?story=NewsStory/dowJones/20030609/ON200306091828001243.var&p=PSFT

Toward the ends Oracle clearly states that they would stop selling PeopleSort
and eventually more the PeopleSoft customer base to Oracle!

> PostgreSQL has survived the deaths and/or acquisition of several companies,
> most notably Great Bridge. In this way, PostgreSQL is just like Linux ...
> many people commercialize it but nobody owns it.
>
> >From my perspective, Great Bridge was, in fact, a problem for us because our
>
> project became associated with GB in the public mind ... meaning that when GB
>
> shut down due to a bad business model, a lot of people got the impression
> that PostgreSQL was shutting down too. We've been quite a while recovering
> from that, and MySQL's public profile has surged ahead in the meantime.
>
> I would ... or perhaps will ... be nice to get some corporate money again for
>
> useful things like trade show booths. But we want to avoid the impression
> ever again that PostgreSQL is owned by any one company. (Thankfully,
> PostgreSQL Inc. has been very careful in this regard)
>
> --
> Josh Berkus
> Aglio Database Solutions
> San Francisco

So now here's a question- if I have this right. The goal is (maybe/probably?)
to be corporate support but not coporately owned, yes? If so, them lets say that I
wanted research PostgreSQL in the context of moving to it from say a MS-SQL or
Oracle product. A quick search of postgresql.com (which is probably would Joe
Tech at Joe Business would start) leaves out the product support question
(though does answer the licensing question which I think is the most important
piece).

Budget conscious people are **starting** to realize that they are
paying for paper year after year- and it doesn't make financial sense
(regardless of whether or not you can afford to pay for paper every year). As
much as I would like to see Linux, Apache, PostgreSQL, Mozilla, etc. everywhere
(or at least where I have to "work") they are not going to be for everyone- nor
should they be.

I'm curious to hear what other people are experiencing but for me everytime I
mention an Open Source product the question seems to come down to vendor
support- they don't seem to realize that you can in many cases get a quesiton
answered via email or in a newsgroup more directly and more quickly then if you
are paying for a support contract. Companies from what I see and experience
here in the states generally seem to be more interested in a commercial product
that does 70% of what they need instead of getting the people who can develope
in house 100% need (and maybe 100% or that they **want** too).

Regardless though, in the end people will be
smarter and invest their money in people and the componets to build your
application/computing environment. Those products have to be marketed
(unfortunately?) so the question I have is, other than the advocacy site(s) does
PostgreSQL have any of those so-called "tear sheets" that might catch some CIO's
eye? Perhaps I'm not asking in the right forum but even though MySQL getting a
cash influx does not worry me, it would be nice to include something like that
in my proposals if for no other reason than to get the word out (regardless of
whether or not I win the business). Would it be approppriate for my company to
do something and submit it? It seem like that approach might muster up support
from companies who do use Pg.

Sorry for the long windedness but this thread has got me thinking. I'm always
looking for feedback on how I can educate prospective clients to the vast
non-mainstream and non-big-corporate technology that is availble.

-$0.73

BTW, does one financially contribute directly to the development of Pg? Is
there something set up for that? Just asking for the future...

--
Keith C. Perry
Director of Networks & Applications
VCSN, Inc.
http://vcsn.com

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