Re: Is PostGreSql's Data storage mechanism "inferior"?

On Jan 30, 2008, at 5:11 PM, Swaminathan Saikumar wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> I'm new to PostGreSql.
>
> http://searchyourwebhost.com/web-hosting/articles/insight-database-
> hosting-using-sql
>
> Check out the link. I am starting out on a new personal project &
> had zeroed in on PostGreSql with Mono-ASP.NET as ideal for my
> needs, mainly owing to a PostGreSql whitepaper.
> Now, I chanced upon the article above. I've pasted the cons as
> mentioned in the article, and would like the community feedback on
> it, especially with regards to the "inferior Data Storage mechanism".
>
> The cons of PostgreSql Hosting
> * Performance considerations: Inserts and Updates into the
> PostgreSql database is much slower compared to MySql. PostgreSql
> hosting thus might slow down the display of the web page online.

Not for inserts. For updates, nder some workloads, possibly. A
typical website run on a hosted server, not likely. While you might
be able to clock single instances of these operations on each of
those databases against each other (and, I emphasize *might*) and
have MySQL come out on top, MySQL is the often demonstrated loser
when you want to scale out and process hundreds to thousands at
once. Isn't that what you're shooting for with a web app?
>
> * BSD license issues: Since PostgreSql comes under the Berkeley
> license scheme, this is again considered to be too open.

What does that even mean?
>
> * Availability of inferior Data Storage mechanism: PostgreSql uses
> Postgres storage system, which is not considered to be transaction
> sae during PostgreSql hosting.

What I *think* they're getting at there is pure nonsense. In fact,
the sentence itself is nonsensical.
>
> * Its not far-flung: While MySql hosting and MSSql hosting have
> deeply penetrated into the market, PostgreSql hosting still remains
> to be passive in the database hosting market.

While I'll admit that MySQL hosting is more widespread, calling
Postgres hosting "passive" has no meaning whatsoever.
>
> * Non-availability of required assistance for PostgreSql hosting:
> Assistance is being provided via mailing lists. However there is no
> guarantee that the issue faced during PostgreSql hosting would be
> resolved.

You pay for what you get, i.e there are numerous commercial companies
that offer both paid support and consulting. For free, as mentioned,
you have the lists which are, incidentally, much better that the free
options available to most other technologies. Watch this list for a
bit, hardly a week goes by without at least one or two people
professing the support and general help gleaned from it's
participants as their primary decision to go with Postgres.

Basically, the person who made that list pulled a bunch of bullet
points out of the FUD-mosphere that barely make sense as English
sentences and offered them up without a shred of evidence or reference.

Erik Jones

DBA | Emma®
erik(at)myemma(dot)com
800.595.4401 or 615.292.5888
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