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This is not just history, it's ongoing. MariaDB requires copyright assignment for contributing code today. They claim "This is needed so that Monty Program Ab can give your code forwards to other projects (like MySQL)." But that's slight of hand to distract from the real issue here. If MySQL won't accept straight GPL code, that's their problem to fix, not mine to work around as a contributor. When I support a new fork of something I don't worry about pandering to the needs of the other forks anymore. That is the whole point of forking code--you shouldn't even go there unless you have given up on working within the constraints of the original project.

Copyright assignment isn't always associated with bad behavior; the FSF requires it too. But when you're assigning your copyright to someone who has taken advantage of dual-licensing to their personal benefit before, it's really hard to see it as anything other than self-serving the next time they try.

For all practical purposes, MariaDB is a binary drop in replacement

A quick google says MariaDB is GPL.. How is that a better license for commercial development than MySQL? GPL is a terrible license for using in commercial software. https://kb.askmonty.org/en/mariadb-license/

Here's what worked for me on debian. See https://kb.askmonty.org/en/how-can-i-upgrade-from-mysql-to-mariadb/

mysql --version # I'm running 5.0, am supposed to upgrade to mysql 5.2 or later to run mariadb 5.2
mysql_upgrade -p # upgrades me to 5.1, no 5.2 available; will just try installing mariadb 5.2 and see if it works
mysqldump -u root -p --all-databases > whole_database.sql # shouldn't be needed, but just in case
mysqladmin -u root -p shutdown
apt-get remove mysql-server

Now install MariaDB.

https://kb.askmonty.org/en/installing-mariadb-deb-files/

apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com 0xcbcb082a1bb943db
cat /etc/issue # tells me I'm running debian 6.0, which is squeeze, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian#Release_history
# use this web ui to generate text to put in sources.list
# https://downloads.mariadb.org/mariadb/repositories/
cat >/etc/apt/sources.list.d/MariaDB.list
# ...cut and paste into this newly created file
apt-get update
apt-get install mariadb-server
mysql -u root -p # still called mysql for compatibility, but it comes up and identifies itself as mariadb
show databases; # all still there, no need to restore from backup

The mysql binary, etc., are all still named the same thing for compatibility, so, e.g., there's no need to change the cron jobs that back up my database.

Here's what worked for me on debian. See https://kb.askmonty.org/en/how-can-i-upgrade-from-mysql-to-mariadb/

mysql --version # I'm running 5.0, am supposed to upgrade to mysql 5.2 or later to run mariadb 5.2
mysql_upgrade -p # upgrades me to 5.1, no 5.2 available; will just try installing mariadb 5.2 and see if it works
mysqldump -u root -p --all-databases > whole_database.sql # shouldn't be needed, but just in case
mysqladmin -u root -p shutdown
apt-get remove mysql-server

Now install MariaDB.

https://kb.askmonty.org/en/installing-mariadb-deb-files/

apt-key adv --recv-keys --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com 0xcbcb082a1bb943db
cat /etc/issue # tells me I'm running debian 6.0, which is squeeze, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian#Release_history
# use this web ui to generate text to put in sources.list
# https://downloads.mariadb.org/mariadb/repositories/
cat >/etc/apt/sources.list.d/MariaDB.list
# ...cut and paste into this newly created file
apt-get update
apt-get install mariadb-server
mysql -u root -p # still called mysql for compatibility, but it comes up and identifies itself as mariadb
show databases; # all still there, no need to restore from backup

The mysql binary, etc., are all still named the same thing for compatibility, so, e.g., there's no need to change the cron jobs that back up my database.

Truly Open Source

• All code in MariaDB is released under GPL, LPGL or BSD. MariaDB does not have closed source modules like the one you can find in MySQL enterprise edition. In fact, all the closed source features in MySQL 5.5 enterprise edition are found in the MariaDB open source version.
• MariaDB includes test cases for all fixed bugs. Oracle doesn't provide test cases for new bugs fixed in MySQL 5.5.
• All bugs and development plans are public.
• MariaDB is developed by the community in true open source spirit.

Wikipedia, too, is moving from MySQL to MariaDB.

Having a truly open source (and community developed) fork is one of the main reasons, however we actually have been developing features independent of what oracle does. Pretty much the entire MySQL optimizer team left Oracle and moved to the MariaDB project. They took the time to fix subqueries so they were actually usable and improve many other features. Take a look at the comparison:

https://kb.askmonty.org/en/mariadb-vs-mysql-features/

https://kb.askmonty.org/en/community-contributing-to-the-mariadb-project/

We (yes, I work for the project) are always looking for new contributors. There are lots of exciting things happening right now.

http://kb.askmonty.org/en/about-mariadb/

Disclaimer: I work for Monty Program Ab, the primary developers behind MariaDB.

MariaDB 5.3.3 (currently in RC status) has improved GIS functionality versus MySQL. While sponsoring new features could improve it even further what we are releasing right now might be enough for you. Please give it a try, and talk to us about how we could make it fit your needs better.

Disclaimer: I work for Monty Program Ab, the primary developers behind MariaDB.

MariaDB 5.3.3 (currently in RC status) has improved GIS functionality versus MySQL. While sponsoring new features could improve it even further what we are releasing right now might be enough for you. Please give it a try, and talk to us about how we could make it fit your needs better.

I don't use MySQL. I use MariaDB. I've looked at Drizzle too. Drizzle is "for the cloud".

For all practical purposes, MariaDB is a binary drop in replacement of the same MySQL version (for example MySQL 5.1 -> MariaDB 5.1, MariaDB 5.2 & MariaDB 5.3 are compatible. MySQL 5.5 will be compatible with MariaDB 5.5). http://kb.askmonty.org/en/mariadb-faq

Please help fund MariaDB.

Couldn't be anymore obvious you're trolling, but others might like to know it does have transactions, and it's ACID compliant. It wont officially replace MySQL ever because so much software depends on the actual name MySQL for linking to and Oracle would probably have a problem with a distribution keeping folders linked to the name even if it isn't using the Oracle Maintained MySQL. However, most of the main distros (debian, ubuntu, gentoo, etc) will or already do have it in their official repositories and MariaDB also has their own signed repositories for Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora and more listed on their downloads page.

MySQL needs to be fully archived, including the revision history, outside of Oracle, just in case.

There is already a somewhat credible attempt at maintaining a fork (http://askmonty.org/wiki/MariaDB#What_is_MariaDB.3F).
Monty may have been a bit of a hypocrite in first selling MySQL and then whining about what happened to it, but now he does approximately what you asked for :-)

WHy would one depend on a company as terrible as Oracle if you can get MariaDB, the mySQL fork from the people that invented MySQL. Check: http://askmonty.org/wiki/Main_Page

Well, the beauty of open source is that he can, in a way. Just fork the thing, call it MontyScrewedUpSQL or whatever and away you go

That's what he did. Admittedly, MontyScrewedUpSQL sounds a lot better than MariaDB...

He already did fork it: http://askmonty.org/wiki/index.php/MariaDB

So I'm really not sure what he's complaining about.

Fork it and then name it MariaDB, specifically. Sun buys MySQL. Monty complains about Sun's treatment of MySQL. Monty leaves MySQL. Monty forks MySQL. Monty complains about Oracle. This isn't exactly a surprising development.

Keep working on his existing fork of it?

There is already a fork that is being worked upon by Monty (who was the founder of MySQL) I suspect the real contention is over the brand MySQL (which has significant mind-share) which was transferred to SUN and will now go to Oracle.
A lot of medium sized companies use MySQL today and have support contracts with who-so-ever owns the brand itself. They I guess are the ones who are worried - choosing another database is often not an option.

There is already a fork: MariaDB by Monty, one of the MySQL founders.

I use MySQL exclusively and it would nice if Oracle were given a shot at supporting MySQL. Even if they do try and kill it to gain leverage for their own database, there's always MariaDB (a MySQL fork by Monty Widenius, the original creator of MySQL).

but I've yet to hear MySQL's customer base, which skews toward the technology-savvy Web crowd, fretting about Oracle's impact on MySQL's business.

Could this be a non-issue due to that they can just fall back on Monty's MariaDB? ( community developed, stable, and always Free branch of MySQL )

To name a few who have already worked on various patches/forks of mysql...

Percona
Google
Mariadb

The MariaDB link should be http://askmonty.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page