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Cloudscape Gains Momentum

Posted by Hemos on from the ibms-big-move dept.

A reader writes: "There's been a lot of bits written recently about the growth of Open Source databases; as well as IBM's patent gift, as their release of the Java database Cloudscape. There's a contest running on SourceForge.net around Cloudscape; download and run with it." SF.net is part of OSTG, like Slashdot.

18 of 139 comments (clear)

  1. Java database ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny


    wouldn't it be quicker to print your data on paper and sort it by hand ?

    1. Re:Java database ? by Eric+Giguere · · Score: 5, Informative

      Hey, I like Java as much as anyone, but if you're looking for a fast, multi-platform, zero-administration database be sure to check out SQL Anywhere Studio. The Developer Edition is completely free and runs on Linux, Solaris, Mac OS X, Netware and most flavors of Windows, including CE/PocketPC. See the description of what's in SQL Anywhere Studio for details. (Note that some of you may remember SQL Anywhere as Watcom SQL.)

      Eric
      Listen, folks: JavaScript is NOT Java!
  2. Wrong language, wrong thing. by InterruptDescriptorT · · Score: 3, Insightful

    A Java database?

    Isn't that a little bit like writing a Fast Fourier Transform in LISP?

    There are lots of things that Java is perfectly suited for. Databases are not one of those things.

    --
    Karma: Excellent Birds (mostly as a result of listening to Laurie Anderson)
    1. Re:Wrong language, wrong thing. by sporty · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why not? If it's fast enough, and it works, it'd be good for java embeded applications and/or stuff that uses a database for scratch-work. It could also be used instead of complex data structures in memory that require massaging to get anything out of.

      --

      -
      ping -f 255.255.255.255 # if only

    2. Re:Wrong language, wrong thing. by sonofagunn · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Have fun embedding your C database inside a Java server app (I think you've missed the point of Cloudscape).

    3. Re:Wrong language, wrong thing. by EkkiEkkiShiwaddle · · Score: 5, Informative
      There are lots of things that Java is perfectly suited for. Databases are not one of those things.

      I'm a Java developer, and have been almost from the very start of Java. While I tend to agree with you at first, I would like to point out some benefits of using Cloudscape.

      Over the years I've had a few (small, hobby) projects, where I really felt the need for a database which did not need to be fast nor did it need to be huge. So I tried Cloudscape. And while it isn't the fastest around, it gets the job done.

      The easiest part is that you can just bundle it with your application, without writing a single line of code!

      I've tried MySQL, but I still need to install it prior to being able to run my application - no need for that with Cloudscape.

      But, granted, it is not the fastest out there. If I need a *real* database, I just use Oracle.

  3. What's in a name? by Trejkaz · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Wasn't Cloudscape donated to the Apache project, where it changed its name to Derby? Don't IBM think that offering a download of "Cloudscape" is going to confuse developers?

    --
    Karma: It's all a bunch of tree-huggin' hippy crap!
  4. Spelling mistake in submission by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    The submitter mispelt 'cynical ploy' as 'patent gift', wake up editors.

  5. I've written a review of this by Simon+Brooke · · Score: 5, Informative

    As it happens I've already written a review of cloudscape; the google cache of it is here.

    Brief summary: get the Apache version; reasonably full SQL92 syntax; performance OK; a bit lacking on security.

    --
    I'm old enough to remember when discussions on Slashdot were well informed.
  6. Here is a swell idea! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Lets see how many open source projects we can get going at one time to compete against one another with absolutely no standardization! YESSSS!

    But seriously -- this is getting out of hand. If every single company, individual, etc. starts an open source project what does that accomplish? Nothing. It brings about 100 different alternatives to the market most of which would never be viable in a commercial environment.

    News flash: devote time and effort to succesful projects that extend the reach of the open source community. Another open source database project is just well... another project.

  7. Purpose by barryman_5000 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Best thing about cloudscape is small embedded databases for java programs rather than making calls to a huge mysql database. You may say that java is slow but anyone using cloudscape for more than 20,000 entries may not be thinking that through. Cloudscape will also be useful for java programmers to program a database using java.

  8. But that is not embeddable by MarkEst1973 · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Your post was certainly informative in that others might have learned about a new tool and are looking at Sql Anywhere, but to be fair, the purpose of that tool is different than Cloudscape's.

    Embedding a database in an application can be very useful, such as in a desktop GUI where you cannot rely on network communication or maybe don't want to bother with a client/server environment.

    I'd certainly consider Java/Cloudscape for a desktop db-backed application over anything built in Access.

    As always, fit the tool to the job, not the job to the tool.

  9. Arrrrghh! by Moe+Yerca · · Score: 3, Funny

    You bastards! Thanks for cutting my chances of winning an iPod down 100x.

  10. Re:C++ Databases and Open Source by defMan · · Score: 3, Informative

    How about using SQLite. It's a C library (native C++, does that mean C is ok?) which provides a self-contained database engine. No need to run a DBMS.

  11. Re:C++ Databases and Open Source by Pedersen · · Score: 3, Informative

    You might wanna check out SQLite, which is in the public domain. It matches all of your requirements, and then some, I think.

    --

    GPL made simple: What was my stuff is now our stuff. If you improve our stuff, please keep it our stuff.
  12. Re:2 points you are wrong on. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Java VM's can out-perform cpp over n cycles, where n is sufficient to overcome Java start times (seconds)

    Yes, and a well-supplied tortoise can out-distance a rocket over n years, where n is much longer than the rocket's burn time :/

  13. Re:Yes, it is. by Ryosen · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I think you might be misunderstanding what JNI is. Each Java runtime provides its own implementation to the native underlying system libraries. Java does not communicate through JNI for I/O of any kind.

    JNI itself is a generic abstraction layer to the underlying operating system. It provides a mechanism whereby dynamic libraries not directly supported by the runtime engine can still be accessed by a Java application.

    Threading, sockets and GUI are implemented via the native system libraries. AWT used to be very slow (as opposed to just being merely slow today) due to its own multi-layed abstraction. But at no time was JNI the conduit for these systems.

    Further reading: http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/native1.1/ concepts/index.html

    --

    Ryosen
    One man's "Troll, +1" is another man's "Insightful, +1".
  14. Apache at the ASF by dirkx · · Score: 3, Informative
    Yes it was - see the Derby project in the Incubator.

    Beeing in the incubator does not yet mean it is a full blown ASF project - but that the ASF is in the process of ensuring that there is a healthy community around it, that all the legal paperwork, trademakrs, grants, copyrights and other interlectual rights are sorted out, that commiter license agreements are on file for each developer, etc, etc..

    Once that is all in place (and getting a healthy long term community is hardest - the rest is just endless grunt work and digging through code and legal paperwork dotting i's and crossing t's) it'll leave the incubator and be a full blown process.

    Feel invited to join and make this happen ;-)

    Dw.