Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!ginosko!shadooby!sharkey!cfctech!teemc!ka3ovk!ki4pv!cdin-1!icdi10!fr From: fr@icdi10.UUCP (Fred Rump from home) Newsgroups: comp.databases Subject: Re: Information wanted on Db Vista Message-ID: <456@icdi10.UUCP> Date: 16 Oct 89 02:33:25 GMT References: <1989Oct11.141207.18348@kadsma.uucp> <17731@brunix.UUCP> Reply-To: fr@icdi10.UUCP (Fred Rump from home) Distribution: usa Organization: normally @ Compudata Inc. Phila PA Lines: 72 In article <17731@brunix.UUCP> jhc@iris.brown.edu (James H. Coombs) writes: ->In article <1989Oct11.141207.18348@kadsma.uucp> fuller@kadsma.uucp (Bill ->Fuller) writes: ->> I am about to embark on project where the client will be asking me ->>to develop a system using the dbVista package. I know very little about it ->>other than it is a network database that you can get the source for. I would ->>reaaly appreciate any comments on it from people who have used it, and any ->>comparisons that could be made to better know products. One other note; I ->>will be using a SUN under SunOS 4 for the project. -> ->We have used Faircom's c-tree for a year now, with very good results. (We ->used Ingres before, but we had a lot of problems with database ->administration, and few wanted to purchase and install Ingres so that they could run Intermedia.) c-tree does not have a good ad hoc query capability, ->so I ordered the recent special: db_Files and db_Retrieve. (The names may ->be slightly off.) I sent it back. Why? I believe you're comparing apples and oranges here. First of all I would presume that Bill Fuller is obtaining the db_VISTA package not db_Files and Retrieve. Both are rather elementary products not worthy of serious development but rather a quick and dirty one. No wonder you sent them back. A C-Tree access mechanism is NOT a data base: VISTA is - both network and relational. In its price range, with source code, it is the one tool that permits full compatibility with just about any hardware out there. There is no need to wait for features you desperately need or bugs you need fixed which can put the developer into a serious quandary when product has to be delivered. Here you get your best guys on the project and do it yourself. (If needed) I don't know of any other database package that gives you source without also wanting a mortgage on the house. Technically there is quite a bit of similarity with MDBS III, long a premier seller to corporate and government users for their high end applications. But Vista (Raima) seems to have learned a lot from the problems of MDBS and has improved its product substantially. [listing of drawbacks of db_Files and Retrieve] ->db_Vista and db_Query may be a lot better. My impression is that they are ->not enough better to justify the cost. In any case, my experience with ->c-tree is very positive, and db_Files/db_Retrieve did not look good enough ->to inspire further investigation at this time. Well, if you could manage with C-Tree, you did not need a database and your decision was the correct one. You obviously would have had too much in resources available for your application. ->I heartily recommend c-tree, and I'm in very good company on this ->recommendation. (I found that people on bix recommend c-tree and ->rarely mention db_...) r-tree is ok; I use it once in a while. I sent ->d-tree back; although it may be better now, it doesn't address our needs ->anyway. Again, the users of Vista are mostly professional developers in the vertical market place. They would typically not post to bix. They don't even post here which is somewhat sad because we could all learn a little more about combined relational/network technology. The 5000+ licenses sold are mostly in the business world where they tend to disappear beneath the product. >Dr. James H. Coombs >Institute for Research in Information and Scholarship >Box 1952, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912 Fred Rump -- This is my house. My castle will get started right after I finish with news. 26 Warren St. uucp: ...{bpa dsinc uunet}!cdin-1!icdi10!fr Beverly, NJ 08010 domain: fred@cdin-1.uu.net or icdi10!fr@cdin-1.uu.net 609-386-6846 "Freude... Alle Menschen werden Brueder..." - Schiller