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From: wes@loft386.uucp (Wes Peters)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: Master Calendar (Oracle)
Summary: Another scheduling system using Oracle
Message-ID: <1990Jul27.041134.10536@loft386.uucp>
Date: 27 Jul 90 04:11:34 GMT
References: <11207@hydra.gatech.EDU> <1216@kirk.nmg.bu.oz>
Organization: Lofty Pursuits Public Access Unix for Rapid City, SD USA
Lines: 52

From article <11207@hydra.gatech.EDU>, by iaadmjw@prism.gatech.EDU (WOOLEN JAMES):
% Georgia Tech is looking into automating the president's schedule (calendar)
% using Oracle as a platform.  This will be done in several phases eventually
% it will consist of a room scheduler, event scheduler, etc.  Is there any
% public institution that may have already done this sort of application???
% Would be interested in hearing from those who have done this sort of thing,
% or any positive suggestions as to availability of existing packages to run
% preferrably under Unix and must be Oracle-based.

In article <1216@kirk.nmg.bu.oz>, cameron@kirk.nmg.bu.oz (Cameron Stevenson) writes:
>  We are establishing a fairly comprehensive facility management system at
>  the University based around Oracle and MicroStation (a CAD system). Part
>  of the specification for this system includes room scheduling. This is
>  slightly different from timetabling, in that it's focus is on the room
>  rather than the person (as a user of that room)...
>  ...
>  ............ Like you, I would be keen to hear from anybody who has tackled
>  this problem, and from anybody doing anything similar to us. The tools we
>  are using are Oracle (non-graphic data), MicroStation (graphic data), and
>  HyperCard (front-end for Mac's) all linked to each other 'seamlessly' and
>  'transparently' from the user.

I am working on a training system for a government agency where we do
scheduling of class rooms and instructors using Oracle.  Our planning
and scheduling software is developed with a combination of SQL*Forms
and Pro*FOR, which is Oracle's SQL-imbedded-in-Fortran product.  These
have turned out to be workable tools for our system.

Our Oracle database runs on VAX/VMS unfortunately.  We use Silicon
Grahpics Iris-4D workstations running Unix for graphical displays, and
communicate with Oracle on the VAX via Wollongong TCP/IP software for
VMS and our own database server processes written in Pro*FOR.  This
has proven to be a VERY clunky way to do this - I wouldn't recommend
it to anyone.  I keep trying to get my management to look into SQL*net
to connect the workstations directly to the Oracle server on the VAX,
but they won't even THINK about it - too much money.

Our planning and scheduling is really quite involved, we do a lot of
financial cost accounting and reporting after a particular training
session is done, and we schedule a lot of 'things' other than rooms
and instructors as well.  Oracle has proven to be a reasonable tool
for implementing this, but we have some rather severe performance
problems with Oracle.  Granted we are using outdated, low-performance
hardware (3 VAX 8250s in a cluster, 12MB memory each) to run the
database on, but I have heard of better performance from other DBMSs.

Unless you are already an Oracle shop, I'd look around first.  If you
are already an Oracle shop, make sure you have at least a couple of
people around who REALLY know Oracle, or plan on sending a couple of
people to Oracle's training classes.

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