A number of Oracle users are showing interest in its 10g
database, citing the software's new manageability, usability and
self-tuning features. Some also said that the recently slashed
prices could rival Microsoft's SQL Server in the low-end of the
market.
"There are two perceptions that are no longer true. That it [the
Oracle database] is expensive and complex," said Ken Jacobs,
vice-president of product strategy and server technologies and a
keynote speaker at the International Oracle User Group's annual
IOUG Live 2004 conference.
He pointed out that the company will discontinue support for the
8i database in January. Moreover, 10g can easily be installed from
a CD, and the technology is easy for independent software suppliers
to embed in applications. The software also has self-tuning
features that can alert a database administrator automatically if a
given disc is running out of space and then recommend what to
do.
Jacobs declined to offer adoption numbers but said that hundreds
of customers participated in the beta program and that he is
expecting to see that number increase this summer.
Oracle has made strides in making its database easier to manage,
said Kimberly Floss, president of the IOUG and a database
administration team leader.
She said that in previous versions of the database, if you had a
problem with a SQL statement, "you would play with it and try to
work your way through to figure out which solution was best. These
[new features] do the work for you, so you don't have to spend the
time trying all the different scenarios".
She noted that the tools still require someone to make final
decisions. Rather than replacing database administrators, it frees
them from tedious tasks and lets them participate in more strategic
business operations.
The low cost of 10g is also attractive, particularly
in comparision with SQL Server. As companies see the leasing
contracts on Sun Solaris or other Unix servers expire, there will
be a greater move toward 10g-based grid computing, which uses
cheaper servers clustered together, said William Burke, executive
vice-president of the IOUG.
He added that Oracle has improved the migration process for 10g
so any challenges are "nominal".
"Some people think you need all the bells and whistles to run a
simple Oracle database - you don't," said Rich Niemic, chief
executive officer of TUSC, an Oracle support and service provider.
He is testing the 10g database and grid configuration on both the
Linux and Sun Solaris hardware platforms.
He said improvements to the Oracle Enterprise Manager database
administration tool enable it to not only issue alerts and
recommendations, but also collect statistics on things such as
operating system or network performance, which can be presented to
a company's chief executive officer via a portal.
Marc L Songini writes for Computerworld