Choosing between Oracle and SQL Server

　　I have to decide between using the Oracle database and WebDB vs. Microsoft SQL Server with Visual Studio.This choice will guide our future Web projects.What are the strong points of each of these combinations and what are the negatives?

　　Lori:Making your decision will depend on what you already have.For instance,if you want to implement a Web-based database application and you are a Windows-only shop,SQL Server and the Visual Studio package would be fine.But the Oracle solution would be better with mixed platforms.

　　There are other things to consider,such as what extras you get and what skills are required.WebDB is a content management and development tool that can be used by content creators,database administrators,and developers without any programming experience.WebDB is a browser-based tool that helps ease content creation and provides monitoring and maintenance tools.This is good solution for organizations already using Oracl.Oracle also scales better than SQL Server,but you will need to have a competent Oracle administrator on hand.

　　The SQL Server/Visual Studio approach is more difficult to use and requires an experienced object-oriented programmer or some extensive training.However,you do get a fistful of development tools with Visual Studio:visual Basic,visual C++,and Visual Interdev for only $1619.Plus,you will have to add the cost of the SQL Server,which will run you $1999 for 10 clients or $3999 for 25 clients-a less expensive solution than Oracle’s.

　　Oracle also has a package solution that starts at $6767,depending on the platfrom selected.The Oracle.com suite includes not only WebDB and Oracle8i but also other tools for development such as the Oracle application server,Jdeveloper,and iWorkplace Templates,and the suite runs on more platforms than the Microsoft solution does.This can be a good solution if you are a start-up or a small to midsize business.Buying these tools in package si less costly than purchasing them indvidually.

　　Much depends on your skill level,hardware resources,and budget.I hope this helps in your decision-making.

　　Brooks:Itotally agree that this dicision depends in large part on what infrastructure and expertise you already have.If the decision is close,you need to figure out who’s going to be doing the work and what your priorities are.

　　These two products have different approaches,and they reflect the different personalities of the two vendors.In general,Oracle products are designed for very professional develipment efforts by top-notch programmers and project leaders.The learning period is fairly long,and the solution is pricey;but if you stick it out you will ultimately have greater scalability and greater reliability.

　　If your project has tight deadlines and you don’t have the time an /or money to hire a team of very expensive,very experienced developers,you may find that the Oracle solution is an easy way to get yourself in trouble.There’s nothing worse than a poorly developed Oracle application.

　　Of course,there are trade-offs.The key problem I have with Visual Studio and SQL Server is that you will bu tied to Microsoft opreating systems and Intel hardware.If the day comes when you need to support hundreds of thousands of users,you really don’t have anywhere to go other than buying hundreds of server,which is a management nightmare.

　　If you go with the Microsoft approach,it sounds like you may not need more than Visual Interdev.If you already know that you’re going to be developing ActiveX components is Visual Basic or Visual C++,that’s a warning sign that maybe you should look at the Oracle solution more closerly.

　　I want to emphasize that,althought these platforms have their relative strengths and weaknesses,if you di it right you can build a world-class application on either one.So if you have an organizational bias to ward one of the vendors,by all means go with it,If you’re starting out form scratch,you’re going to have to ask yourself whether your organization leans more toward perfectionism or pragmatism,and realize that both “isms” have their faults.

　　【译文】往下－>

　　Oracle和SQL Server的比较选择

　　我不得不决定是使用Oracle数据库及其数据库开发系统，还是选择配有Visual Studio的Microsoft SQL Server.这个决策将决定我们今后Web项目的方向，这两种组合有什么优势和劣势呢?

　　LORI：决定选择哪种方案将取决于你目前的工作平台。例如，如果你想实现一种基于Web的数据库应用，而且你的工作平台只是Windows，那么SQL Server和Visual Studio组件就是一个不错的选择。但是对于混合平台，则最好选择Oracle解决方案。

　　还要考虑一些其他的因素，例如你可以获得哪些额外的功能以及需要哪些技术。WebDB是一种内容管理和开发工具，即使没有任何编程经验的内容创建员、数据库管理员和开发员也都可以使用这种开发工具。WebDB是一种基于浏览器的工具，有利于方便地创建内容，以及提供导航和维护工具。这对于已经使用Oracle的机构则是一个很好的解决方案。Oracle比SQL Server更易于调整，但你需要身边有一个称职的Oracle管理员。

　　SQL Server/Visual Studio方法相对来说较难使用，需要一个有经验的面向对象的编程人员或一些全面的训练。但是，你只要花上1619美元就可以获得许多Visual Studio的开发工具：Visual Basic，Visual C++，以及Visual Interdev。另外，你需要再加上SQL Server的费用，1999美元就可以拥有10个客户端，或用3999美元获得25个客户端—与Oracle的费用相比则便宜些。

　　Oracle也有一个组件解决方案，根据所选择平台的不同，费用也不同，最低为6767美元。Oracle.com套件不仅包括WebDB和Oracle8i，还包括其它的开发工具，如Oracle应用服务器、Jdeveloper和iWorkplace模板，该套件与Microsoft方案相比能运行在更多的平台上。如果你刚创业或是一个小型和中型企业，则Oracle套件是一个很好的选择方案。以组件的形式购买这些工具要比单独采购的花费要少些。

　　对这两种方案的选择主要取决于你的技术水平、硬件资源和资金预算。我希望以上所说的能对你的决策有一定帮助。

　　Brooks：我完全同意对这两种方案的选择在很大程度上取决于你目前所配有的基础设施和所具有的专门技术。如果很难做出抉择，你就需要考虑由谁来做这项工作，以及你的重点是什么。

　　这两种产品采用不同的方法，并反映出这两个开发商的不同特点。Oracle是为那些优秀的程序员和项目负责人所进行的专业化开发而设计的产品。学习时间较长，该方案的费用也较高;但是你如果坚持下去，最终就会获得更好的灵活性，以及更高的可靠性。

　　如果你的项目时间很紧，而且你没有时间或金钱来雇佣一个花消很大、经验很丰富的开发队伍，你也许会发现选择Oracle方案会很容易使你陷入困境。没有比开发一个质量很差的Oracle应用程序更槽糕了。

　　Microsoft所提供的解决方案则致力于快速开发和低成本实现。开发工具、服务器、以及你所需要的开发人员的花费都比较少。若要使项目快速启动，选择SQL Server和Visual Studio则是很好的方式。

　　当然，有得必有失。在使用Visual Studio和SQL Server的过程中，我所遇到的主要问题就是，只能使用Microsoft操作系统和Intel硬件。如果有一天你需要支持成百上千个用户，你除了购买上百个服务器而外别无他法，这会给管理带来很大的麻烦。

　　如果你采用Microsoft方法，就表明你可能只需要Visual Interdev即可。如果你已经知道你将开发Visual Basic或Visual C++里的ActiveX组件，这就是一个预示，表明你需要更多的来考虑Oracle的解决方案。

　　我想强调的是，尽管这两种平台有他们各自的优点和缺点，如果你使用正确，你用任何一个都可以设计出具有世界水平的应用程序。如果你的组织倾向于某种产品，一定要跟随这种趋向。如果你是从零起点开始，就需要问问自己，你的组织是更倾向于完美主义还是实用主义，并要清楚这两种主义都有缺点。