The 1MB Database
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This is pretty cool, new database software from Hitachi that takes less than 1MB of space. The first US customer
SQL Server is close to this size, with Compact Edition requiring 1.4MB on disk and 5MB to start. SQL Server Mobile Edition is a little bigger, looking for 2-3MB of disk, depending on the PDA processor. A pittance compared to SQL Server Express, requiring 192MB of RAM and 600MB of disk space.
The database is supposed to be optimized for searches of files from word combinations, usually for photo or video files. I'm not sure what other types of searches there are, but that's what this is geared for.
I like the idea of work being done on smaller databases. To me there are too many times where the big databases include so many features that they get bloated. Any particular application, or even most applications, use such a small set of features that it seems silly to have all those things available. For example, so few applications use CLR features, maybe not loading that subsystem could save some memory. And speed things up!!!
I like notepad. In fact I often use it (or Edit Plus) for writing or small notes. But if I need more features, I can take the same file to Wordpad and get minimal formatting features, or pop open Word and deal with the bloat for extra features. It seems SQL Server has much of this same richness in its family of editions.
Now if more software would work this way. Where's my "NoteExcel?"
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Another great small footprint database is SQLite (http://www.sqlite.org) I have used it fairly extensively at times and for certain applications its hard to beat speedwise.
SQL Server Compact Edition also seems pretty nice and has better concurrency than SQLite but is a fair whack slower than SQLite in my experiance - most probably due to its more sophisticated locking mechanism.
- James
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James Moore
Red Gate Software Ltd -
I'll second what James said about SQLite. It's been around for a long time, and it only takes between 150-250 Kb (depending on the features you need). I have never used it though.
The problem with these 'lite' databases is that they have no front end. It works great for embedded DBs, if you need to ship a DB with your software. But for things like web sites, you typically need to have some sort of administrator. Of course, as soon as I say this, someone will tell me about cool administrators for things like SQLite.
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Something too often overlooked by technology companies is the saying "Less is More", especially when it comes to complex products like databases, or even word processors. "Complex" is a relative term of course and needs to be applied to the intended users of the product. Personally I am more likely to use a product I can understand and get to work with right away. I don't care if it's really complex behind the scenes, jut don't overwhelm me with all the stuff I don't need to use - or at least need to use today. Later if I get more advanced or my technical requirements increase, then let me access the additional features in a seamless manner. This approach would make me a happy camper.
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