[HACKERS] Re: [DOCS] Another try at the press release - Mailing list pgsql-hackers

I like this.  A few nitpicky comments below, but I think this third draft
is an excellent improvement over the second draft that I wrote.

I won't have time to edit this again.  I would suggest that Marc do the
final edit, or else use bibach's version as is.  (Has it been
spell-checked?)  Thanks, Brandon.

On Sat, 7 Jun 1997 bibach@execpc.com wrote:

> Sorry, had to take my shot at it... :)
> This is based on David's last posting.  I just reworded a lot of it,
> added a few things I thought should be in there, and added a paragraph
> about where PostgreSQL is headed.  Feel free to use whatever you like
> from here, or ignore it altogether. :)
>
> -Brandon :)
> --------
> TORONTO, Ontario.  (June 8, 1997) -- The PostgreSQL Development Team

Someone suggested removing the period after Ontario.  This sounds good to
me.

> is pleased to announce the release of PostgreSQL version 6.1.
> PostgreSQL is a client/server Object-Relational DataBase Management
> System (ORDBMS), and is available at no charge.
>
> Originating as a research project to explore object-orientation and
> extensibility concepts in relational databases, the Postgres project
> lasted for 8 years at the University of California, Berkeley.  The
> project was officially terminated in 1992, but in late 1995, two
> students at UCB, working with the last official release of Postgres,
> trimmed the system down and cleaned it up, releasing it as Postgres95.
> Renamed PostgreSQL, both to remove the date reference and to emphasize
> the system's support for the SQL92 standard query language, it is now
> being maintained by a talented team of volunteers.  The result is an
> RDBMS that offers many of the most important features offered by major
> commercial systems, most of which carry multi-thousand dollar price
> tags.
>
> Because of its unique object-oriented features, extensibility, and
> source code accessibility, PostgreSQL has become quite popular in
> the scientific community.  It has also gained fairly wide use as a
> database server for Web-based applications (a number of web tools now
> offer PostgreSQL interfaces).  With the release of version 6.0,
> PostgreSQL offered increased reliability and better support of the
> ANSI/ISO SQL92 standard.  Version 6.1 adds major improvements in
> execution speed, reliability and platform support.
>
> While PostgreSQL is not yet fully ANSI-compliant, it does support
> several features not found in ANSI SQL, such as inheritance.  It also
> supports declarative queries in SQL, query optimization, concurrency
> control, transactions, multi-user support and a number of security
> features.  Extensibility features include user defined operators,
> types, functions and access methods.  Application programmer
> interfaces (APIs) exist for C, C++, Java, Perl4, Perl5, Python, SQL
> and Tcl.  ODBC and JDBC drivers are available from commercial sources
> and free versions are under development.  The system supports at least
> 15 different Unix platforms, including Linux, Solaris, Digital Unix,
> and BSD variants.
>
> The future also looks bright for PostgreSQL as it continues its
> transition from research system to commercially-viable production
           from a research system to a commercially

> database system.  While some of the more esoteric features that
> Postgres supported as a research system are being replaced with many
> of the same features found in modern commercial systems, PostgreSQL
> will continue to offer its unique, extensible, object-oriented
> architecture.

This last sentence is too long and hard to follow.  I think this should be
broken into two sentences.

>
> PostgreSQL should be a serious consideration of anyone requiring a
> database server for their Unix system, whether for scientific data
> storage and analysis, administrative tasks, web-based applications, or
> any custom database application.  A feature list, the software and
> additional information may be found on the world wide web at
> http://www.postgresql.org/..
>

David Friend                ! cq995@freenet.carleton.ca
Atlantis Scientific Inc.        ! david.friend@atlsci.com
20 Colonnade Rd, Suite 110        ! 613-727-1087 (voice)
Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA  K2E 7M6    ! 800-265-3894 (voice)
ERGOvista Scientific Image Analysis    ! 613-727-5853 (fax)

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