> As for why PostgreSQL is less popular than MySQL, I think it is all
> momentum from 1996 when MySQL worked and we sometimes crashed. Looking
> forward, I don't know many people who choose MySQL _if_ they consider
> both PostgreSQL and MySQL, so the discussions people have over MySQL vs.
> PostgreSQL are valuable because they get people to consider MySQL
> alternatives, and once they do, they usually choose PostgreSQL.
>
> As for momentum, we still have a smaller userbase than MySQL, but we are
> increasing our userbase at a fast rate, perhaps faster than MySQL at
> this point.
I think the fact that the PHP guys _pride_ themselves on having built-in
MySQL support is another huge reason. They look at it is an example of what
can be achieved with integration. The FreeBSD PHP port, as another example,
has 'MySQL support' ticked by default. Not quite so much work is put into
PHP's PostgreSQL support as MySQL's, so it's often buggy (tell me about it).
Also, the utter lack of knowledge about relational theory and SQL is a
factor in both newbies and self-taught developers. For instance, in the
last few days I have answered questions like these on PHP Builder:
"I use SELECT * FROM table WHERE a = 3. How do I get all rows? Can I put a
= ALL or something?"
"Why don't my javascript variables work in my SQL statements?"
"I have two tables and a referencing ID, and I keep getting rows in my child
table that don't match a row in the parent table, what is a query that I can
run regularly to remove these problem rows?"
...and so on...
Why would someone asking the above questions use anything other than the
'default' PHP database?
Chris
