VisualCLX patches version 3.8

• VCL application window (don't forget to set the application's title)
• OnEnter/OnExit patch rewritten
• OnActivate/OnDeactivate patch rewritten
• Formular bound patch rewritten
• and many more.

Download Kylix

Version 3.8 (2005-03-26)	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116132) k3patches.3.8.tgz		3rd party compatible
	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116132) k3patches.3.8.tar.bz2		3rd party compatible
Interface incompatible	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116132) k3patchesnc.3.8.tgz		breaks interfaces
	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116132) k3patchesnc.3.8.tar.bz2		breaks interfaces

Download Delphi 7

Version 3.8 (2005-03-26)	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116130) d7clxpatch.3.8.zip		3rd party compatible
Interface incompatible	Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116130) d7clxpatchnc.3.8.zip		breaks interfaces

Download CrossKylix

Version 3.8 (2005-03-26)

Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=135196) ckclxpatches.3.8.zip

3rd party compatible

Download Delphi 6

Version 3.8 (2005-03-26)

Download (http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=106820&package_id=116131) d6clxpatch.3.8.zip

breaks interfaces

If you are looking for a Delphi 6 patch that is 3rd party compatible you should have a look at Interface Compatible Unofficial CLX Patches for Delphi 6 (http://www.wpkrenn.net/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Willi/Delphi6CLX)

Donations (http://unvclx.sourceforge.net/donating.html)

TECT Softwares Stored Procedure Generator (SPGen)

TECT Softwares Stored Procedure Generator (SPGen)
has been designed to create standard procedures for most tables.

Currently SPGen makes no modifications to any database, instead it
creates a script which you can execute against your database.

Pricing:

SPGen is currently in beta and each build is time limited (it will expire after a specified period of time), cost for this product is yet to be determined, however like all our products we will offer the following discounts to Firebird Foundation members, when the product is released:

* Voting Membership - 100% discount.
* Associate Membership - 75% discount.

Beta Test Participation

Beta participation is open to everyone, to get involved simply download a copy of SPGen, all bug reports or feature requests can be submitted directly using our online helpdesk or join our mail list at Yahoo.

VCS 2.40 RC4 server setup released

JVCS team announces the third of the JVCS 2.40 server ports. RC4 introduces support for Oracle10, Firebird characterset configuration possibility, server banner configuration possibility for service ports and a few bug fixes.
For download please navigate to the files section on Sourceforge.

Fyracle 0.8.6 released

Fyracle 0.8.6 released
======================

Changes:

- rewritten error handling
- several fixes and enhancements to the built-in functions
- oracle style '' equals NULL, and NULL equals '' now supported
(only when connected in oracle-mode, of course)
- auto-casting of strings to numerals (i.e. 1 '2') now supported
(only when connected in oracle-mode, of course)
- further fixes to handling of scaled integers
- handling of "insert into ... select ..." fixed

Version 0.8.6 contains fixes for all errors that have been
reported to the Fyracle newsgroup.


Download:

The new runtime installers can be downloaded from:
http://www.fyracle.org/downloads

The developer kit can be downloaded via:
http://www.janus-software.com/fb_buy.html


Upgrade:

The recommended upgrade procedure is to first
uninstall any previous versions of Fyracle and only
then to install the new 0.8.6 release. Remember
to save your configuration files (firebird.conf
and aliases.conf) if you changed them!

The uninstaller has a start menu entry on Windows
and can be found at the top of the install
directory on Linux and Windows.


Compiere:

The current Compiere demo is still 2.5.1g The last
upgrade to these files was on Feb 1st. A port of
Compiere 2.5.2 is underway.

JVCL 3.00 is out!

JVCL 3.00 is out. It is available at SourceForge. We encourage users of JVCL 2.10 to migrate to it as this is the stable release for JVCL 3. Should any bug still be present, please report them in Mantis after having registered a user name.

FlameRobin Unofficial 0.2.4 binaries are out

24.03.2005 -Just like previous releases, packages contain only the binaries and
needed files. No ReadMEs, Installers, Release Notes, Manual, etc. This
is for those who wish to taste the current CVS version without
having to compile everything.
Features:
-a lot of fixes and enhancement of SQL Editor
-many new configuration options (most even work :)
-logging to files works
Known bugs:
- if SELECT statement does not fetch all rows, and you press "Show plan", the error message pops-up. It it (seems) harmless, so you can keep working.
Download: http://www.flamerobin.org/test/0.2.4/

Open Source Databases: A brief look at the Berkeley DB, Derby, Firebird, Ingres, MySQL and PostgreSQL DBMS'

So which are the Open Source databases? Most readers have probably heard of MySQL. Its byline is The World's most popular Open Source database after all. There is also PostgreSQL (The World's Most Advanced Open Source Database), as well as Firebird (The Relational Database for the New Millenium). However, there are others too. BerkeleyDB, although not directly comparable, deserves a mention, while Computer Associates recently released Ingres, and IBM did the same to Cloudscape (under the name Derby).

Read more

SQLServer 2005 delayed again

Microsoft has delayed the release date for SQL Server 2005 by about 6 months, perhaps acting on reports of poor high-end performance. A new release of the development tools was delayed as well. Those waiting may use the time to switch to Firebird instead.

Firebird 2.00 Alpha 01

Firebird 2.00 Alpha 01
21 March 2005

The Firebird Project is pleased to announce the release today of the first Firebird 2.0 public Alpha kits for immediate download and testing.

This version of Firebird 2 is an alpha version, meant for field testing only and not for use in production.
All changes and new features are subject to further change and/or
withdrawal in subsequent alpha and beta releases, leading up to final
release. Do not assume that databases created by or upgraded to the on-disk
structure of this alpha will be upwardly compatible with subsequent test
builds/releases.

Bugs, problems, etc. can be posted to the Field Test bug tracker or
to the Firebird Development List.


This release contains a large number of new features, including
derived tables, support for Execute Block, increased table sizes,
new improved index code (the 252-byte index length limit is no longer
applicable), expression indices, numerous optimiser improvements,
enhanced security features, support for on-line incremental backups
along with numerous other improvements and bug fixes. Please read
the Release Notes for more details.


The following builds are currently available, with others to follow soon:
Win32

21-Mar-2005 Windows Installer for Superserver and Classic (3.0 Mb)

21-Mar-2005 Debug build of the above (5.0 Mb)
21-Mar-2005 Embedded Client/Server (zip file, 1.7 Mb)
21-Mar-2005 Debug build of the above (zip file, 3.6 Mb)
21-Mar-2005 Classic and Superserver debug build (zip file, 8.0 Mb)


Linux i686

20-Mar-2005 Linux Classic RPM Installer (2.9 Mb)
20-Mar-2005 Linux Classic, tarball with scripts (2.9 Mb)
20-Mar-2005 Linux Classic debug build, tarball with scripts (18.9 Mb)


Feedback, input and comments re this release will be appreciated, as they will help to speed up the cycle for the full Firebird 2.0 release.



Happy testing!

-- Firebird Project

Praise for Firebird Relational Database

>From: WebHub Technical Support
>Subject: [WebHub-list] off-topic: praise for Firebird Relational Database
>
>"Interbase Deleted, Firebird Installed... Existing Apps Work without Effort"
>
>This is one of those rare stories where software works perfectly, the way
>it should. It's possibly relevant to people on this list so I'll give you
>some details.
>
>I started with a machine running WinNT 4, Interbase (June 2000), 1 WH app
>using a .gdb, 1 other Delphi app using a .gdb. (all on same machine)
>
>I backed up the server. You would have too, if you knew what was planned.
>
>I shut down the apps. I stopped IIS.
>
>I tried to uninstall Interbase but the uninstaller failed, so I stopped
>Interbase in Control Panel > Services, then deleted c:\Program
>Files\Borland\Interbase\*.*.
>
>I found the Firebird 1.5 stable installer here:
>http://www.ibphoenix.com/main.nfs?a=ibphoenix&page=ibp_download_15 ,
>specifically
>
> 25th Dec 2004
> Official
> Windows Setup and Installer For Classic and SuperServer V1.5.2 (.exe) (2.7mb)
> which leads to
>
>http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/firebird/Firebird-1.5.2.4731-Win32.exe
>
>I ran the installer. Of course I forgot whether I was supposed to choose
>Classic or SuperServer. I found this page
>http://www.firebirdsql.org/manual/qsg15-classic-or-super.html and decided
>on Superserver. NOTE SUPERSERVER IS THE DEFAULT RADIO BUTTON CHOICE. I
>find it easy to remember "use the defaults" ... hint.
>
>I used all the defaults for installation, aside from the folder location
>(used d: ... not c: ...).
>
>The install finished with no errors. I checked Services and Firebird was
>running. So far so good.
>
>I tested the WH app, it worked, no complaints. (Thanks to the TurboPress
>developers for that part.)
>
>I rebooted the machine, it restarted everything including the WebHub App
>and the Delphi app, and BOTH WORKED without any reconfiguration of any sort.
>
>I was so pleased I had to tell you. Best of luck to anyone who tries this
>at home.
>
>Cheers,
>Ann
>

Delphi.NET Running on .NET Compact Frameworks

From Seppy's investigations so far, it's looking very likely that all of the Delphi for .NET language support will work in CF without major modification. He's got the core RTL up and running and is working on fleshing out the rough spots. Using the Delphi language to build WinForms apps on CF is a sure thing.

Read more @

Delphi Compiler Core

Firebird 2 alpha release notes NEW LINK

I hope some of the international language test group coordinators are watching this and can update their links to the Alpha release notes. The link is now

http://xrl.us/fgnj

In case anyone reading this is on the translator team for release notes, please contact me if you are ready to receive the source.

regards
Helen

Improving Query Performance through Index Selectivity

The Firebird query optimizer uses index "selectivity" or "statistics" for selecting the most effective query execution plan.

Read more

Paul Pimblott on JediVCS...

I am a newcomer to JEDI VSC, but have used both sourcesave and more recently
CVS. So far, JEDI is superior in all aspects....

I do have a coupe of questions:

1. I have a project checked in which comprises several folders. When I use
the Source Distribution option, the zip file is not created unless I exclude
the sub folders. Any ideas anyone?

2. Is there an easy way of indicating which modules have been changed on the
main window?

Wonderful software.....

Thanks

Paul

JEDI.NET 1.0 alpha 1 has been released

JEDI.NET 1.0 alpha 1 has been released and can be downloaded from:
http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=111655&package_id=147053&release_id=312857.

Besides a source release (containing all sources for the
assemblies, examples and nunit tests) a binary only release is available as well (build against .NET 1.1 and Delphi 2005 update 1; for non-Delphi 2005 owners the Borland.Delphi assembly can be downloaded from http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/jedidotnet/Borland.Delph_2k5-SP1.zip?download; you'll need to install it into the GAC or put it in the main/bin and main/examples/bin folders).

In addition, two help files are available, one as a .chm file and
one in Help2 format. You can also browse the help on line at http://jedidotnet.sourceforge.net/help/index.html.

IBExpert Version 2005.03.16

IBExpert Version 2005.03.16 FULL is available for download.

Now supports many Firebird 2 features
Increased speed of Script Executive and Table Data Comparer
New IBEBlock commands

FastReport 3.11

FastReport 3.11
03/14/2005

+ added Greek resources
+ added HTML tags support in PDF export
+ added Hebrew, Turkish and Arabic languages in the PDF export filter
+ added property TfrxPDFExport.Background (default = False)
+ added properties TfrxRTFExport.Creator and TfrxPDFExport.Creator
+ improved quality of the PDF export filter
+ password protected reports is now working in client/server mode
(IMPORTANT: Do not use this feature in one time with the server authentification)
+ verbose output of the server errors in the HTML mode
- fixed name of the properties TfrxServerConnection.Proxy and TfrxServerConnection.ProxyPort
(press 'ignore' button on load prompt in yours projects for autofix form components)
- fixed clean of the report cache on TfrxReportServer.Stop method
- fixed background draw in HTML export filter in server mode
- many bug fixes
Download...

SQLDirect Component Library V4.2.1

SQLDirect Component Library V4.2.1 is now available.

IBReplicator V2.1.1available

IBReplicator V2.1.1 is available for download. This release fixes a problem where reloading the configuration database can cause unpredictable behaviour for the event listener.

InterBase/Firebird DB Comparer V1.3

EMS announce the availability of V1.3 of their InterBase/Firebird DB Comparer.

Key open-source programming tool due for overhaul

The entire realm of open-source software could get a performance boost if all goes well with a plan to overhaul a crucial programming tool called GCC.

Almost all open-source software is built with GCC, a compiler that converts a program's source code--the commands written by humans in high-level languages such as C--into the binary instructions a computer understands. The forthcoming GCC 4.0 includes a new foundation that will allow that translation to become more sophisticated, said Mark Mitchell, the GCC 4 release manager and "chief sourcerer" of a small company called CodeSourcery.

"The primary purpose of 4.0 was to build an optimization infrastructure that would allow the compiler to generate much better code," Mitchell said.

Read more

ASP.NET with Mono's XSP and Apache

The second article in a series of articles about Mono. This article explains how to host and serve ASP.NET Web Applications and Web Services on Linux using XSP and Apache with the help of Mono.

IBExpert Version 2005.03.12 available

IBExpert Version 2005.03.12 FULL is available for download.

kbmMW v. 2.50.00 All Editions - Beta 4 released!

2.50.00

New stuff
=========
- 4 SKUs introduced: Standard, Pro, ProPlus and Enterprise.
- D2005 Win32 support.
- D2005 dotNet support.
- Indy 10 support
- SDAC 3 database adapter support. (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
- Added Native DB adapter. (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
- PostgreSQLDAC database adapter support. (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
- Loadbalancer teaching/learning added. (Pro+/Ent)
- Server announcement to loadbalancers added. (Pro+/Ent)
- Added support for bracket handling of tablenames/fieldnames. (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
- Removed old ConnectionString editor, and replaced with group
and array capable stringlist editor.
- Added support for statistics via Windows Performance Monitor (Ent)
- Added TkbmMWLocalStats component for local statistics support (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
- Added statistics support on transports and connection pools in
addition to the server and service level stats. (Pro+/Ent)
- Added OnMessageToSpoke event to have very fine runtime control of
message distribution in hub/spoke transports. (Pro+/Ent)
- Added OnMacro event to connection pools. Allow for adding macro (Pro/Pro+/Ent)
functions and other automated
- Added TkbmMWCustomServerThreadPoolTransport from which SAF (Pro+/Ent)
transports inherits.
- Added PoolSize property on messaging transports for control
of how many threads are running to handle request/response scenarios. (Pro+/Ent)
- Added internal transactional support on message queues. (Pro+/Ent)
- Added optional rejection queues on message queues.
- Added required registration of transport info classes.
- Added streaming capabilities to transport info instances.
- Added/updated TkbmMWFileStoreMessageQueue. (Ent)
- Added support for ftLargeInt parameter types.
- Added additional transport stream level security options.
- Added doubly linked list class.

Changes/minor additions
=======================
- Updated transport streams, server and client to provide better check for stream version.
- Transports split up in client part, server part and common part.
- Enhanced TkbmMWStringList to support grouping of strings.
- Updated client code to gracefully handle loadbalancing/failover while operating as a spoke.
- Updated HTTP transport stream format to support HTTP v. 1.1 and
support HTTP proxy basic authentication.
- Updated DBISAM4 adapter to also compile with DBISAM v. 4.09 or newer.
- Changed object streaming to not require definition of static or dynamic variant object type.
- Published ConnectionPool property on all client datasets.

Fixes
=====
- Removed lots of hints and warnings.
- Changed loadbalancer list locking while probing servers to be very shortlived.
- Fixed OnResolve firing twice bug.
- Fixed ADOX field origins bug.
- Fixed OnGarbageCollect event bug.
- Fixed NexusDB v2 NULL handling.
- Fixed statehandling bug.
- Fixed CreateParams.
- Fixed threading bug in ISAPI server side transport.
- Fixed Kylix3 support.
- Fixed Synapse transport bugs related to not raising exceptions when occuring.

This list is not complete. Many more subtle changes and refactorings has happened internally.


--

best regards
Kim Madsen

Delphi 2005 Update 2 is available for download

Well over 200 bugs have been fixed in this free update for Delphi 2005. Download it now!

Unicode SynEdit

Features of actual version

• Unicode support for Windows&Linux without depending on any additional library or component package.
• Added new unit SynUnicode that contains Unicode versions of often used string-functions.
  It's TWideStrings & TWideStringsList-classes were taken from JCL, adapted and cleansed to be cross-plattform and less code-bloating.
• Optional symbiosis with often used libraries like JclUnicode or TntUnicode-controls through compiler directives. (see SynEdit.inc)
  JclUnicode can be interesting if you want advanced features that are Windows-dependent but adds 140KB to exe-size.
  TntUnicode-controls provide Unicode-property-editors at design-time at no cost but must be installed(= available), so it is not used by default.
• Support of Unicode on Win9X.
• All Highlighters were translated. (They use now collision free hashing)
• All additional SynEdit components are unicode-enabled.
• Storing files as UTF-8, UTF-16 or Ansi.

Known Issues

• Wide glyphs (usually double of latin glyphs) like in Chinese don't render correctly.
• This is not really a SynEdit issue: The TeX-Exporter doesn't support Unicode as LaTeX2e doesn't support it either.
  There are many half-backed solutions but none offers real Unicode support. LaTeX 3 is said to support this (whenever it is released). Note: RTF and HTML exporters fully support Unicode.

What's new?

• All Demos were ported to work with UniSynEdit.
• SynGen now creates highlighters compatible with UniSynEdit and was enhanced to support collision free hashing and better FuncXXX naming (now is derived from the keyword instead of the key).
• All fixes from ANSI version were applied.
• All other fixes for Unicode SynEdit are included as well, for details see CVS log.
• Some fixes to SynGen

Read more

Delphi Language Progression

In non-tech, we are having an interesting discussion about the evolution of the Delphi language. Someone there is arguing that Delphi isn't evolving fast enough for him -- that's cool, to each his own -- but he's also arguing that it isn't really evolving at all, and that C++ is evolving faster. Now that is ridiculous. As part of the discussion, we've made a list of the language innovations, additions, and evolutions since the TurboPascal days. Here's the list so far:

implements
Inline methods
Class vars
Class constructors
properties
exceptions
interfaces
dynamic arrays
large strings
Records with Methods
Nested Class
Attributes
Multi-cast Events
Boxing
Strings
for...in
Class Methods
operator overloading
class helpers
virtual constructors
Compiler directive variables
(Items from here down were added after the orignal post)
Packages
Method Overloading
Default Parameters
Unicode Identifiers
threadvar
RTTI on interfaces
Default parameters.
64-bit integer type.
32-bit unsigned integer type.

Did I miss anything?

Anyone have a similar list for C\C++? I think it would be a much shorter list.

Thanks to the folks in non-tech who have helped make this list longer than it was.

Read comments on Nick's Blog

DUnit 9.2.0 released!

DUnit automates unit testing of Delphi code. The target audience for DUnit is developers who are both writing the code to be tested and the unit tests for that code, an approach advocated by Extreme Programming. Dunit is based on the product JUnit.

Download

Fulltext Search for Firebird SQL (CodeProject Article)

Fulltext Search for Firebird SQL article on Code Project
(spoted on dotnetfirebird.org)
"In this article, we will talk about searching the data in a Firebird database using DotLucene full-text search engine. We will focus on storing the index directly in the database"
http://www.codeproject.com/useritems/FulltextFirebird.asp

Delphi Configuration Manager Version 2 is now available!

Here is a list including some of the changes made:

1. Modification of Component Packages, Assemblies and Experts to be setup with particular configuration. [ adding assemblies is not supported and will be coming in an update ]
2. Import / Export of configurations in REG format.
3. [Bug] Fix to bug where running a Delphi config causes DCM to wait until Delphi has been closed (this is already fixed)
4. [Bug] Issue with spaces in configuration names (fixed)
5. [Major] Copy current IDE settings to the new configuration (allowing certain keys to be confirmed prior to copying).
6. Check for new versions being available.
7. Keep registry settings under one key. Thanks to Ralf for the tip.
8. Tighten up the naming of new configurations
9. InstallAware used for the installation. A special thanks to Sinan for answering my questions. It's a breeze to use and with the new version just released, it's well worth a look!
10. [Bug] Configuration Launcher now works properly.
11. Implement Configuration Cloning. [ feature also available in IDE Addin ]
12. Add Upgrade support for users of previous version. (Version 1.6 only supported for upgrades).
13. Added options dialog for Delphi Configuration Manager. [ more options will come in an update ]
14. Added an options dialog for Configurations that allows you to modify some options for your IDE that aren't surfaced in the IDE user interface. [ more options will come in an update ]
15. Further improvements made to enhance the Large Font users experience.
16. [Bugs] Couple of bugs address around the installation of the IDE AddIn.
17. Improve error handling when reading from the XML data files.
18. Only display installed Delphi versions in the Version drop down on the Add Config dialog.
19. Don't allow the user to exit the Add Config dialog without either filling out all fields appropriately, or selecting cancel.
20. Created a Help File*

To download the latest version click here.

IDC reports new DB market statistics

IDC reports that the market for relational databases grew 12% to $15 billion in 2004. Oracle holds 41%, DB2 holds 30% and SQLServer holds 13% (measuring by value). The report says that Oracle, IBM, and Microsoft are looking for new ways to compete in the market for small and midsize business and departmental systems, one of the fastest-growing areas of the database market. Hey, that is our market too...
Read more

Firebird 2.0 Call for Testers on IBPhoenix

My translation to Bosnian language, together with some other translations, appeared on IBPhoenix...
There are links to Russian, Bosnian, French, Br-Portuguese

Choosing the right open-source DB

eWeek's pundits discuss which open source database to choose. About Firebird they say: "Sizzling transactional performance, ease of installation, enterprise-class features (triggers, views, stored procedures)." But also: "No enterprise-level support, but very good, knowledgeable community support." You can listen to a 1 hour session discussing these slides via this link.

Read more

--- Firebird 2.0 Call for testers letter v1.1 BOSNIAN ---

I have translated Call for testers letter to Bosnian language.
Also, I have translated files needed for InnoSetup and mailed them to Paul Reeves.
I hope they will be included in Alpha 1...

Fikret

--- Firebird 2.0 Call for testers letter v1.1 ---

The Firebird Project will soon be releasing the first public "alpha"
release of Firebird 2.0. Version 2.0 is a long-awaited important major
release of Firebird with many new features, enhancements and
bugfixes (see alpha Release Notes
http://firebird.sourceforge.net/download/prerelease/rnotes0200_01.zip
for details). In number of changes, the jump in this release is equivalent
if not greater than the transition from version 1.0 to version 1.5.

You know that we care about quality, and that we will not release the
final version 2.0 until it meets our strict QA requirements. For version
1.5, it took about a year before we were satisfied. But this time we are
in a slightly different situation.

The Vulcan project reached the *general usability milestone*, with only
a few loose ends left, and we would like to merge both codebases as
soon as possible. This merge should result in Firebird 3.0 with full
SMP support, unified architecture (no more separate
classic/superserver/embedded builds) and other enhancements (see
http://www.ibphoenix.com/downloads/VulcanOverview.pdf for details).
Beside clear benefits for Firebird users, this merge will result in
cleaner and concise architecture and codebase, and will complete our
transition from old procedural C code to fully OOP C++ code. This will
open gates for developers to design and implement more complex features
like namespaces, temporary tables and other much requested features.

But we can't fully focus on the Firebird/Vulcan merge before the final
Firebird 2.0 is released, hence we would like to shorten the QA phase
as much as possible, but without compromising our strict quality
requirements for final release. We *can* do that by making our QA
process more effective. The effectiveness of the Firebird QA process
heavily depends on feedback from end users, so it's natural for our
quest for more effective QA to start with it.

So far, user feedback was random and fully in the hands of end users.
Basically, we would release a build, wait for feedback for some time
and solve the reported issues (along with other issues we did find
internally over that period). If no important issues were
found/reported since the last Release Candidate build, that build was
repackaged as final. Of course, there are also alpha and beta stages
that follow this pattern too, but differ in what developers are
allowed to change in the ncode.

While this routine has worked nicely for us in the past, it has an
important drawback: We don't know how much the build is tested in
field, in both scale and functionality coverage. We can only guess
approximate figures based on download count, direct feedback, hearsay,
development stage etc. to estimate the "quality index". We also have
only one gauge to work with: time, hence the long release cycle.

To improve on that, we would like to initiate a managed field-tests
program, starting from Firebird 2.0. This managed field-test *will
not* replace the *usual* field-test scenario (or internal testing),
but should work as a complement to other QA routines we use. The
objective of managed field-test is to collect precise information
about field-test (i.e. how the released build was tested and with what
outcome), so we can better estimate the outcome of the QA process,
focus on open gaps in QA and thus allocate our QA resources more
precisely, so eventually we would build our trust in quality of code
more quickly.

The participation in managed field-test is very simple. You need to
sign-in by e-mail to , where you'll describe
how you would like to test our releases. We prefer any testing method
that is close to real use. This means that if you have an application
that runs with Firebird, you can simply take it on a "test drive" with
the new Firebird release in some testing environment, preferably with
real-world data. Of course, you can pick up any testing method you
like, and you can even focus only on a particular area you're most
interested in (for example performance, backup/restore, new features,
optimizer etc.). You must also describe what Firebird flavour(s)
(CS/SS/Embedded) and platform(s) you want to test. We will send you a
notification whenever a new filed-test build is available, and we will
expect a report from you about the outcome (either good or bad) of
your tests.

We know that such commitment may not be easy to fulfil, so it's
possible that you may skip testing of the field-test release or leave
the program altogether at any point, so we will reward those who help
us! We have created a "prize pool" that right now contains a Firebird
T/polo-shirt in color and shape of your choice from IBPhoenix, but we
believe that we'll get more prizes into this pool before Firebird 2.0
final release. At the end of the release cycle, we will reward the
most "active" tester(s) and one randomly selected tester.

The managed field-test program is open to anyone, at any time point in
the release cycle (starting from fist alpha till last RC), but those who
sign-in early will have better chance to get a reward for their help.

Pavel Cisar
Firebird Project QA Division

SQL# For GTK# 0.2 released

take a look at screenshot (looks familiar ?)

http://xrl.us/fams (Link to ftp.novell.com)

the rest of article

http://xrl.us/famu (Link to www.mfconsulting.com)

IBPhoenix got competition

Single Source Support For Top Leading Open Source RDMBS - MySQL, Firebird SQL and PostgreSQL.

(PRLEAP.COM) Cambridge, MA Feburary 16, 2005 - Advent Consulting - a leading open source technology consulting firm today announced enhanced managed support program for MySQL, Firebird SQL and PostgreSQL.

"We recognize the value that the Open Source database community brings." Said David Lee, CEO of Advent Consulting. "With the strength of MySQL, Firebird SQL and PostgreSQL database deployments in the enterprise and of the greater open source movement as a whole, Advent Consulting is addressing the growing demand for open source database supports with a single source, traditional proprietary methods of escalating professional support services for all three leading open source database."

"Our goal is to provide the best out of open source database solutions to our clients with greater confidence. With this program, the database administrator (DBA) and developer can easily and productively escalating support for their open source (RDBMS) on MySQL, Firebird SQL and PostgreSQL from one convenient source." said Mr. Lee.

Subscriptions plan will be available for a range of required service levels - from basic system updates with automatic escalation procedures, to 24/7 live production support with remote administration on both Linux and Windows environments.

Other open source database services includes: database migration, custom development, database optimization and tuning.

Advent Consulting has been a Firebird SQL foundation member and sponsor, MySQL devconnect consulting partner, as well with extensive successful experience with PostgreSQL consulting & implementation.

About Advent Consulting

Advent Consulting is an independent, open-source strategy consulting firm that provides best-of-breed, totally integrated open source and Linux solutions for delivering cost savings, stability and performance required for companies embracing open source technology.

The professionals at Advent Consulting provide a range of services and supports necessary for organizations to leverage the benefits of open source software including consulting, research, migration, integration, customized development and support.

To learn more about Advent Consulting’s focus, philosophy and open source solution offerings, visit http://www.adventconsultants.com
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OPEN SOURCE DATABASE SOFTWARE COMPARISON

This is a comparison between free open-source database software solutions actually avalaible. I want to thanks all the sofware developers for developing such a great software for the open source community.

	MySQL	PostgreSQL	MaxDB	Firebird	Ingres
Version	Mysql-4.1.x	PostgreSQL 8.x	MaxDB Version 7.5	Firebird 1.5.x (Roadmap)	Ingres R3

Read more

Firebird second in Brazil (Oracle10g is 1rst)

Info OnLine, a leading IT magazine in Brazil found Firebird the second (translated from Portuguese) most popular database after Oracle