It is a well known fact that Java as a programming language set
off a new paradigm in the software industry. Suddenly, every software programmer worth his salt was
amidst software jargons, such as 'Platform-Independence', 'Cross-Platform-Deployment', and ‘The
Java Virtual Machine’. In fact, it did not take long for Java to usurp the ‘most sought after
status’ from many software languages and become the most preferred tool for creating software
(especially software for the web). As the recent trends in the industry show that Java is set to
achieve an undeniable position as the most preferred software programming language for a long time.
It is indeed Java’s credit that many prominent vendors, who tried to emulate the capacities of
Java, failed miserably in their endeavor.
The importance of Java in the software scenario has led to another major trend. Software
vendors are either rewriting their existing products in Java or creating new products exclusively
or partially in Java. This has led many analysts to question the need to port already existing
applications to Java. While the prospects of porting small or medium sized software to Java may not
attract concern, it assumes significance when we consider porting existing databases that is
handling millions of sensitive blocks of information. Similarly, experts also have to decide
whether they will deploy reputed databases or new databases entirely developed in Java in their
organization. Analysts have to answer many pertinent questions like: What are the advantages of a
Java Database that would compel my company to switch to it? Would it be cost effective to change to
an RDBMS that has all the advantages of Java? Would the costs involved in porting millions of
existing records justify the perceived performance and scalability features of the Java Database?
How secure would be the new RDBMS? What is the learning curve that has to be tackled by the staff
who may be assigned to this database? In fact, there are a host of questions that a concerned
technical head may ask himself before taking that all important decision to switch. Let’s try
finding out some of the answers.
OK, as we all know that Java is set to capture or has already
captured a sizeable chunk of the software market. However, how does that justify the use of a Java
Database ? After all, is not Java theoretically capable of integrating with any database? What
advantages can be afforded by a Java Database? Well, the answer is quite simple. A Java Database
has much sought after qualities of Java, which is the most important reason to switch to it. Some
of the databases already available in the market answer the immediate concerns of the Technical
Lead in the most persuasive manner. For example, Daffodil DB, an RDBMS written in Java, considers
the following as its core strengths:
