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Early adopters of SQL Server 2000 report that this newest Microsoft database is better than its predecessors - and better than Oracle or DB2. By Barry Nance
IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME since Microsoft Corp. first entered the database world with a relabeled version of the Sybase relational database management system.
From its humble beginnings, the Microsoft product has taken over the SQL Server name (Sybase Inc.'s SQL Server is now called Sybase Adaptive Server), lost all traces of Sybase programming, gained features that rival those of Oracle and become an integral part of Microsoft's backoffice strategy.
It's not perfect, of course. SQL Server 2000 runs only on Windows NT 4.0 or 2000. It lacks IBM DB2's high level of support for static SQL. It can't run stored procedures as flexibly or as powerfully as Oracle can. Its native programming interface isn't as well-known as Oracle's. It doesn't integrate as easily as Oracle, DB2 or Adaptive Server with Java-based application server environments such as San Jose-based BEA Systems Inc.'s WebLogic or IBM's WebSphere - especially if they're based on Enterprise JavaBeans.
Despite these and other shortcomings, early adopters of SQL Server 2000 say they're pleased with the new version of Microsoft's RDBMS. Microsoft recently shipped the newest upgrade of its premier database, and Computerworld approached four early adopters to see how satisfied they are so far. Their reactions were distinctly positive.
This profile of early SQL Server 2000 use shows why, at least at the large workgroup level, Microsoft appears to be ready to make significant inroads against entrenched competitors like Oracle Corp.
Microsoft Builds on Server Side
"We're at a point when people are waking up to how powerful Windows NT, Windows 2000 and Microsoft's server-based products are. The whole Unix and Java world has been overhyped," says Will Zachman, an analyst at Stamford, Conn.-based Meta Group Inc. "In contrast, Microsoft has been steadily building and improving its server-side products, such as SQL Server 2000, to be able to give customers useful and reliable software."
Zachman describes SQL Server 2000's market potential as almost limitless. "I'm very impressed with what Microsoft is bringing to the table," he says.
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