DBMS, July 1996
I am writing in regard to the DBMS "From the Editor" column in your May 1996 issue (page 10). The answers to your questions, "Is your infrastructure ready for a massive increase in the number of users directly interacting with your computer systems? Can you handle volumes of transactions that will dwarf any prior peak period you proudly sailed through? If your competitors are doing this, can you afford not to?" as they pertain to my company are no, no, and no.
However, I disagree when you say: "The real potential of the Internet lies not in better system architectures, or even in different kinds of applications." These aspects are very important and justify any investment in the Internet as an infrastructure for client/server application development. Do you agree?
Fernando Canito
Fortaleza-Ce Brazil
canito@sec.secrel.com.br
I strongly agree that the better system architectures and different kinds of applications made possible by Internet technology are very valuable. The point I tried to make in the editorial is that merely using Web browsers as "thin clients" will not harness the full potential of Internet technology, although browsers will solve some current application deployment problems.
To me, the most significant change fostered by the Internet is the ability for companies (and their computer systems) to interact directly with large numbers of external customers. Prior to the arrival of the Internet, the only precedents for similar large-scale, computer-aided interaction were automated teller machines operated by banks and credit card companies, and telephone inquiry services that enable customers to make inquiries (and sometimes place orders) using push buttons on telephones. In my opinion, the Internet as an architecture for large-scale electronic commerce will eventually involve many more people who conduct a much more diverse array of transactions.
Today's client/server applications typically involve a relatively small number of users who are employees working on a company's internal network. Tomorrow's electronic commerce applications used by thousands or millions of external customers will have a dramatic impact on corporate systems.
Thank you for your comments, and good luck with your projects.
-- Ed.
I was greatly offended by Joe Celko's piggish remarks about Christians, families, and children in "A Little R&R" (DBMS, January 1996, page 20). I am referring most of all to his complaint that "the town is the buckle of the Baptist Bible Belt," and that therefore he failed to find sufficiently lascivious entertainment while in Macon on his honeymoon.
I have always thought that the term "Bible Belt" was one of the more cretinous slurs coined by H.L. Mencken, a man who never hesitated to get right down into the gutter to condemn anything he disliked. Is that term to imply that belief in the Bible is an accident of birth, and that there are no Christians in, say, New York? Those are the beliefs of a guttersnipe -- a characterization Mencken richly deserved, and apparently Celko along with him.
Whatever the term means, it is one of the few epithets that would be printed nowadays. It is all the more outrageous that Celko apparently thought the term would be unexceptionable to his readers, that all decent or good or normal people would be on his side in disparaging Christians in that manner.
I wish the time would come when the casual use of such a slur would not be socially acceptable. (Celko, indeed, was not satisfied with "Bible Belt," which was apparently not identifying the real enemy for your readers.) But I suppose (in the words of the song), "Someone's got to be oppressed." People of a certain inclination, who must find people to feel superior to by casually denigrating them, will always have to resort to some group or another to give them psychological gratification. I can only suggest that you don't have to print it.
Larry Eubank
Jeffersonville, Ind.
DBMS appreciates your concern for the use of language in our magazine. Your letter is a reminder to us all that what may seem innocuous to one person can carry negative connotations for others, and that all words should be used in a conscientious manner. The 10th edition of Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines Bible Belt as "an area chiefly in the southern U.S. believed to hold uncritical allegiance to the literal accuracy of the Bible; broadly: an area characterized by ardent religious fundamentalism." Joe Celko used this term to describe a small town he visited in the southern United States. For your own reference, Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines "guttersnipe" as "street Arab." In the current political climate of hate, it is crucial that everyone become more aware of abusive language. DBMS will continue its effort to add a higher level of consciousness to its editorial content.
-- Ed.
I just finished reading your May issue of DBMS. On a positive note, I'd like to thank you for your review of CA's Visual Objects development platform.
I think it is a language that is vastly overlooked in the media. I think the overall article was informative and well written for all three of the languages compared, and it ended with a nice touch of showing no preference.
I also noted the letter from George Smith complaining about the lack of CA-VO coverage. I agree 100 percent with George. I think the language is very powerful and can compete against other GUI languages such as VB, Delphi, and so on. Sure, it does have some downfalls, but it's not bad for a version 1.0c (current). I've been developing with VB and Access for quite some time and find that the language of VO can run circles around those two. They do have some advantages, but I am much more productive using VO. If indeed Mr. Smith is the first individual to mention CA-VO to you, well then let me be the second.
Thank you for your time.
Vance Young
102774.1427@compuserve.com
I used to subscribe to DBMS, but I let my subscription lapse a couple of years ago because of decreasing content quality and general usefulness. After an email exchange with one of your editors, I re-subscribed. After receiving the April issue, I have to confess it is one of the very best database journals on the market. Kudos to the editor and staff. Keep up the great work!
Michael Patrick Milligan
Mission-Critical Database Systems
Bountiful, Utah
mission@aros.net
Thanks for including two practical, how-does-it-work articles in the May issue of DBMS, Steve Roti's article on indexing and Martin Rennhackkamp's article on triggers.
Jim Hall
72073.315@compuserve.com
I thoroughly enjoy reading your articles. I especially liked the article "The Successes and Failures of Application Development Tools" that appeared in your May issue (page 71). Our company is in the process of purchasing an RS6000. The RS6000 will have an AIX operating system and a Progress database. I have not seen any articles on Progress. If you have done an article in the past, is it possible to have a copy either faxed or mailed to me? If you have not done an article, I would like to see one done pertaining to the pros and cons of Progress and also how Progress competes against other databases. We have an AS400 that runs under 36 emulation, so the RS6000, AIX, development tools, and Progress will all be new. Any information that you have would be very beneficial. Thank you for your time, and keep up the good work!
Ron Eaker
Operations Manager
News Publishing Co.
Rome, GA
I checked the DBMS Article Index, which lists all DBMS articles published since January 1994. I found no articles focusing on Progress, so I'll consider covering Progress in a future issue.
By the way, you can find the DBMS Article Index on our Web site (http:// www.dbmsmag.com) and our CompuServe forum (GO DBMS). You can search the Index on our Web site or download a copy for offline reference.
We do not fax copies of articles, but we do have the full text of DBMS on the Web starting with the May 1996 issue. (Selected articles from previous issues are also online.) You can access the full text for articles using either the Tables of Contents pages or the Article Index.
-- Ed.