MySQL: getting started for newbies

When MySQL first came out and started popping up all over the web in the e-commerce arena, if you were like me you looked at it as a wannabe. 'Call me in a few years when you grow up'. Yea, sometimes the Oracle in us goes to our heads a little to fast...

MySQL has really gone mainstream in the last few years. Companies that never would have considered MySQL in the past for critical database systems now have it on the forfront of their minds when evaluating different database technologies. Clustering, Replication, Monitoring are all well used now with MySQL and well tested.

Well, if I'm not using it now, how do I get on board?

Don't wait for your boss to evaluate it, that's for sure. Go get your MySQL VM set up on your laptop and stop thinking about it! It took me about 1/2 an hour to get the MySQL VM installed, up and running, and security settings all in place to try out the latest version of the MySQL Administrator up and running to play with.

Most likely you have various programs that are already using MySql as a backend - you just might not be maintaining them or playing with them because they are in your corporate environment instead of your production environment. This is the perfect oportunity to get started with MySQL.

Start by downloading the MySQL VM and get it runing on your PC or laptop.

Then download the MySQL Administrator and set up your security and connetions.

Next get the MySql Migration Toolkit and migrate one of your smaller SQLServer or Oracle databases to it.

Now, get familiar with the tools, features, backup and recovery, etc, etc. Try setting up replication; try out clustering, try out the partitioning....

Lastly, admit your Oracle snobbery and get on board :)

VMWare: The greatest thing since sliced bread

So if you like to try out new things, and you're not using VMWare yet, get with the program!

Really, though - it's so easy now (and the VMServer is free) . Just download and install.

VMWare lets you run mini virtualized server environments within your current operating system. Yea, there is a little overhead, but for testing and trying out new databases, configurations, applications, it's really cool.

The best part of it all, is the fact that you can download a host of pre-built applications to run with in the VMServer you just installed. Just startup the server and, wala... a running MYSql database in slackware on your Dell windows laptop. Yea, they have an Oracle 10g RAC appliance, as well as a SQLServer 2005 appliance.

Sweet. If you haven't checked it out, do so now...