[mythtv-users] [mythtv-commits] Ticket #240: DB helper classes and pgsql support (3rd attempt)

[Michael T. Dean]

On 10/17/06 17:40, MythTV wrote:

>#240: DB helper classes and pgsql support (3rd attempt)
>
>Comment (by anonymous):
>
> That, is a sad decission.
>
> I thought linux was all about choice. I guess mythtv isn't.
>
> What I don't get is mysql is required via qt, not via myth directly. Now
> qt supports both DB backends, so abstraction should be possible, where
> mythtv doesn't care about which DB backend is used.
>
> So if mythtv uses direct mysql access, then why does it depend on QT
> having mysql support?
>  
>
There's no direct MySQL access, but MythTV depends on MySQL because 
MythTV uses SQL and truly database-independent SQL is such a small 
subset of SQL as to be completely useless to any non-trivial applications.

> Also, and I know it's kinda to little to late I suppose, what feature does
> mythtv require form mysql that postgres doesn't have, which would make it
> so hard to support? I ask this because in all my applications I have
> written, I try to not depend on the database. I have either a
> class/c-file/list of defines for my accessing a database, and use those
> function calls, wether it's mysql or postgres or what not. Sure there
> might be a little overhead when using a function to translate to your
> database of choice, but it would allow the users to choose, without
> forcing anything onto the user.
>
> I switched away from mythtv year and a half ago, because I got fedup of
> maintaining 2 databases,
>
Lemme see...  You're "fedup" with maintaining 2 databases, so you think 
the developers of MythTV should have to maintain and test every bit of 
SQL code that's used in the application so that it works on 
MySQL/PostgreSQL/<your favorite DBMS>.  I would prefer that they spend 
their time writing code for MythTV, rather than testing/debugging every 
bit of SQL for 2 or more databases.

> Linux is all about choice, and I didn't feel good
> about being forced to either switch to mysql for all my database needs or
> having to deal with maintaining both.
>
So, you got your choice:  keep using MythTV and "maintain 2 databases" 
or quit using MythTV.  (I wonder, though, what you've been doing to make 
maintaining your databases so much work.  Or, are you worried about the 
60 MB of hard drive space that's equivalent to less than 5 minutes of 
video storage?)

> I read about 0.20 possible support
> of postgres and figured it was worth trying again, this makes me wanting
> to leave, though I do like myth a lot.
>  
>
That's still a choice you have...

Another choice is to fork MythTV and create your own PVR that supports 
both MySQL and PostgreSQL.  Or, I suppose you could drop MySQL support 
in your fork so you don't have to maintain 2 databases for testing--but 
then again, Linux is all about choice, so that would be bad.

Mike