Forum Moderators: mack
i was just wondering which technology would be best to learn for integrating websites with databases, sort of along the lines of coldfusion, asp, asp.net or xml? i'm trying to get into development but dont know which skill employers would find most useful.
any comments would help
thanks
If you're thinking ASP, then its ASP + Microsoft Access.
But I would prefer PHP + MYSQL, used by my people on the net ;)
There are many others, for some ideas, go to: [webmasterworld.com...]
people have put together a comprehensive list of what they use for their site.
If you can't pay for custom programming, there are many on the Web, which include free/paid "scripts" of a language you want it to be in, go to [hotscripts.com...] , they have several thousand there, according to what you want :) and if you're willing to "try it your self", there are many articles there that teach how to do it, which could give you some practice on the language you choose.
Hope this helps,
Sid
If you're thinking ASP, then its ASP + Microsoft Access.
Why do people only associate Access with ASP? Access is the worst choice for serious database development on the web.
ASP is a scripting language that runs on Windows. You can use any database with ASP. I run ASP with mySQL, but I could easily use Oracle, MSSQL, DB2, or any other relational database.
The scripting language has nothing to do with the database.
1.) The db itself (access, mysql, mssql, oracle, db2, etc.)
2.) The Scripting language to query (use) the db (php, asp, perl, etc.)
Many people often recommend php/mysql combo. because they are free (OSS - open source software), and there is a ton of documentation online, and in books.
The problem with using proprietary software is that they are expensive - everything from purchasing, licensing, and support. But don't get confused though, they are also good choices.
Both proprietary and OSS offer quality choices. Just do some research for statistics of use and what most companies are using. I don't have any statistics on me, however, from experience, companies are now leaning more towards the OSS direction (in an effort to cut costs). Therefore, php/mysql may be the way to go . . . for now, because we don't know if the scene may change later on.
My personal recommendation is to learn php/mysql because of cost/value.
However, if you have a bit of money to spend, then also try the proprietary software direction.
It's perfectly acceptable to mix and match, but there are a few popular combinations such as ASP and Access/SQL Server or PHP/MySQL.
XML is usually used to transfer data between different systems that may define data differently, and you really don't need to know it at this point.
HTH
Why do people only associate Access with ASP?
Sid
It maybe because Access only works with ASP, they are both Microsoft products which run only on Windows.
Not true ... try a little Googling for "PHP ADO" and you'll see that Access can be used with PHP under Windows - I'm pretty sure the same is true of any programming language for Windows which can interact with COM objects.
Databases are just datasources at the end of the day and so all you need to interact with them is the appropriate driver - I just picked ADO because it's something I'm familiar with and looked like it would fit the bill - the only real limit to the platforms you could use Access as a datasource on is availability of drivers for that platform.
That said I personally wont touch Access for any of my web-based projects.
- Tony
As for languages, again my opinion would be .NET. That, in conjunction with SQL, is one very powerful combination. ColdFusionMX is good, and easier to learn, and will work with Access, SQL or mySQL.
The combo of PHP/mySQL will probably get you a higher number of compatible web hosts, and lower monthly hosting costs as both PHP and mySQL are free and run natively on a *nix-based systems. However, they're also ported to Windows, so that will expand your hosting choices.
Hope that helps.
Not true...
Yeah, I was gonna check that but I was running late, so I forgot...
Theres one more reason why people use Access with ASP:
In free hosts like Brinkster where you get a www.brinkster.com/folder/your_site type address, they provide ASP, they have Windows Servers, although, they only provide Access (No MYSQL etc.) so many people using ASP think that Access is their only option.
Most people use these free hosts for:
1) Newbie - Just wanna try ASP
2) Debugging their script before they buy their own hardware.
3) Just to run a small in-profitable business.
Sid
- Tony
