Worried about the free/open database MySQL now that Oracle owns Sun (who bought out MySQL)? So are a lot of open database hackers, who've formed the Open Database Alliance to create a community-run foundation to oversee free MySQL development and releases:
The intent of the Open Database Alliance is to unify all MySQL-related development and services, providing a solution to the fragmentation and uncertainty facing the communities, businesses and technical experts involved with MySQL. Still under development, the Open Database Alliance is open to all businesses, organizations and individuals interested in helping create a new, centralized resource for MySQL and to ensure that it remains a top quality, high performance open source database.Welcome to the Open Database Alliance.Monty Program Ab, founded by Monty Widenius, the "father" of the MySQL database, and Percona, established by MySQL expert Peter Zaitsev, are the founding members of the Open Database Alliance. Monty Program is currently the primary developer of MariaDB, a branch of the MySQL database that includes all major open source storage engines, including the Maria transactional storage engine.
Open Database Alliance hedges against Oracle plans for MySQL
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I've been using MySQL for many years, and I don't see myself completely ditching it for some time. I fully support efforts like the Open Database Allianzce, Drizzle, etc. MySQL certainly has a great deal of potential. If the efforts to improve and maintain it can remain open and unified, that is a very good thing.
However, for myself, I've just started to shift to Postgres. I've become fed-up with a lot of the hackish fiddly bits of MySQL, and Postgres exists, so...
Apreche is on the right track, MySQL only has the traction it has because of the LAMP stack and PHP and MySQL's strong codependency. While PostgreSQL is actively increasing its SQL standard compliance and optimizing its algorithms, MySQL seems to be stuck on becoming more buzzword compliant, especially the Drizzle fork which is abandoning serious DB features and trying to be more like CouchDB or something.
Also, Open Database Alliance is a bit presumptuous, MySQL isn't the only open database out there. Were representatives of PostgreSQL, Firebird and others invited to join?
I stopped using MySQL for my own work after they changed the license the *first* time. Since then, it has seemed to me that MySQL has been about "the latest and kewlest" rather than about open standards and usability.
I have reservations about MySQL's ability to support itself as a true Open Source product- it has always been part of a larger corporate whole, and the idea of the "Open Database Alliance", while very Buzzword 2.0 compliant, seems to be coming along a little late in the game.
If MySQL can go, say, 3 years without any MAJOR DRAMA (selling itself to the highest bidder, license changes, distro changes, major contributors leaving for no apparent reason, etc) then I would recommend it again for production, but otherwise, I am staying the heck away from it unless I have no other choice.