are PHP & MySQL for big apps?

[Anon]

i'm practically new to php and mysql development and i'm getting into a web project for a big company and i'm inclined to develop it with php and mysql but my partner says that it should be done wiht java and informix or sql server.
for what i've seen, php and mysql would fit the expectations of the app.
the app will record testings on specialized equipment and control dates and technitians assigned for it.
it'll provide also means for uploading images and video material for updating customers on the status and condition of equipment.
it has to manage an "infinite" number of customers, tests, test activities and so on.
this app we have it already developed on VB6.0 and Access / SQL Server, but i want it to deploy it ot PHP and MySql.
is there somebody that could give me some advice or a link to a "big" app on the web develped with these?
thanks in advance.
Dave
Mexico

[Anon]

If vb can do it php can do it faster. I have quite a large system setup that uses PHP, MySQL and Oracle8. It may seem strange to use two database systems but it is just to make it all tie in with older systems that we are not ready to update. Unfortunately it is behind a certificate system. SSL and HTTPS so I cant really show it to you. But rest assured it is very good for a fast system that can do everything that you require. The only limitation on the customer count or database size is the size of your hard drive.

Mark.

[Anon]

PHP is fine, MySQL is more of a worry, and even then it depends on how busy you expect to get, MySQL is great up to a certain number of concurrent users and then it begins to get the jitters 🙂

Check out Zend.com 's case studies for some bigger PHP sites and MySQL have a 'who uses MySQL' section where they quote NASA and others as MySQL users.

TO sum up , if its not really going to be a busy site (1/2 million hits per day +) then PHP/MySQL will be fine , otherwise think about postgresSQL ? - anyway an abacus is going to fare better than Access! 🙂

[Anon]

There is one issue that I think has been glossed over. Can your application run in a stateless environment (the web)?

When you talk about the database on the back end I don't think it truely matters between Informix and MySQL, unless you need the features that Informix has that MySQL doesn't (Locking, SubQueries, Transactions, Foreign Keys, Stored Proecdures). If you don't need those features then it doesn't matter which one you use, except that MySQL isn't as fast on Insert/Updates as it is on Selects.

Now as for the front end, which you say is currently in VB. Can this front end run in a stateless environment? If it can, can the server handle all of the processing that is going to be needed for all of your clients? Would offloading some of that processing to the client speed things up and make them more stable?

I'm going through something like this myself, and while I'm going to have some PHP access to the data the actual clients that do work will have an application on their desktops (Java) that they will work with. PHP is a great tool and does wonders, but it is a web based tool, and as such it has to deal with the inherent problems of the web (web not internet).

[[deleted]]

It depends a lot on what you want to do
If you are building a application that runs over the web, use PHP. if not, and you need a GUI based app, then don't use PHP.

As for the database, if you already have Informix, use it. Forget all about MySQL.
If you don't have Informix yet, forget MySQL too, and use PostgreSQL.

[[deleted]]

"the features that Informix has that MySQL doesn't (Locking, SubQueries, Transactions, Foreign Keys, Stored Proecdures"

and database fragmentation, automatic backups, backups to several tape devices, functional indexes, virtually limitless database size, etc etc...

MySQL really only covers the tip of the database iceberg.

Once you have the power of a real database and you learn to use it, MySQL is nolonger an option.

[Anon]

Exactly. Since PostgreSQL and Informix both came from the same source it's a very good choice. Ofcourse Informix usually comes with some support structure, and since IBM bought them they'll probably be around for quite some time. But if you are worried about cost, or you don't need the support offered with Informix then PostgreSQL is a very good choice.

[Anon]

Sorry I was feeling lazy and didn't want to get into the whole list, since the first few usually make someones decision for them.