I have a mySQL database where I currently store file names, types, and paths (in the web server directory structure) for local users to download. Some of these files are pretty big (Linux Kernel tarballs, for example), and this system seems to work alright; however, I have been playing with the idea of uploading these files into the database itself, rather than storing the files on disk directly. I can see how the upload procedure will work, what I can't seem to fathom is how other users can download them afterward! The example in the book Web Database Applications shows how to retrieve a GIF file from the database, but not how to get something like a .tar.gz or a .exe file to be downloadable.
Any suggestions on places to look? I've been through the PHP pocket reference and the mySQL and PHP docs, and didn't seem to find anything that will actually help. :-(
