Good alternative for MySQL

Due to the limitations of MySQL (eg no subqueries etc) i'm in the process of looking for a good alternative to MySQL for the company i work for. MySQL has done the job for quite a while, but limitations are driving me crazy sometimes.

I've been looking around, and came across PostgreSQL. AFAIK, pgsql is much slower than MySQL. Anyone have any experience in deploying PostgreSQL for dynamic websites?

Also i would like to hear from people using PHP to interface with various other RDBMS's. I've allready been in contact with Sybase and Oracle. Is this the way to go?

Any advice/experiences are welcome...

I've been told that with Oracle you have to pay a fee for each user who connects with the database. Perhaps talking with them you could confirm this or refute my misconception. Such a fee would seem to make Oracle costly for publicly accessible web applications. For that reason we're sticking with MySQL 'til we must move.

In theory, you only need 1 client connection for a web app. to work, AFAIK. Using a persistent connection on the Oracle (or Sybase, PostgreSQL, whatever) server would require only 1 connection, to my knowledge...

Don't know the licensing concept behind Oracle. I think it is based on client connections. I have been in contact with Sybase and they've told me that Sybase works on a 'number-of-cpu's' basis. Price per cpu is around 9000 dutch guilders, which is something around $4000.

I'm testing Sybase ASE 11.0.3.3 for Linux now ,which has a fairly open license. It's free for use in development and deployment, without any support though.

I'm haven't tried this, but visit:
http://www.mysql.com/crash-me-choose.htmy

I got the o'Reilly MySQL & mSQL book advertised on a sidebar to this site. The book seems to me like a good overview of 'mid-range' database engines.

Oracle has both pricing models: per CPU and per simultaneous connection. For the low end, per-connction is probably best (around $500 per connection, including tech-support and updates. Less if you don't need such things). Last I checked, one could order a trial version CD for Linux and for NT at a nominal cost (you pay shipping) from Oracle's website.

As far as postgresSQL is concerned, it is rumored to be up to 10 times slower, but that is hear-say...I think there was document on the mysql website that compares msql, mysql and postgresSQL...

-Erik


[This message has been edited by Erik Lindsley (edited March 24, 2000).]