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up vote -8 down vote favorite

Note: I am building a startup. I am currently using mysql. I am pretty much stuck. Others recommend other free databases like mongodb. I am seriously considering paid one IF and only IF it gets better result.

I haven't made up my mind. This is an honest question. Yes I understand there have to be some edges. Otherwise why would anyone pay for something they can get for free. But what?

What do we get more with paid databases that you've tried?

Quora uses mysql Foursquare uses mongodb Facebook uses mysql

And those are the some of the biggest out there is when it comes to database.

I mean if people can build something SO BIG with FREE databases.

Why do anyone need paid dbms?

Not to mention hundreds of other alternatives that I never heard about. If I am using them I will be using unproven product.

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Probably because those people feel it does not follow the guidelines from the faq dba.stackexchange.com/faq Especially read "What kind of questions should I not ask here?" personally I also feel it's on the edge but I didn't down vote. – Eelke Jun 29 '12 at 5:37
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This is what used to be referred to as 'subjective and argumentative'. The wording and tone of the question is rhetorical and invites arguments and flame wars. If you want a sensible answer you will have to ask the question in a way that solicits specific reasons or limitations. – ConcernedOfTunbridgeWells Jun 29 '12 at 7:43
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I also wonder how you determined that these examples are "the biggest"? Why isn't twitter on your list? You've also stayed within the social media sphere. What about all of the other business types, where data is a little more important? What do you think all of the stack exchange sites run on, for example, never mind hospitals, banks, construction companies, accounting firms ... we pay not because it's fun to fork out money but because we are getting things in return: things like support, stability, predictability, maintenance, built-in security and other out-of-the-box features. – Aaron Bertrand Jun 29 '12 at 12:53
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closed as not constructive by ConcernedOfTunbridgeWells, Mark Storey-Smith, Remus Rusanu, Aaron Bertrand, JNK♦ Jun 29 '12 at 11:50

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1 Answer

up vote 6 down vote accepted

I suspect this question will be moderated/closed. Until then, I will state my opinion.

Why licence SQL Server or Oracle? Mission critical applications demand nothing less.

Is it mission critical that your Facebook status update makes it to all your friends at the same time? No. It is OK to lose some data.

Is it OK for your bank to debit one account but not be able to credit the other? No it is not.

MySQL is a fine product, but it simply can't compete feature-wise when it comes to SQL Server or Oracle.

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Innodb is ACID. You mean all those guys that uses wordpress blog need to pay license. – Jim Thio Jun 29 '12 at 5:27
Very nice explanation. I also wanted to compare those services to a bank. – ipip Jun 29 '12 at 5:28
@Jim Thio, afaik, yes - if they use it for commercial purposes. – ipip Jun 29 '12 at 5:29
Some might have to pay because they link with the client library which is GPLed (last time I checked) and they don't want to opensource their own application. However it's easy to circumvent by using for instance ODBC or JDBC. – Eelke Jun 29 '12 at 5:31
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@datagod - you forgot DB2 :) I would say that SQLServer, Oracle, and DB2 are the "big three" when it comes to enterprise RDBMS. – Chris Aldrich Aug 3 '12 at 12:42
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