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Relational Databases and Python

Jason Cunliffe jasonic at nomadicsltd.com
Mon Jan 15 17:47:49 EST 2001 
Greg

hmm... Sounds like a very interesting application.

Given all your criteria, I suggest you seriously look into Zope
http://www.zope.org

Zope is free, cross-platform, python-based, object-oriented web application
system.
It includes ZODB, an object database but can connect to other Database
solutions.
For your longterm interest in web interface/management, Zope may be perfect,
perhaps your immediate needs too..

There is a steep learning curve, and it may offer more than you need.
Like comp.lang.python, Zope has a good [mailing-list]community, and there
are some very useful contributed modules ['Products' in Zopespeak] which you
can install at any time. Else use python to develop your own tools.

Key reading can be found via:
http://www.zope.org/Documentation

especially the Zope Book [OReilly - soon published]
http://www.zope.org/Members/michel/ZB/

and an essential overview with links
http://itamarst.org/learningzope/index.html


Some Python programmers have recently been making concerted effort to
develop pure Pythonic alternatives to Zope, as well as allowing potent parts
of Zope as standalone for general Python customization.
For example the ZODB:  http://www.amk.ca/zodb/

Zope criticisms include lack of concise, friendly documentation, and too
much 'magic'-derived complexity. It is complex and has lacked for formal
documentation, but this is being improved now considerably. It is a very
powerful, and complexity partly flows from many permutations possible. Zope
is for dynamic webobject design, and uses 'Acquisition' [Zopespeak for a
form of online dynmaic inheritance] to achieve this. The containers of
'Folders' in the ZODB thus allow objects, methods, and sub-folders to
inherit behaviors and properties in a minimal context-oriented fashion.
Potent clever namespace stuff..  In fact one can acheieve much using default
out-of-the-box Zope features, and especially if you are already a Python
programmer.

IMO, one of the best things about Zope is that it can quickly be installed
and run on several machines, [say Win32 laptop] where one may develop a site
or part of. You can thus smoothly design, develop and demo sites 'offline'.
And also import or export some or all of your work as a single .zexp binary
file for immediate cross-platform use on another Zope installation, for
example the 'official' online Zope server installation running say a remote
Linux box.

Zope is intended for designer/developers who need to address 'customers who
have customers who have customers.." To my mind this translates very well
into community or collaborative type applications, especially where you wish
to reapply your work after initial trials, to allow other fire departments
to use it easily.

hth+good luck!

- Jason
___________________________________________________________
Jason CUNLIFFE = NOMADICS['Interactive Art and Technology']

glinds - Greg Lindstrom <glinds at acxiom.com> wrote in message
news:mailman.979589896.32678.python-list at python.org...
> Greetings-
>
> I am wanting to access a relational database via Python.  Knowing that a
> "simple" query such as "Why no "do until" statement" can generate replies
> for months, I offer the following:
>
> * What relational database to use?  I am constructing a routine to
> track incident reports for the volunteer fire department I run with.  I
also
> want to track personnel information, training records, equipment, etc.  It
> will be a small to medium database (the databases I work with
professionally
> run in the terabytes, but we spend millions on software).  I am looking at
> MySQL.  Whatever base I use must be free.
> * How to access the database?  I would like to use SQL via ODBC.  I
> have attempted to install the mxODBC module, but have run into trouble
with
> the first step (get and install mxDateTime).  That's not a good sign.  I
> would like a simple communication to the  database (else I will write a
"C"
> routine to do it for me!).  What's out there?
> * With an eye to the future, I would like to write a Web-based system
> so that I can offer this system to other volunteer departments in the
> county.  We simply cannot afford $2500+ for reporting software (that will
> fully outfit 2 firefighters including SCBA (breathing equipment) and PASS
(a
> safety device)).  Though I have talked with a couple of companies offering
a
> "volunteer rate", we simply cannot afford to spend that kind of money on
> software.  How do I get started writing web apps?  I have good friends at
> work telling me that Perl is the way to go; I program both, but am partial
> to Python.
>
> Thanks to any and all offering suggestions.
>
> Greg Lindstrom, FF/FR
> Vilonia Volunteer Fire Department
> Vilonia, Arkansas (that's 30 miles North of Little Rock)
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