Implementing the Spirit of SQL-99

摘要

This paper describes the current INFORMIX IDS/UD release (9.2 or Centaur) and compares and contrasts its functionality with the features of the SQL-99 language standard. INFORMIX and Illustra have been shipping DBMSs implementing the spirit of the SQL-99 standard for five years. In this paper, we review our experience working with ORDBMS technology, and argue that while SQL-99 is a huge improvement over SQL-92, substantial further work is necessary to make object-relational DBMSs truly useful. Specifically, we describe several interesting pieces of functionality unique to IDS/UD, and several dilemmas our customers have encountered that the standard does not address.