Re: Informix vs SQL Server questions

At 06:12 PM 5/14/96 GMT, Jay D. Sullivan wrote: >We would probably want to use Informix Workgroup Server for NT version >7.1 for development but the client may end up by using something >different, possibly OnLine Dynamic Server. I assume that this >shouldn't be a problem. To all intents and purposes, it's the same engine. >Also, I assume that we should have no problem with establishing an >ODBC connection from a Windows operating system to either of these >Informix databases over TCP/IP. Quite so. >1) Does Informix support outer joins? How about outer joins to >multiple tables? (DB2 didn't do this, at least not easily). Can we >use ODBC syntax for this? (SQL Server had a problem with using the >ODBC syntax when outer joining multiple tables). Yes. Yes. As far as I know. (In that order! :) >2) I see that Informix provides stored procedures and I'm sure that >these can pass back return values. However, can stored procedures >return sql result sets? For example, can we call a stored procedure >and get back results just like as if we had issued a sql select >statement? Is there a problem with creating temporary tables in the >stored procedures (just for the life of the procedure)? Yes, but I don't know if this is possible through ODBC - it probably is. And I've never heard of a problem using a temp table in a stored procedure... >3) Does Informix provide a data type similar to SQL Server's TEXT type >which can store a large text string (32K or so would be fine)? Can >this field be searched on with LIKE searches? Are there any special >restrictions with including these fields in a select statement or a >where clause? (We had some problems with Oracle on this issue). No. You'll have roughly the same problems as you had in Orable...there is a TEXT data type, but I don't think you can use LIKE on it. >4) I see that Informix supports insert, update and delete triggers. >We make extensive use of these in SQL Server. Do you know of any >differences between SQL Server's triggers and Informix triggers that >we should be concerned with? Brace yourself: the functionality is similar is similar, but the implementation is completely different. I doubt you'll be able to automate what is a truly tedious and tiresome exercise. >5) We make extensive use of views in SQL Server. We create views >which bring in multiple tables and then we assign access rights to the >view. Are there any big differences between how SQL Server and >Informix handle views? No idea. But Informix supports views pretty well. >6) From what I can tell from what I've read, Informix can assign >access rights for a user at the table level (and select rights at a >column level). I didn't see anything mentioned about groups. In SQL >Server we have assigned table access rights to particular *groups*. >Then we assign users to that group to gain access to the tables which >that group has rights to. Does Informix support this scenario? Informix supports ROLEs.Same sort of thing. >Thanks for any advice you can give us on any of these questions. RTFM - big time. Pleasure, and good luck!!! Hasta la vista! -- billy.wheeler@pixie.co.za