Some Berkeley DB questions (being maintained? queries?)

[Brian Smith]

HerbAsher at googlemail.com wrote:
> 1. Now that Berkeley DB is part of Oracle, is it still being
> maintained?   Is it free?

Berkeley DB is owned by Oracle, but it is seperate from the Oracle RDBMS
product. Yes, it is free. 

> 2. Are there good python libraries for bdb available, that 
> are being maintained?

I would like to know the answer to this question too--if you have used
the pybsddb/bsddb.db module, please share your experience.

> 3. Is it possible to query a berkeley db database?  Just 
> simple queries like: find me all items where key "name" = "John"

That is basically the only kind of query that a Berkeley DB database can
do: key [<|=|>] value.

> 4. What are good, stable alternatives?

That depends soley on your requirements. Berkeley DB is actually one of
the most complicated persistence solutions. It is more complex than
SQLite, and WAY more complex than gdbm, for example. If you don't need
all its functionality, especially its multi-user capabilities, then I
recommend using something simpler. However, if you DO need its
multi-user cabailities or its advanced features like secondary indexes,
then it is better to use Berkeley DB than to re-invent it.

- Brian