"Oracle is clinging to the..."
Oracle is clinging to the top spot in the multibillion-dollar database software market, despite mounting pressure from IBM and Microsoft, according to preliminary 2002 market share numbers released Monday.
- M. LaMonica, cnet.com, March 2003

DBMS Architectures
A history of DBMS architectures:
Mainframe DBMSs
Personal DBMSs
Client/Server DBMSs

Mainframe DBMSs

Personal DBMSs

Microsoft Access/Jet
Access is designed as a personal DBMS:
It has a useful interface but a limited engine.
It doesn’t support enterprise applications.

Client/Server DBMSs

Microsoft SQL Server
MS SQL Server is designed for client/server applications.

Microsoft SQL Server              Desktop Engine (MSDE)
MSDE is SQL Server compatible.
It is distributed with MS applications.

A Comparison

Comparing Oracle and SQL Server
SQL Server
Cheaper
Easier to install
Faster on Microsoft platforms
Oracle 9i
Multi-platform support
More powerful 3rd generation language
More performance tuning