Suggestions for a database for a simple program

hi there :wave: , call me Randolf everyone ^_^

well, i've been thinking of doing a lyrics manager to manage my lryics files, but i'd like to use other types of database which is simple except MySQL, Access database, text file. can anyone help me by suggesting other types that i could use to store informations such as lyrics and pictures (for album covers)?

also what techiniques i can use to develop that kind of program, i will use vb .net.

thanks. looking forward a suggestion from the pros. ^_^

edit:
id also like to make it "unreadable" by notepad but my program.

If you don't want to use MySQL, MS Access or a text file, then to me that only leaves two, VERY expensive alternatives in MS SQL Server or Oracle (althought you could the Express version of SQL Server 2005).

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Originally Posted by upstream

edit:
id also like to make it "unreadable" by notepad but my program.

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I have no idea what you mean by this. Make what unreadable? :confused:

uhm, i mean a file readable by my own program, if will be open by other app..it will display unreadable characters..~.~ wah, i dont think i need an SQL server just for that very simple program..just want some alternative.

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Originally Posted by upstream

i dont think i need an SQL server just for that very simple program..just want some alternative.

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Neither do I, but the alternatives that I can think of are on your "I don't want to use" list.

What would be wrong with Access?

uhm, ok if there's no other way..i wont re-invent the wheel of my style, stick to access, i just want to try something new. =/

There's always Visual Foxpro if you want to go retro.

But if you want to make your data file(s) unreadable, FoxPro would be the worst possible choice. It's a snap to do in Access by encrypting the database and locking it up with a database password.

you could define your own encrypting algorithm to save your information which can only be decrypted by your program as well...

it could be simple or advanced if you prefer.

you can define a record any way you like with the type statement.
You didn't specify what language you are using though. I could write you a simple database in vb6.0 in about 5 minutes using arrays and get and put to store the types on the hard drive. You could encrypt the strings if you wish before saving. Pretty simple really. Also i think you can stop most plain text editors from reading your text data by putting a chr(0) at the beginning of it. They think it is the end of the document if you do that. You will fool notepad this way, but some versions of Write are immune.

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Originally Posted by Hack

If you don't want to use MySQL, MS Access or a text file, then to me that only leaves two, VERY expensive alternatives in MS SQL Server or Oracle (althought you could the Express version of SQL Server 2005).
I have no idea what you mean by this. Make what unreadable? :confused:

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fyi, there is 10g express available, and oracle is downloadable for free. However, the leaning curve for oracle is quite large both for administration and pl/sql.

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Originally Posted by superbovine

fyi, there is 10g express available, and oracle is downloadable for free. However, the leaning curve for oracle is quite large both for administration and pl/sql.

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And those are fine if you are using them for home use, but if you are building a database for the workplace, then I always suggest reaching into the budget pockets and getting the real versions.

There's also PostgreSQL. And there are a one or two XML database engines floating around. I don't know how well they work, though, but XML might lend itself to a lyrics file in that you could mark up the lyrics themselves.

I like the XML database suggestion a lot. :thumb:

That is something you should, at the very least, investigate.

MS has a new product - free - that they are leveraging to replace ACCESS in a single user environment.

Do you have a single user requirement in your app?

If so SQL CE is the product for you. It also has ENCRYPTION built in - no one can look at or read the data in the database.

Here's a thread that discusses it.

http://www.vbforums.com/showthread.p...ghlight=sql+ce

There is another link to another thread further down this thread - check that out as well.

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Originally Posted by Hack

I like the XML database suggestion a lot. :thumb:

That is something you should, at the very least, investigate.

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yikes xml! ^__________^ why i dont think that one before. sure i'll try to look for info about this one..thanks!

If the number of records is pretty small, you could make up a class for each record, and create an class that held an array of records, then serialize the whole thing to disk, which would make a binary file. Not encrypted, but not available for casual browsing, either. I've used this for saving whole class trees (a class with an array of classes that had arrays of classes that had classes), and it is fast and easy to implement. Wouldn't care to use it if the number of records gets above a few hundred, though, as they all have to be memory resident at the same time.

Microsoft Home essentials comes with a database program that for some reason uses its own format Access can't even read.
If you want to use ACCESS database but can't afford it, you can download the free openoffice suite. It is 100% compatible with access and even supports vb code macros, although you don't have the auto-complete stuff the microsoft versions use when you start typing a vb command.

I found this:

http://exist.sourceforge.net/