Monthly Archives: May 2005

HTMLDB HOSTING REVIEW

Most people don’t need to read this review as they host HTMLDB at their own location with their own Oracle DB, operations staff, etc. I would venture to say that most applications of the technology, which runs on the Oracle database, are meant for data centric internal application building and also extranet applications. It would be incorrect to suggest that there are a plethora of consumer websites built with the technology.

There are some circumstances where hosting of an HTMLDB application is beneficial. For security, cost, or as a 3rd party HTMLDB developer, having a hosted HTMLDB for production purposes can be a good solution. A company could build an application as an extranet applicaiton, and rather than expose their own machines to the internet one could host the application at a service provider, and use database links to view the remote database as it were part of their local Oracle installation. Perhaps someone develops an extremely simple application using HTMLDB, and wants to provide it to customers as a service, but doesn’t want to get into the hosting business. Or consider furhter, a very simple applicaiton, investing in seperate machines for Apache and Oracle (RedHat/Windows) could be more expensive than required when someone else can do the whole thing for $49.95/mo.

That’s just what the folks at revion.com have done. $49.95/mo for an HTMLDB account that you can use for production purposes (remember, the HTMLDB environment at OTN can only be used for development!). I found their service excellent, the hosting reliable (admittedly I only used their service for a couple of months). They were using the newest HTMLDB version, provided access via SQL*Net (big plus for me). Overall, I was very pleased with their service, including my cancellation. Some hosts are downright difficult in cancelling but Revion was graceful, thankful, and inviting for any future HTMLDB hosting needs.

Based on my (limited) experience with them, I’d recommend them. They are much less expensive than their competitors (does not allow SQL*Net access either) so I think they are a bargain. Check them out if you require some “external” HTMLDB hosting!

Break from "left brain" thinking…

I’ve just wrapped up reading the “World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Centry” by Thomas L. Friedman, and highly recommend it for anyone trying to navigate the very interesting, exciting, and startling 21st century world! It’s a must read, and was pleasantly surprised to find there is a great deal in there for those in the technology industry; I was expecting a pure political/globalization play but found there was quite a bit of substance on tech companies, players, and stories. The book is lengthy (496 pages), but consumable with stories and great factoids that make it a quick, interesting read.

Following on that was a serendipitous chance to hear Daniel Pink, of Free Agent Nation fame, chat about the substance of his new book “A Whole New Mind.” As I was listening to Pink’s presentation, which was both informative and entertaining, I noticed some overlapping themes from the two authors. No denying, it is a new world economy and the digital age has enabled globalization and a true globabl community. It’s a whole new ball game; we all need to embrace this change. It’s coming, there is no stopping it (whether to is purely ideological, not realistic)!

Any significant change emotes a variety of reactions… FUD will lose out to immense opportunity, eventually, if we can dig deep inside for growth and possibility.

They’re both great reads! The sooner you read them, the quicker you’ll have greater understanding of the dynamics of the 21st century and an increased chance of success. What’s interesting, I thought, was they both evaluate the landscape and point out the dynamics perfectly in sync, then they draw somewhat different conclusions. Closely related, but they definitely prescribe slightly different methods for success in the new world.