Re: game db

Quoting Kenneth Gangstoe (sphair-postgresql(at)dark(dot)x(dot)dtu(dot)dk):
> Hello!
>
> I'm currently coding a game, using C++ and OpenGL. I need to store
> the game state data into a database, and heard alot of positive
> things about PostgreSQL. As this is a game, speed is critical. I'm
> going to do alot of writing to the database, but seldom much reading
> from it, so I'm mostly interested in write-speeds.
>
> Does anyone have an idea if Postgresql could suit my needs, or should
> I look into other databases (mysql for instance) ?
>
> Best regards,
> Kenneth Gangstø

Thanks for all the answers! Since I didnt go much into detail, I'll try
to explain more what Im going to use it for.

I'm coding a multiplayer game (not massive, but around 100 connected clients).
They will all connect to a server, which will store its gameworld state
(players, player-positions, items, quests, etc) in a database.

Most if this data will be in the servers memory, and only stored to the
database on updates. So reading data from the database will only happen
at init-time, at a new client connection and similar cases.

Several servers might be used to balance the load, so I might have from 1-3
servers connected to the database at once. The clients won't have any direct
connection to the database.

Its important to avoid data-corruption of the database, but I won't
need the fullblown fsync option I believe. If the gamestate goes back
5 mins on crashes, that won't be a huge problem, as long as the data
is consistent.

I haven't looked into SQL databases much, but I don't think I need much
"fancy" features - I guess a basic SQL interface is plenty - doing simple
selects and updates.

Whate exactly are the prime differences between an embedded database and
the full RDBMSs ?

The reason I looked into PostgreSQL was that I found a book in the bookstore
called PostgreSQL Developer's Handbook. Anyone have experience with this book?

Best regards,
Kenneth Gangstø
www.clanlib.org