On Wed, 4 Apr 2001, Chris Maniar wrote: > Lets add something to the discussion here... how about ASCII vs Binary > vs SQL playerfiles. Nitpick: SQL is a language for access databases, not a file format. Real response: The advantages of using a SQL database are of a different sort than the discussion of using ASCII or binary. It's no longer a question of format (because, frankly, you have no idea what format any given database server is going to store your data in) or of flexibility, but of extraneous features, such as persistence, table editing, etc. Using an SQL database is probably the way muds interested in DB persistence, web access, and complex queries (tangent to the quest thread, fetching a quest mob would be much easier) _will_ eventually go. Most muds these days don't have any good use for such large-scale persistence or complex querying, so the only thing it affords you is the standard integration with other tools and techniques and, perhaps, the ability to distribute the database onto a dedicated SQL server, which you can then fetch from across a LAN (if one computer isn't big enough to handle the SQL plus other things all at once). In fact, I don't believe I've ever seen a mud that made good use of these highly-touted next generation features. The thing that continues to separate the good Muds from the bad Muds is the gameplay. The level of technology behind that has proven largely irrelevant *up*to*this*point*. I think it's about to change, probably in a big way. Whereby "about to change" I mean, Real Soon Now(tm). Probably. Maybe. Eventually. -dak -- +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | FAQ: http://qsilver.queensu.ca/~fletchra/Circle/list-faq.html | | Archives: http://post.queensu.ca/listserv/wwwarch/circle.html | +---------------------------------------------------------------+
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