Perl DBI: Tenth birthday, Roadmap, and Call for Funding =======================================================
*** Birthday *** The first public release of the Perl DBI was ten years ago, on the 12th of October 1994. Those ten years have seen the DBI rapidly become the standard database interface for Perl applications. It is used worldwide, in countless applications, in every kind of business, and on platforms from clustered super-computers to hand-held PDAs. Over 40 database interface drivers are available, covering all common databases and many not-so-common ones. I am delighted by this. I am also deeply indebted to the countless people who have contributed to this work and to the DBI user community over the years. Especially to the authors of database drivers. Thank you. *** Roadmap *** I have written a "DBI Roadmap" document to give an overview of my development plans for the DBI. It covers performance, high availability and load balancing, testing, batch statements, Unicode, database portability, and more. A formatted version can be seen at: http://search.cpan.org/~timb/DBI/Roadmap.pod Please take a moment to read it now. *** Call For Funding *** Almost all the development of the DBI over the last 10 years has been done in my own spare time. My consultancy work and family commitments limit my spare time now. In order to implement these significant enhancements myself (and devote time to effectively coordinate others who may help me) I would like to be able to take some time each week away from my consultancy business and devote it to making DBI enhancements that everyone can benefit from. * Donate * The Perl Foundation (TPF) has kindly agreed to setup a DBI Development fund to which donations can be made (which are tax deductable in the US). An assigned Grant Manager will manage the fund and make payments from it in response to agreed DBI enhancements being implemented. If your company has benefited from the DBI then this is an opportunity to both give back, by way of thanks, and help ensure greater benefits in the future. Please take time out to consider if your company could make a contribution: http://dbi.perl.org/donate/ * Sponsor * Alternatively, if your company would benefit from a specific new DBI feature, please consider sponsoring its development through my consulting company, Data Plan Services. Work is performed rapidly, and usually on a fixed-price payment-on-delivery basis. Contact me for details. Using such targeted financing allows you to contribute to DBI development, and rapidly get something specific and valuable in return. * Support * My company also offers annual and multi-annual support contracts for the DBI. These provide longer-term sustained support for DBI development, and longer-term sustained value for you in return. Contact me for details. Thank you. Tim Bunce
