MySQL versus SQL Server Express

Question

Did the recent purchase of MySQL by Sun and the subsequent buggy releases kill the MySQL brand?

I whole heartedly embraced MySQL when it first came out as I used to be a

Answer 1

Having run both*, I don't think there's much question that SQL Server is overall a more full-featured product than MySQL (although I'd be interested to hear arguments to the contrary).

I wouldn't be overly concerned with MySQL bugs - just run a few releases behind.

Given that you have a Windows server, the only issue I can see is the prospect of acquiring a significant cost if you max out the resources permitted with Express and need to go to a full, licensed SQL Server 2005 (or 2008) instance. If you expect to scale to that level and can't afford the licence, then a free DBMS would seem to be the smart move now, and I'd also look at PostgreSQL, which may be a better alternative.

* and liked them both for different reasons, FWIW