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Running a database service is really, really hard. It's an obvious thing for OSS database companies to try, but the skills and experience necessary to do it are
by mrkurt 10y ago
Running a database service is really, really hard. It's an obvious thing for OSS database companies to try, but the skills and experience necessary to do it are not at all the same as what it takes to build databases. MongoDB took _years_ to launch theirs, and then even more time to get it working well.
- nemo44x 10y agoI guess the alternative is to not try, put all your resources into making Aphyr cultists happy and then going out of business a few months later. Built on top of existing cloud architecture and with a few experienced developers a cloud service can be made available in months. mLab didn't take years to build it and get it right, for instance. And those folks were a tiny operation years ago when they started. I'm not discounting the effort but I've been around that effort and have seen DB-As-A-Service go live with a couple smart people in a matter of months. AWS API's, containers, Zookeeper and come Python and you're well on your way. Again - it's hard but so is making a DB of Rethink's quality. It can be done, however. You start small and you go from there. You exploit your advantages as you build a fantastic product over time. I'm not saying a SAAS would have saved them as I'm pretty sure their biggest issue is adoption in the first place. But there's something to be said about your business plan when someone hosting your software is doing well why you, the owner, has to find a new job.