IBM DB2 Express - C Installing and Analyzing IBM DB2 Express -- C

IBM DB2 Express-C database for Microsoft Windows was downloaded, installed and used as the basis of analysis in this paper. What differentiates UBM DB2 Express-C from the many comparable low-end enterprise-level databases is support for XML integration, dual core processors and 2GB of memory. IBM has been selling their DB2 databases for decades to enterprises globally, and has created this version for free download. While this is a low-end, freely downloadable version, IBM has been generous with its support for many core features. IBM also has included access to its online support communities and forums. These communities and forums are highly valuable for getting insights into the administration, development best practices, XML integration insights, and how to write programs with this application. The system the downloaded application is running on for purposes of this analysis has dual core processors and 2GB of memory. The insights gained from the implementation and initial programming using this application form the foundation of this report.

Assessments of DB2 Express-C Installation on IBM Laptop

The IBM ThinkPad used for completing this analysis is connected to the Internet via a cable modem running at speeds comparable to a fractional T1 connection. This made the initial download of the DB2 Express-C software installation packages fast, with the 389MB of data retrieved in less than five minutes. After the software was downloaded from the IBM site, the installation process was initiated and captured in a series of screen captures shown in the Appendix of this analysis. IBM's documentation was excellent in that it defines the initial installation...

IBM takes time to explain how the install process can also be completed using a command line interface as well. Both approaches were successfully attempted and completed for this analysis, with the Control Panel delivering more consistent results.
Within twenty minutes of having the software downloaded and installed, the DB-2 Control Center was up and running. The first application of the database was initiated using the db2cc command. IBM is careful to explain how both the graphical interface-based Command Center and command line deliver identical results. The first three pages of the documentation are excellent in this regard; they provide a strong foundation for learning of hwo to interact with the application and command line.

Following the invoking of the first application, the command db2sampl -xml -- sql was completed to create a table as defined in the user documentation. IBM provides a sample data set to accomplish this quickly so students and programmers alike get up and running quickly with DB2 Express-C. The graphical interface and command line approaches to defining the table worked identically, as the IBM documentation had indicated it would.

One of the most valuable lessons learned from this initial series of steps in the DB2 Express-C application is how quickly this application can be used for creating multidimensional tables both from the graphical interface and command line. The syntax of commands is somewhat cryptic yet is very logical in structure, which makes learning the options in this language easily accomplished. This initial phase of the analysis also showed how easily it is to create an application that can be edited, viewed and modified…