The release of MySQL 5.0 is positioning this Database Management System (DBMS) as an alternative to SQL Server for the small- and mid-sized enterprise (SME) market. Managers that are in the process of making a database decision should consider this DBMS for their IT environment.
Early Shortcomings Now Gone
Early versions of MySQL focused on speed and performance. Using this design philosophy, MySQL AB omitted important standard database capabilities like foreign keys, sub-selects, ANSI SQL compliance, and triggers from early versions.