Comments on: Database Key Generation in Java Applications

By: JLB

JLB — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:26:58 +0000

In Technique 2, shouldn’t we use the Connection.prepareStatement(String, String[]) and specify the column names of the keys? Oracle requires the column names (see http://forums.oracle.com/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=336591). MySQL lets you use prepareStatement(String, Statement.RETURN_GENERATED_KEYS) as well. But if you use the explicit column names, you should have code that works for at least Oracle and MySQL.

By: scott

scott — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 06:04:30 +0000

Actually I’ve changed databases on a number of projects. It does happen fairly often. Also, its a little bit like the chicken and the egg paradox. If you use a ton of database specific features, then you’re less likely to be able to change database systems. But then if you consign yourself to never changing databases, you’re more likely to fall into the trap of depending on database specific features. In short, its rarely a good practice to depend entirely on database specific features in modern programming world.

By: Avi Abrami

Avi Abrami — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 04:13:11 +0000

Scott,
Regarding technique 4: Database-specific techniques, how often does the database server get changed? May be a moot argument, no?

Cheers,
Avi.