Bunker Hill Makes Open Source More Accessible.

Business Editors/Technology Writers

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 11, 2002

Businesses and organizations can now upgrade their applications and data storage to a full-scale relational database without big conversion costs or adding expensive servers.

Bunker Hill Corporation today announced its new Scriptoria software tool, which gives Microsoft Access users a fast, scalable and economical way to migrate their PC-based applications and databases to the powerful MySQL database. It enables organizations, large and small, to take advantage of the powerful MS-Access visual development environment to greatly expand their client-server computing capabilities at a cost as low as $500.

The Scriptoria software tool fully automates Microsoft Access database and application conversions to the popular MySQL database.

"Until now Microsoft Access users in growing businesses were in a box," said Ron Tornambe, president, Bunker Hill Corp. "They could migrate to Microsoft's SQL Server product which does not port to Linux, or do the often difficult and costly conversion to IBM's DB2, Oracle, Informix, or other full-size relational databases."

MySQL AB is the company that develops and supports MySQL since the mid-1990s. MySQL is one of the fastest relational databases and the most popular Open Source database in the world with an estimated 3 million installations.

"This is a significant development for small businesses, most of which use Access for data storage and application development," Tornambe said. "Scriptoria and MySQL cost a fraction of other popular client-server databases like SQL Server and Oracle. And businesses with a web site probably have an Open Source MySQL database already. They only need to add Scriptoria to develop their own powerful, low cost solutions."

Scriptoria is a complete MySQL visual development environment. Businesses can develop and modify applications using Access, and Scriptoria automatically synchronizes the corresponding MySQL database with a single mouse click.

MySQL runs on Windows and Unix platforms to provide a truly scalable migration path. Businesses use the familiar Access front-end to operate the remote MySQL database, even over the Internet.

Aimed primarily at the growing small business that needs to improve multi-user performance, safely store data off-site and access application data over the Internet, Scriptoria for MySQL is a valuable tool in other applications, according to Tornambe.

By using Scriptoria for MySQL, web developers can incorporate MySQL databases into customer sites, researchers can sift through vast quantities of data using the Access visual interface, and universities can use it to introduce students to relational databases. It is a solution in any application where cost is an important factor, as Scriptoria for MySQL is up to 100 times less expensive than the leading database vendor offerings.

Using MySQL to store important data at ISPs provides a low-cost off-site data storage capacity for the small business user. Most ISPs perform regular backups and implement stringent recovery procedures, capabilities most small businesses could not afford on their own. MySQL data can be accessed over the Internet using Access, browser-based software provided by most ISPs, or custom applications.

About Bunker Hill

Bunker Hill Corporation, based in San Francisco, is a leading supplier of Microsoft Access migration and database management tools for MySQL, IBM, Oracle and other relational database environments. Its Scriptoria product is a mature platform with more than 5,000 users worldwide. Bunker Hill also offers training and consulting services.

About MySQL

MySQL AB develops, markets and supports the MySQL database server, the world's most popular open source database. The MySQL database, which is free and available to everyone, has over three million users, including major corporations such as Yahoo!, Lucent Technologies, MP3.com (Vivendi Universal), Motorola, NASA, Silicon Graphics, HP, Xerox, Cisco and Agilent. It is available under the open-source GNU General Public License (GPL) or a non-GPL commercial license. MySQL is headquartered in Uppsala, Sweden, but is a true virtual company, with employees throughout the world. For more information about MySQL, please go to www.mysql.com.