Does this graph of PHP usage tell the story for LAMP-Linux Apache MySQL Perl/PHP/Python in general ? Some would argue that Open Source and Linux in particular are ascendant and any small kinks like the one above for PHP are just small aberrations. They would rightly point to the latest IDC reports on the Worldwide server markets with Linux leading the parade with 21% growth rate.
However, on the desktop, Linuxis still having problems despite the bargain developer workstations that Linux present to programmers and graphic designers. So as Linux servers continue to take share in the overall server market the resulting Linux bounty seems to spread over a wider range of applications then the usual AMP family. And desktop Linux, despite Windows Vistas bloat, clot, and rot problems , delays and continuing security fixes- Linux desktops does not yet appear to be able to take advantage of these Microsoft weaknesses.
Meanwhile the A of LAMP, Apache, has sort of stagnated – being clipped by Microsofts buying millions of static parked sites by getting GoDaddy, a registrar of websites, to switch from Linux to Windows Server. But the M of LAMP is facing its most serious attacks from the mainstream database vendors. IBM and Oracle have both released free Express editions of their mainstream databases (DB2 8.2 and Oracle 10g respectively)including the right to deploy the resulting databases on up to dual core servers (with 4GB of memory in the case of DB2). These are spectacular free offers being partially matched by Microsoft SQL Server with a free Express edition (but with less memory-1GBmax, only 1 CPU and 4GB in size database) too. This onslaught of free near enterprise caliber databases will surely impact MySQL as it transitions to enterprise features like store procedures, triggers, and advance clustering that have been tried and tested for over 5 years by all of the major database vendors. And even the quiet ones, the “other” Open Source databases which also have netrpise capabilities, Ingres and PostgreSQL, are starting to getting a story and marketing muscle. The next few months ahead in the MySQL and general OpenSource database market will be most interesting to follow.
Finally the P of LAMP, Perl/PHP/Python has shown the most turmoil. According to TIOBE, Perl is on a decidedly downward trend as the new Perl 6 continues to be delayed and PHP is suffering from a number of setbacks while Python appears to be treading water.
Simply put LAMP is under attack as ISVs like BEA, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Sun and others go for market share on the last major IT frontier – distributed, n-tier systems. We think the events are important enough that we have covered in detail the trends in 3 special multi article reports:
1) On Linux and what is happenning in the Linux market place.
2) On PHP and its effects in the broader LAMP space.
3)For a spoof on what Microsofts latest thinking on Linux is – see here.
Please let us know what you think of the anlysis here.
(c)JBSurveyer 2006