Re: "Too far out of the mainstream"

Ever since I have been doing database stuff (since 1999), PostgreSQL has been the go-to db in the open source world for complex business applications, first because MySQL didn't have transactions and later because it's just better.  I don't think the stealth phenomenon is just a matter of no reporting requirements.  After all MySQL's exposure is way beyond its reporting requirements.

Rather here's the thing:  You have basically two kinds of uses for RDBMS's out there.  The first is for internal information storage, centralization, and management, and the second is as a platform for applications you are going to sell or otherwise distribute.  PostgreSQL has always been far more at home in the former than the latter.   This is the exact opposite of MySQL which is today really built almost exclusively for the latter at the expense of the former (sql_mode being subject to each application's discretion and the like).

So people are using PostgreSQL in roles that aren't very visible anyway, DBA's are usually coming to PostgreSQL from other RDBMS's, and few applications are really distributed for PostgreSQL. 

I do think that is changing.  Last year I went to the Malaysian Government Open Source Software convention and was amazed at the visibility of PostgreSQL.  We were the only booth advertising services for official PostgreSQL versions but advertised EnterpriseDB resellers were more common than people advertising MySQL services even when you add Oracle to the mix (they were there too).  At the same time, my sense from talking with people there was that despite the way that EDB's marketing had framed the official version as the "community edition," the official version was by far the most common open source RDBMS used in the public sector in Malaysia.  Not only this but there was significant interest in moving more db's to PostgreSQL, but the big limitation is that everyone who knows PostgreSQL already has a job.

Best Wishes,

Chris Travers