doc/src/sgml/external-projects.sgml

   1 <!-- $PostgreSQL$ -->
   2
   3  <appendix id="external-projects">
   4   <title>External Projects</title>
   5
   6   <para>
   7    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> is a complex software project,
   8    and managing the project is difficult. We have found that many
   9    enhancements to <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> can be more
  10    efficiently developed separately from the core project.
  11   </para>
  12
  13   <para>
  14    To help our community with the development of their external projects, we
  15    have created <ulink url="http://www.pgfoundry.org/">PgFoundry</ulink>, a
  16    website that provides hosting for <productname>PostgreSQL</>-related
  17    projects that are maintained outside the core <productname>PostgreSQL</>
  18    distribution. PgFoundry is built using the GForge software project and is
  19    similar to <ulink url="http://sourceforge.net">SourceForge.net</> in its
  20    feature set, providing mailing lists, forums, bug tracking, CVS, and web
  21    hosting. If you have a <productname>PostgreSQL</>-related open source
  22    project that you would like to have hosted at PgFoundy, please feel free
  23    to create a new project.
  24   </para>
  25
  26  <sect1 id="external-interfaces">
  27   <title>Client Interfaces</title>
  28
  29   <indexterm>
  30    <primary>interfaces</primary>
  31    <secondary>externally maintained</secondary>
  32   </indexterm>
  33
  34   <para>
  35    There are only two client interfaces included in the base
  36    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> distribution:
  37    <itemizedlist>
  38     <listitem>
  39      <para>
  40       <link linkend="libpq">libpq</link> is included because it is the
  41       primary C language interface, and because many other client interfaces
  42       are built on top of it.
  43      </para>
  44     </listitem>
  45
  46     <listitem>
  47      <para>
  48       <link linkend="ecpg">ecpg</link> is included because it depends on the
  49       server-side SQL grammar, and is therefore sensitive to changes in
  50       <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> itself.
  51      </para>
  52     </listitem>
  53    </itemizedlist>
  54
  55    All other language interfaces are external projects and are distributed
  56    separately. <xref linkend="language-interface-table"> includes a list of
  57    some of these projects. Note that some of these packages might not be
  58    released under the same license as <productname>PostgreSQL</>. For more
  59    information on each language interface, including licensing terms, refer to
  60    its website and documentation.
  61   </para>
  62
  63   <table id="language-interface-table">
  64    <title>Externally Maintained Client Interfaces</>
  65
  66    <tgroup cols="4">
  67     <thead>
  68      <row>
  69       <entry>Name</entry>
  70       <entry>Language</entry>
  71       <entry>Comments</entry>
  72       <entry>Website</entry>
  73      </row>
  74     </thead>
  75
  76     <tbody>
  77      <row>
  78       <entry>DBD::Pg</entry>
  79       <entry>Perl</entry>
  80       <entry>Perl DBI driver</entry>
  81       <entry><ulink url="http://search.cpan.org/dist/DBD-Pg/">http://search.cpan.org/dist/DBD-Pg/</ulink></entry>
  82      </row>
  83
  84      <row>
  85       <entry>JDBC</entry>
  86       <entry>JDBC</entry>
  87       <entry>Type 4 JDBC driver</entry>
  88       <entry><ulink url="http://jdbc.postgresql.org/">http://jdbc.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
  89      </row>
  90
  91      <row>
  92       <entry>libpqxx</entry>
  93       <entry>C++</entry>
  94       <entry>New-style C++ interface</entry>
  95       <entry><ulink url="http://pqxx.org/">http://pqxx.org/</ulink></entry>
  96      </row>
  97
  98      <row>
  99       <entry>Npgsql</entry>
 100       <entry>.NET</entry>
 101       <entry>.NET data provider</entry>
 102       <entry><ulink url="http://npgsql.projects.postgresql.org/">http://npgsql.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 103      </row>
 104
 105      <row>
 106       <entry>ODBCng</entry>
 107       <entry>ODBC</entry>
 108       <entry>An alternative ODBC driver</entry>
 109       <entry><ulink url="http://projects.commandprompt.com/public/odbcng/">http://projects.commandprompt.com/public/odbcng/</ulink></entry>
 110      </row>
 111
 112      <row>
 113       <entry>pgtclng</entry>
 114       <entry>Tcl</entry>
 115       <entry></entry>
 116       <entry><ulink url="http://pgfoundry.org/projects/pgtclng/">http://pgfoundry.org/projects/pgtclng/</ulink></entry>
 117      </row>
 118
 119      <row>
 120       <entry>psqlODBC</entry>
 121       <entry>ODBC</entry>
 122       <entry>The most commonly-used ODBC driver</entry>
 123       <entry><ulink url="http://psqlodbc.projects.postgresql.org/">http://psqlodbc.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 124      </row>
 125
 126      <row>
 127       <entry>psycopg</entry>
 128       <entry>Python</entry>
 129       <entry>DB API 2.0-compliant</entry>
 130       <entry><ulink url="http://www.initd.org/">http://www.initd.org/</ulink></entry>
 131      </row>
 132     </tbody>
 133    </tgroup>
 134   </table>
 135  </sect1>
 136
 137  <sect1 id="external-pl">
 138   <title>Procedural Languages</title>
 139
 140   <indexterm>
 141    <primary>procedural language</primary>
 142    <secondary>externally maintained</secondary>
 143   </indexterm>
 144
 145   <para>
 146    <productname>PostgreSQL</productname> includes several procedural
 147    languages with the base distribution: <link
 148    linkend="plpgsql">PL/PgSQL</link>, <link linkend="pltcl">PL/Tcl</link>,
 149    <link linkend="plperl">PL/Perl</link>, and <link
 150    linkend="plpython">PL/Python</link>.
 151   </para>
 152
 153   <para>
 154    In addition, there are a number of procedural languages that are developed
 155    and maintained outside the core <productname>PostgreSQL</productname>
 156    distribution. <xref linkend="pl-language-table"> lists some of these
 157    packages. Note that some of these projects might not be released under the same
 158    license as <productname>PostgreSQL</>. For more information on each
 159    procedural language, including licensing information, refer to its website
 160    and documentation.
 161   </para>
 162
 163   <table id="pl-language-table">
 164    <title>Externally Maintained Procedural Languages</title>
 165
 166    <tgroup cols="3">
 167     <thead>
 168      <row>
 169       <entry>Name</entry>
 170       <entry>Language</entry>
 171       <entry>Website</entry>
 172      </row>
 173     </thead>
 174
 175     <tbody>
 176      <row>
 177       <entry>PL/Java</entry>
 178       <entry>Java</entry>
 179       <entry><ulink url="http://pljava.projects.postgresql.org/">http://pljava.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 180      </row>
 181
 182      <row>
 183       <entry>PL/PHP</entry>
 184       <entry>PHP</entry>
 185       <entry><ulink url="http://www.commandprompt.com/community/plphp/">http://www.commandprompt.com/community/plphp/</ulink></entry>
 186      </row>
 187
 188      <row>
 189       <entry>PL/Py</entry>
 190       <entry>Python</entry>
 191       <entry><ulink url="http://python.projects.postgresql.org/">http://python.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 192      </row>
 193
 194      <row>
 195       <entry>PL/R</entry>
 196       <entry>R</entry>
 197       <entry><ulink url="http://www.joeconway.com/plr/">http://www.joeconway.com/plr/</ulink></entry>
 198      </row>
 199
 200      <row>
 201       <entry>PL/Ruby</entry>
 202       <entry>Ruby</entry>
 203       <entry><ulink url="http://raa.ruby-lang.org/project/pl-ruby/">http://raa.ruby-lang.org/project/pl-ruby/</ulink></entry>
 204      </row>
 205
 206      <row>
 207       <entry>PL/Scheme</entry>
 208       <entry>Scheme</entry>
 209       <entry><ulink url="http://plscheme.projects.postgresql.org/">http://plscheme.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 210      </row>
 211
 212      <row>
 213       <entry>PL/sh</entry>
 214       <entry>Unix shell</entry>
 215       <entry><ulink url="http://plsh.projects.postgresql.org/">http://plsh.projects.postgresql.org/</ulink></entry>
 216      </row>
 217     </tbody>
 218    </tgroup>
 219   </table>
 220  </sect1>
 221
 222  <sect1 id="external-extensions">
 223  <title>Extensions</title>
 224
 225   <indexterm>
 226    <primary>extensions</primary>
 227   </indexterm>
 228
 229   <para>
 230    <productname>PostgreSQL</> is designed to be easily extensible. For
 231    this reason, extensions loaded into the database can function just
 232    like features that are packaged with the database. The
 233    <filename>contrib/</> directory shipped with the source code
 234    contains a large number of extensions. The <filename>README</> file
 235    in that directory contains a summary. They include conversion
 236    tools, full-text indexing, <acronym>XML</> tools, and additional
 237    data types and indexing methods. Other extensions are developed
 238    independently, like <application><ulink
 239    url="http://www.postgis.org/">PostGIS</ulink></>.  Even
 240    <productname>PostgreSQL</> replication solutions are developed
 241    externally. For example, <application> <ulink
 242    url="http://www.slony.info">Slony-I</ulink></> is a popular
 243    master/slave replication solution that is developed independently
 244    from the core project.
 245   </para>
 246
 247   <para>
 248    There are several administration tools available for
 249    <productname>PostgreSQL</>. The most popular is
 250    <application><ulink url="http://www.pgadmin.org/">pgAdmin III</ulink></>,
 251    and there are several commercially available ones as well.
 252   </para>
 253  </sect1>
 254 </appendix>