Choose your COUNTRY
Ported Application Contest
Whether you're a student or a professional, let your DB2 skills shine right here. Port or develop an app that utilizes DB2 as the data repository and you and your teammates could win new laptops, Wii™ consoles or iPod nanos.
Preregister to get started. Develop your application. Then submit it for judging.
3 ways to win: Create a ported app, a database tool or utility, or create migration tools for DB2.
Online Submission: Submit a write up on your solution using the online form.
What counts: Utility, integration, completeness, reusability & pureXML
Entry Guidelines
1st Prize: Each team receives a new notebook computer
2nd Prize: Each team receives a Garmin GPS unit
Choose between 2 types of submissions:
1. Port/enable/extend existing database applications to work with DB2
2. Develop new DB2 applications similar in capability to applications enabled for databases other than DB2.
Submissions will be judged on utility and innovation testing and integration completeness and readiness reusability and documentation, and use of pureXML for extra credit.
HOW TO ENTER
1. Register for The XML Challenge and take the Quick Quiz.
2. Pre-register immediately. Entry to this category may be closed prior to the final submission deadline. Preregistration requires only your user name and a brief description of your XML application idea.
3. Develop a solution that can be categorized as one of the following:
- Ported applications (or components) that utilize DB2 as the data repository.
Contestants can take an existing application that requires a database or data repository (e.g., MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Oracle, Sybase, or even flat files) for data storage or persistence and extend that application to support DB2 or create a new DB2-based application that is similar in capabilities to the original application. The original application can be a business application (e.g., accounting, ERP, POS), a collaborative or social application (e.g., MediaWiki, WikiBlog), a content management application (e.g., Mambo), something that has an entertainment element (e.g., BlackNova Traders game), or a DB2 driver/extension for a programming language/script/application that is not currently DB2-enabled.
- Database tools or management utilities developed for DB2
Example: phpMyAdmin, a web front-end developed in PHP to manage MySQL database. Tools in this category are not limited to just database object management. Contestants can create utilities that simplify DB2 operations and administration, including tools for DB2 monitoring, performance diagnostics, troubleshooting, reporting, application/query development, security, high availability, clustering, etc.
- Tools or documentation that assist with migration to DB2
A migration utility assists with migration of data, applications or routines (e.g., stored procedures and triggers) from other databases to DB2. The migration utility can help with migration from either relational or XML databases. A simple example is a tool that connects to a PostgreSQL database, converts data from PostgreSQL to DB2 storage formats, and then copies data into DB2. Another example is a tool that reads PHP source files written for MySQL, converts the MySQL function calls to use the IBM DB2 driver, and optimizes the code for improved performance with DB2.
Check out front-end and office/business examples, as well as various DB2 migration resources, including articles, data migration toolkits and redbooks.
- 4. Submit an entry that is published as an open-source project and is free of any copyright licenses.
HOW TO WIN
The original application can be open source, freeware/shareware, or proprietary/commercial. However, the final solution submitted by the contestants needs to be published as an open source project.
Solutions will be evaluated based on the following five criteria:
| Utility & Innovation | How useful is your application to solve real challenges or problems? How technically innovative is your solution? | 25% |
| Testing & Integration | What testing efforts were put into place to ensure that the porting was successful? How well does the application work with DB2? How is the solution performance with DB2 as compared with using the solution (or original application) with other databases? | 25% |
| Completeness & Readiness | How completely has the functionality of the original/inspiring application been ported to work with DB2? What is the readiness state of the solution – alpha/beta/GA? | 25% |
| Reusability & Documentation | How easily can the code for your solution or its components be reused for migrating other applications to DB2? How good is your documentation and how useful is it in assisting others porting applications to DB2? | 25% |
| pureXML | Does your solution utilize DB2 pureXML technology? How effectively? | 10% bonus |
Ported App Contest Resources
Technical Articles- Program with XML for DB2, Part 1: Understand the XML data model
- Program with XML for DB2, Part 2: Leverage database support for XML in your application architecture
- Program with XML for DB2, Part 4: Integrate data from different data sources in your Web-based DB2 application
- Best Practices: Managing XML Data
- Sample Code for Best Practices
- Best practices for DB2 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows
- IBM Data Studio v1.1
- DB2 migration resources including articles, data migration toolkits, and redbooks
- Program with XML for DB2, Part 3: Program with XML in the client
