Re: Transactional vs. NonTranscational For The Layman?

[Phillip Ward]

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... if someone could explain to me if there were an instance where I would use the ISAM/MyISAM engines instead of INNODB ...

IIRC, InnoDB doesn't support free-text searching.

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... what the difference is between a transcational db and non-transactional db?

The key difference is "Atomicity", which means defining indivisible units of work that must complete as a whole, or not at all.

Think about getting paid.

   @salary = ... ; 
   
   update employers_account 
   set balance = balance - salary ; 
   
   update your_account  
   set balance = balance + salary ;

For you to get paid (and for your employer to not lose out) both of these statements must succeed. If the second one were to fail for any reason, then the effect of the first must be un-done (what we call "rollback").

Wrapping these statements in a Transaction gives you that guarantee. Either everything in a transaction works, or none of it does.

Regards, Phill W.