There are solutions to add XML support for Firebird other than build it
into the
server.

I have an application that runs across questionable Frame Relay networks and
sometimes low speed dial up connections. This application was first
created using
Interbase 4.2 and the BDE. We had endless problems with connections to
the servers
and never felt comfortable that our clients had to have direct
connections to the
servers and performance. When there were timeouts on the network the
connection
would stall and the only way to get this connection reestablished was to
close all
programs that were using the BDE then restart the programs and reconnect.

To answer the burning question Delphi developers have "Why use the BDE
didn't
you know better!!" No I didn't know better and even if I did this was
pre IBO
and FreeIB. But the point is any direct connection to the database BDE,
IBO,
IBX, ODBC ... is subject to problem in these conditions.

My solution for the above problem with a minimal budget was to move to a
stateless 3 Tier method, an adaptation of XMLRPC into XMLSQL.

XMLSQL uses web servers and a cgi executable.

Some Benefits.

* Data is compressed both directions.

* Multiple queries per request each potentially using a different database.

* Applications no longer need to be restarted due to bad connections
even if the
connection is unplugged for some time.

* Performance is excellent using dial up connections.


Some Drawbacks:

* Web server is required.

* Large BLOBS require a lot of web server horsepower.


This is not to say this method is a perfect solution to all problems.
Our application
is primarily read only and this has been an excellent solution for us
the past 4
Years.