> > I would suggest that you let your installation allow the user to
> > select to install Firebird or not, what if he/she already has Firebird
> > installed?
> >
>
> That would never be the case as this product is not at all known in
> this region. In fact I will be introducing this product (sort of)!
>

I do not speak on behalf of Firebird, it is just my opinion as a
software developer who like you has a Firebird database under the hood.

With due respect, Firebird is currently ranked 51 on Sourceforge with
4.2 million downloads. I fail to see how silently installing a
database engine on a "small application" really counts as introducing it.

You are of course welcome to do it, just realise that just because you
had never heard of it, does not mean it is not used. If your
application shares the computer with other applications, then changes
you make to existing installs will possibly affect them.

Embedded mode is good to prevent this (it is especially suitable for
stand-alone applications and tier databases) and will give you better
performance to boot.

At the very least, make your installer stop if it detects the Firebird
registry key.

Adam