If anyone has ever used a Web hosting firm to host their own domain name, you’ll know that if you need to create a forum on your Web site, or if your Web site is a blog with WordPress, or any php blogging program, you’ll need to understand how to set up and maintain a MySQL database.

A database is an essential part of any searchable or interactive Web site. Unfortunately, taking care of a database is not always easy. Many times you’re asked to add tables, delete tables, and manipulate the data in the database. Doing this with the software provided by your host can be described by many names, but intuitive is not one of them. Then what happens when you decide to leave this host and move to another? Manually moving your database is like a root canal, just too painful to even describe.

I am obviously not the only one to make my feeling known about MySQL. Shortly after web hosting firms started offering databases, there have been programs designed to make using your MySQL database seem somewhat easier. These programs operate from your desktop and allow you to manipulate your database from a simple GUI with actual menu commands that you can understand and work with. The king of these third party database administration tools is Navicat. Navicat is not only easy enough to use for the database virgins, but it’s as powerful as any professional developer would ever expect to find. Navicat supports multiple MySQL server connections which can be connected locally or remotely. Your remote MySQL server can be running on Linux, Unix, Mac OS X, or Windows platform. Using Navicat you’ll be able to create, organize, access and share your MySQL database information…

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