>>>I want to do some tests with MySQL, and according to the online documentation, it seems that everything is done through the command window. Is this correct? Are there any interactive (GUI) tools that can help in creating the database, tables, RI, etc.?
>>
>>Sure, http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/gui-tools/5.0.html
>>
>>Also have you tried postgres? for seems much more attractive. http://www.postgresql.org/
>
>I still haven't committed to a specific database; I might even use Access for preliminary testing only; what I want is to practice commands to access a database. (This is for Java, actually.)
>
>In what sense do you find PostGreSQL more attractive?

PostgreSQL is completely free, MySQL has some license limitations.

Also data integrity, here are some links that helped me to choose

http://www.postgresonline.com/journal/index.php?/archives/51-Cross-Compare-of-SQL-Server,-MySQL,-and-PostgreSQL.html
http://www-css.fnal.gov/dsg/external/freeware/pgsql-vs-mysql.html
http://troels.arvin.dk/db/rdbms/