I think we can have both. As I see it, the server interface with the
outside world and the server interface with whatever form of storage we
want to use should be completely independent. So, if I have an Oracle
and an UltraSparc 10000 to spare, I should be able to setup a server to
use it.
On the other hand, relational databases can scale very well if correctly
designed. But I am more inclined to agree with you, that a file system
implementation would be faster.
cheers
Paulo