Sql.Net
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What is Sql.Net*New - Version 0.5 supports dynamic Cross-Tabs (Pivot Tables)!
SQL Abstraction Layer
Sql.Net is a software component which allows you programmatically create SQL queries
in runtime using a convenient .Net Object Model, thus creating an abstraction layer over SQL.
Dynamic SQL generation is useful in several scenarios: By static SQL we mean SQL code written once in the development phase
when database and query structures are known. Static SQL is usually
targeted at a specific database and in many cases gets stored in stored
procedures. Many applications (especially Enterprise Applications) reach
a stage where some dynamic data manipulation is required and static SQL
techniques no longer suffice. Common examples are custom reports and
filters designed by an application user. In order to support such
functionality, an application must exhibit UI to define the report or
filter, UI to display the results and an engine which is able to render
SQL SELECT statement from the report definition. Here Sql.Net steps in
to automate the process of SQL generation in a convenient, time saving,
database independent way. Dynamic SQL generation is also needed in applications where
the databases structure itself is dynamic. Many Enterprise Applications
allow users to customize the way data is stored and displayed. This can
involve columns being added or deleted or whole database tables dropped
and created. Static SQL can not be written to work with dynamic
structure because identifier names can not be substituted with
variables. Therefore, SQL statements which manipulate or fetch data from
non static storages must be created and rendered programmatically in
runtime. Using Sql.Net for that purpose relieves your organization of
the necessity to hand-code SQL renderers. Pagination (also know as paging) is another common issue
which can be easily and elegantly solved using Sql.Net. The problem with
pagination is that every database has its own level of support (or the
lack of thereof) for fetching pages of data. For instance, SQL Server
2000 has a very limited TOP clause, MySql has a LIMIT clause, Oracle has
a ROWNUM pseudo column and SQL Server 2005 has a row_number() function.
Sql Server 2000 and Oracle are the most problematic since they have no built in support
for pagination, meaning dynamically generated SQL is a must.
Applications using other databases can also benefit from Sql.Net
structured approach to generate pagination SQL. If database independence
is a requirement for your application, Sql.Net can reduce
incompatibility problems concerning pagination significantly.
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