Visual Basic .NET and SQL Server 2000: Building an Effective Data Layer

Visual Basic .NET and SQL Server 2000: Building an Effective Data Layer
by Tony Bain, Denise Gosnell, Jonathon A. Walsh
Copyright 2002
Apress

Find out more about this book, or purchase it, from Amazon.com

In short, this book covers how to use ADO.NET from within VB.NET to access data stored in SQL Server 2000. Wow, that's a lot of techno-babble for a single sentence.

In plain English, this book teaches you how to write client applications to access data stored in SQL Server 2000. No, it doesn't teach you how to write client applications, or even how to use SQL Server 2000, but instead focus on the all important data layer that sits between the client and the database.

In many, if not most cases, it is the data layer that can most significantly affect an application's performance if it is not done correctly. Because of this, learning how to write a good data layer is very important for any developer.

The book covers:

• ADO.NET

• The SqlClient Namespace

• Handling Streams of Data with ADO.NET

• Writing Good Stored Procedures

• Using Stored Procedures in VB.NET

• Data Binding

• Transactions and Locking

• Component Services

• SQL Server and XML

• Effective Administration for Developers

• Case Study

Although the book doesn't spend a lot of time on performance issues (as much as I would like) it does discuss data access performance, especially in regards how to make the most of stored procedures to access and manipulate data in SQL Server 2000. Other performance-related topics are also touched upon.

This book is recommended for those developers who already have a good foundation in VB.NET and Transact-SQL and who want to learn more about how to write data-centric code using ADO.NET.