Summary

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In this module, you've learned that the object model for ADO.NET is fundamentally different from ADO. Rather than assuming a constant connection to the database, you're working in a disconnected environment. ADO.NET also makes a distinction between the data, and our view of the data, with the DataSet and DataView .

ADO.NET supports "managed providers," which will allow you to access the database as efficiently as possible, but still maintain consistency through inheritance.

If you are accessing large result sets, you should use the DataReader to avoid storing the entire result set in memory. If we're working with smaller result sets, we should use the DataSet because the data is returned in one chunk , and the DataSet offers more functionality. For example, the DataSet allows sorting and filtering, and the DataSet knows how to serialize to XML. When combined with caching, this results in a great experience for the user , and a light load on the database.

When displaying data, you have a choice between several controls. The DataGrid renders each row from the database as a row of an HTML table. The Repeater doesn't have any default output, giving you maximum flexibility with the rendering through templates. With the DataList , each row from the database is rendered as a cell of a table, allowing "directional rendering."

Finally, .NET is built with XML in mind. The DataSet has native support for importing and exporting XML data.

I l @ ve RuBoard