Business Objects vs. Datasets

[Brian Kiser]

What is Microsoft's stance on developing business objects
vs datasets when creating n-tier apps. Is anyone doing
business objects?

It appears that most articles from MS recommend passing
datasets between tiers but this seems to be a poor design
decision in that I need to know about the database
structure in each tier and I can't encapsulate business
rules that apply.

Any thoughts?

Thanks
BK

 

[Jon Paugh]

If you expose your business logic thru a webservice, and
you webservice takes datasets as parameters, then
accessing the webservice using java or infopath might be
difficult. Datasets are visual studio only...

 

[Michael Lang]

What is Microsoft's stance on developing business objects
vs datasets when creating n-tier apps. Is anyone doing
business objects?

It appears that most articles from MS recommend passing
datasets between tiers but this seems to be a poor design
decision in that I need to know about the database
structure in each tier and I can't encapsulate business
rules that apply.

Microsoft does also recommend n-tier. See their patterns site:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/practices/type/Patterns/Enterprise/default.asp

layer pattern:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/practices/type/Patterns/Enterprise/EspPatternsFor
BuildingEnterpriseSolutions/

If you would like samples see the following open source projects:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/dbobjecter
http://sourceforge.net/projects/genadonet

The latest templates for the code 'dbobjecter' generator are the better
ones.

Michael Lang, MCSD

 

[Kerry Sanders]

If you expose your business logic thru a webservice, and

you webservice takes datasets as parameters, then
accessing the webservice using java or infopath might be
difficult. Datasets are visual studio only...

Actually, Datasets get serialized to XML through web services quite nicely. We
have applications in C# and java using the same web services passing datasets
back and forth.

 

[Jay B. Harlow [MVP - Outlook]]

Brian,
In case you don't have it:

Rockford Lhotka has a framework based on .NET that uses Business Objects
that can be local or remote and fully supports databinding.

Check out CSLA.NET at:
http://www.lhotka.net

Both Business objects & Datasets have their own pluses & minuses, which one
to use I think depends on your project requirements.

Hope this helps
Jay

 

[junk]

[This followup was posted to microsoft.public.dotnet.general and a copy
was sent to the cited author.]

What is Microsoft's stance on developing business objects
vs datasets when creating n-tier apps. Is anyone doing
business objects?

It appears that most articles from MS recommend passing
datasets between tiers but this seems to be a poor design
decision in that I need to know about the database
structure in each tier and I can't encapsulate business
rules that apply.

Any thoughts?

Thanks
BK

I believe that there is much to be gained with a fully object oriented
view. However, it appears that Microsoft may have a specific model in
mind that has the layers, WebUi, BusinessRules, Dataset, datalayer. So
how do we fit something like WebUI, View, Controller,
BusinessObjects,datalayer?

Thanks for sharing your views
Fritz Schenk
(e-mail address removed)