RE: [boost] Library Proposal: database (boost::db)

From: Brian Braatz (brianb_at_[hidden])
Date: 2004-10-15 11:56:58

> -----Original Message-----
> From: boost-bounces_at_[hidden]
[mailto:boost-bounces_at_[hidden]]
> On Behalf Of Jeff Garland
> >...snip code...
> 
> The one concern I have is that many db applications require runtime
schema
> discovery as well as data returns -- so I think the compile time
approach
> is
> limited to a particular class of applications that can be fully
specified
> at
> compile time.  DTL has dynamic views and integrates well with STL
> collections,
> so at some level they are setting the standard on this currently.
Another
> interesting area of exploration for this would be integration with
> boost.multi_index.
> 
> > Would there be any interest in including this in boost?
> 
> Yes, we really need a standard well thought out approach to accessing
> databases in C++.
> 
> Jeff

I am currently going down this exact path and wanted to share what I ran
into:

1- Boost does not have a 2dim "Table<>" - i.e. a Recordset
2- Boost.multi_index only works with concrete structures
        I would love it if I could use that to make a dynamic Table\
recordset
3- I have had to build my own Table<> by internally using
boost.multiindex
4- Dtl is nice, however the thing that kicked me away from it is that it
requires RTTI. This is a fact not clear in the documentation. It would
be more than possible to do something along the lines of DRL and use
boost.variant instead of having to resort to RTTI

I believe boost is missing a "recordset" analolgy and I would hope that
whatever is created is not "struct only" like boost.multi_index. (don't
get me wrong I LOVE the multi_index - it just doesn't work dynamically)

As a user I would like to see something along the lines of DTL \ Mysql++

http://dev.mysql.com/doc/plusplus/en/index.html

It also sounds like you are thinking along the same lines (and we are
working on similar things). I am more than happy to compare notes with
you, either on this list or one -on-one if it is not-boost relevant, 

Thanks

Brian Braatz