Company : Customers : DK Systems

DKSystems Chooses DataDirect as Key Component in Successful Migration to .NET

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Goal:

Include the most reliable, interoperable data connectivity for .NET with its product suite.

Why they embed DataDirect:

Embedding ADO.NET providers for multiple databases from one vendor simplifies technical support for DKSystems' products and gives its customers an out-of-box solution for data connectivity that works every time.

Business benefits:

Saves development and support costs by offloading data connectivity support and expertise to a third party.

Technical benefits:

Less coding is required because DataDirect providers are interoperable across databases.

In preparing to move their learning management solution, OnTrack for Training®, to the .NET platform, T.J. Vering, Lead Software Engineer for DKSystems, knew to consider the data connectivity layer early in the planning phase. In the last few years, DKSystems' customers and prospects have become increasingly technical - and so have their Requests for Proposals (RFPs). Says Vering, "They want to know about the data connectivity technology they'll be using. And we know that at the end of the day, our product relies on data connectivity that works."

OnTrack for Training has supported SQL Server, Sybase, and Oracle for over ten years. Initially, DKSystems originally relied on native drivers, but included ODBC support when it became a preferable alternative to many of their clients. For the .NET version of their training products, Vering looked ahead: "I went to the developer community and asked 'What's the most consistent way to connect to SQL Server, Oracle and Sybase?' And the answer was always 'DataDirect Connect for ADO.NET.'"

"Our database driver support matrix was a nightmare."

DKSystems also wanted to obtain ADO.NET providers from one source. Supporting multiple native connections and database vendor ODBC drivers had become a complex technical support problem. "Our database driver support matrix was a nightmare. We want our technical support team to support our application, not be forced to become experts in the data layer. By distributing ADO.NET providers with OnTrack for Training, our support team knows what they're supporting. They don't have to worry about version issues of someone else's installation."

Works Every Time - Right Out of the Box

Even more important was the opportunity to avoid early support issues altogether. Embedding DataDirect Connect® for ADO.NET will give DKSystems a consistent, simplified, and known commodity solution to supporting multiple databases - and an out-of-box experience that will work every time.

SQL Leveling: Develop Once, Support All Databases

DKSystems' customer portfolio includes both small businesses and Fortune 500 companies - from vertical markets across the spectrum. Supporting multiple databases helps give DKSystems this broad market opportunity. From a development perspective, moving to .NET could have presented an unnecessarily complex data connectivity issue - if DKSystems had chosen to use the ADO.NET providers distributed by Oracle, Microsoft, and Sybase.

DataDirect Connect for ADO.NET providers are the only providers that offer consistency across all databases. SQL Leveling - the ability to write a single SQL statement that can be executed across multiple databases - relieves developers of the extra coding required when using database vendor drivers that support certain ANSI SQL functionality only in a proprietary format. In other words, Connect for ADO.NET standardizes ADO.NET completely, so DKSystems' data interface can be developed just once, not multiple times for each database or database version. It also means their products behave consistently across all supported databases. Looking to the future, Vering notes, "We have the opportunity to support DB2 or other databases at a later date without much additional development work."