.norm version 0.1 released

.norm is a new .net object relational mapper.

.norm was designed with the following features in mind:

• No additional code, such as default constructors, are necessary.
  
• Object CRUD operations should be possible without any database mapping necessary.
• Objects with dependencies should be in a valid state when they are returned from the database.
• A single class will map to a single table in the database.
• Database mapping will be done via reflection by default and attributes when specific names are necessary.
• Mapping via attributes instead of XML.
  

No additional code. A default constructor is not necessary because .norm depends on a PicoContainer for object creation. If your class does not contain a default constructor you can register the dependencies with the DataGateway and it will use PicoContainer to construct your object using the greediest constructor it can satisfy.

CRUD for free.The .norm framework uses reflection for persisting to and retrieving objects from the database. By default the FullName of a type is used as a table name, and each public field name and public property name are used as columns of the table. Additionally, .norm provides a RelationalMappedAttribute that can be used to specify a table name. And, A ColumnAttribute can be used to specify a column name. By default all public fields and properties are persisted; however, if a class is decorated with a RelationalMappedAttribute, only the attribute decorated public fields and properties will be persisted.

Dependencies are injected before objects are returned. By default, DataGateway creates a PicoContainer instance at construction time. DataGateway exposes PicoContainer's registration methods allowing you to register dependencies without ever dealing with PicoContainer, if you desire. DataGateway also takes a PicoContainer as a constructor argument if you already have an initialized PicoConstructor.

.norm is simple. All insert, update, delete, and find actions can be completed through the DataGateway class. When you need specific data returned, the WhereBuilder class allows you to narrow your results. Those should be the only classes necessary to begin using .norm.

.norm can be downloaded here.

More information to follow in the next few days.