HiT Software Feeds IBM i Data into Microsoft LightSwitch
July 30, 2013 Alex Woodie
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Organizations that are using Microsoft‘s lightweight LightSwitch development environment can feed data from IBM i servers into their LightSwitch applications using the latest version of HiT Software Ritmo/i. Version 6 of the tool also adds support for Microsoft’s Entity Framework (EF) object-relational mapper for .NET using native IBM i protocols, the company says. Microsoft LightSwitch is a template-based, model-driven development environment that was first released by Microsoft in 2011. The software is intended to be used by non-technical Windows users who need to quickly generate database-powered, three-tier applications that feature modern Web interfaces. Users get started with LightSwitch by using pre-built application shells that provide the look and feel of a particular type of application, such as Microsoft Office. Users then configure their LightSwitch applications in a graphical environment by creating relationships between database tables and entities, and defining queries against the data. Business logic in LightSwitch applications is powered by Windows Communication Foundation RIA Services and Entity Framework, while Silverlight powers the GUI and SQL Server handles the database layer. The capability to access data stored in the DB2 for i database via Ritmo/i will benefit LightSwitch users, says Giacomo Lorenzin, managing director of HiT Software, which is a subsidiary of BackOffice Associates. “By adding support for LightSwitch and Entity Framework to Ritmo/i, developers can now take full advantage of IBM i data in their application development, regardless of which development approach they use,” Lorenzin says in a press release. Ritmo/i v.6 also supports integration with Visual Studio 2012, SQL Server 2012, and SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT). The new version also introduces support for multi-value parameters in SSIS/SSDT (Reporting Services/Data Tools), including support for access to listed parameter values, the company says. Ritmo is a Windows-based product that helps Windows developers build high-speed, native data connections between their .NET applications and their data residing in the three DB2 database versions, including DB2/400, DB2 for Linux, Unix, and Windows, and DB2 for the mainframe. The software does this by reading SQL statements from Windows apps and translating it into IBM‘s Optimized Database Server (ODBS) protocol. No additional software is required on the database server. Ritmo/i v.6 is available now. For more information, see www.hitsw.com. RELATED STORIES HiT Ships Updated DB2/400 for .NET Data Provider HiT Software Acquired by BackOffice Associates HiT Software Goes Mobile with Ritmo HiT Software Delivers ADO.NET 2.0 Data Provider for DB2/400 HiT Software Bolsters DB2/400 Access for .NET Developers with Ritmo for iSeries 3.0 HiT Middleware Delivers Fast DB2/400 Access for .NET Apps
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