Interface21 Introduces Spring.NET 1.1

June 6, 2007; 04:04 AM
Interface21, a leading provider of trusted open source software for building and deploying mission-critical enterprise applications, announced a milestone release of Spring.NET 1.1, an application framework for the development and deployment of enterprise .NET applications. With roots in the widely used Spring Framework programming model for Java, Spring.NET extends the productivity and ease of use features of the Spring Framework to the .NET environment.

The development of Spring.NET grew from the realization that many of the core concepts of the Spring Framework, such as Dependency Injection, Aspect Oriented Programming (AOP) and consistent data access abstractions, extend beyond the Java platform and have wider applicability across the enterprise development space. By combining the Spring Framework’s proven architectural concepts and patterns with additional features specific to the .NET domain, this latest version of Spring.NET delivers enhanced portability, consistency and testability to the enterprise .NET development community.

“Spring.NET 1.1 represents a major step forward for Interface21 in the .NET realm,” said Mark Pollack, principal consultant and lead of the Spring.NET project. “By offering an expanded feature set and leveraging the modular design and component-based nature of the Spring Framework, Spring.NET 1.1 provides a unique, powerful solution for the development challenges faced in the .NET environment. As with the Java version of Spring, we believe that developers will greatly benefit from the increased productivity and improved application quality enabled by Spring.NET.”

Key new features and enhancements of Spring.NET 1.1 include:

• ASP.NET Framework for Web development - Supports Dependency Injection for pages and user controls, bi-directional data binding, improved localization and master page support, data model and process management, simplified and externalized navigation through result mapping, and a powerful UI-agnostic data validation framework.
• Declarative transaction management via XML configuration and attributes - Provides a consistent programming model across different transaction APIs.
• ADO.NET data access framework - Simplifies use of ADO.NET. Additional data access features include DAO support classes and integration with Spring.NET’s declarative transaction management functionality.
• Portable Service Abstractions - Export plain .NET objects via .NET Remoting, Web Service or .NET Serviced Component and create client side proxies based on endpoint URL and service interface.
• NHibernate 1.0 and 1.2 integration - Simplifies use of NHibernate and enables participation in Spring.NET’s declarative transaction management functionality.
• ASP.NET Ajax integration - Exporter to expose plain object on which Dependency Injection and AOP have been applied to JavaScript.
• NUnit integration to facilitate testing - Provides Dependency Injection of test cases and Spring container loading and caching. Data access and transaction management features aid with integration testing.
• Custom name spaces for AOP and transaction management - Simplifies configuration of these frequently used features.

“Since our conversion from ASP/COM to .NET, Spring.NET has been an incredibly effective tool for developing the complex, mission-critical applications required by our organization,” said Ricardo Pardini, lead developer at Mercado Eletrônico S/A, a leading Latin American provider of B2B e-commerce solutions. “From our experience, Spring.NET offers unparalleled data access, AOP and application configuration features within a powerful, flexible development framework.”

“Interface21 has long recognized that the fundamental concepts of the Spring Framework can provide real and immediate value to .NET development,” said Rod Johnson, CEO of Interface21 and founder of the Spring Framework. “We believe Spring.NET will prove beneficial to both the .NET developer community as well as the growing number of developers who work on both platforms. Spring.NET 1.1 represents the latest example of our commitment to broadening the Spring Portfolio and extending the productivity and ease-of-use benefits of Spring across development platforms.”

Availability

Spring.NET 1.0 is generally available, and a Spring.NET 1.1 milestone release is available for download. For more information, including software downloads, visit http://www.springframework.net/download.html.

About Interface21

Interface21 is a leading provider of trusted open source software for mission-critical enterprise applications. Interface21 created and sustains the development of the Spring Framework, the leading Java™ and Java EE™ application framework. Through the Spring family of products, Interface21 has helped hundreds of organizations, including some of the world’s largest financial institutions and public sector clients, build and deploy mission-critical applications that boost developer productivity and increase enterprise ROI. For more information, please visit http://www.interface21.com.