Relational Mapping Solution

Question

Hi,
Hopefully someone can answer this question in about 20 seconds and save me wasting days. I have a website and wish to set up some servlets which will access a database on the web server. However, i'd rather not use JDBC, but would prefer a relational mapping solution.
I have previously done this with EJB's (using middlegen to quickly generate all the EJB classes without any work from me!!) but i only have a cheap package with my web host so running an Application Container is out of the question. I am unfamiliar with other relational mapping products such as hibernate, JDO etc. but if someone could simply tell me if there is a solution out there that i can use without needing to have an Application Container i'd be most grateful,
Cheers,
Dave

Answer 1

I cannot speak to JDO, but we do use Hibernate at my work. A few words of caution. Only use an O/R mapper for new or relatively new data models (or the rare case of a legacy data model that was properly designed and has not subsequently become bloated). Connecting an O/R mapper to a legacy database can (and has been) a nightmare.
You also have to consider the up-front cost of learning the technology. Though we may be there in 5-10 years, you cannot simply take these tools 'out of the box' and expect them to work. Just like SQL, there is a learning curve. And if you are in a multi-developer environment, many of them will already know SQL, further increasing the 'cost' of making this switch.
However, for new projects and well designed data models, I think these O/R mappers are just starting to come of age (though much work still needs to be done). A world of improvement over EJB CMP, but I think any good developer will be able to churn out more efficient SQL than the mapper. Where these tools do shine is in features that are cumbersome to implement globally, such as snapshoting updates and lazy loading.
If you want to go the HIbernate route and do not want a fully-featued container, the Spring Framework is gaining popularity and has excellent integration out of the box with Hibernate (though you still need to set-up the mappings yourself). Though, as above, beware of 'technology soup'. Too much gives indigestion.
- Saish