Language Integrated Query (LINQ)

What is LINQ? Language-Integrated Query (LINQ) is a set of features in Visual Studio 2008 that extends powerful query capabilities to the language syntax of C# and Visual Basic. LINQ introduces standard, easily-learned patterns for querying and updating data, and the technology can be extended to support potentially any kind of data store. Visual Studio 2008 includes LINQ provider assemblies that enable the use of LINQ with .NET Framework collections, SQL Server databases, ADO.NET Datasets, and XML documents.   In a nutshell, LINQ will offer an integrated programming experience, enabling developers to query object, relational and XML data directly from within C# and Visual Basic – without having to use multiple programming languages. Using one language to unify all of the programming domains – objects, relational data and XML – makes the LINQ Project a truly powerful and innovative solution, one that provides yet another advantage to using the .NET Framework. If you are new to LINQ and want to learn more attend LINQ Saturday Seminar with James Arendt.		Why LINQ? One of the main issues developers face is the difficulty of creating data-rich applications, a difficulty that arises from the tremendous differences between query languages used to access data and programming languages commonly used to write applications. To reduce complexity for developers and help boost their productivity, Microsoft developed the Language Integrated Query (LINQ) Project, a set of language extensions to the C# and Visual Basic programming languages that extends the Microsoft .NET Framework by providing integrated querying for objects, databases and XML data. Using LINQ, developers will be able to write queries natively in C# or Visual Basic without having to use other languages, such as Structured Query Language (SQL) or XQuery, a query language for accessing XML data. Take Action! Learn more out LINQ Saturday Seminar Register for LINQ Saturday Seminar    Useful Links Blog Posts on LINQ James Arendt on LINQ DonXML on LINQ      LINQ Articles and Videos Microsoft announces LINQ Anders Hejlsberg on LINQ and Functional Programming Visual LINQ: Watch query expressions as they happen! LINQ Videos