This book never loses sight of its instructional mission: to effectively utilize the Oracle database from the .NET environment. Though Visual Studio and Oracle form a popular and powerful duo, there is a noticeable lack of written material in this area. The result: projects that often turn out with less-than-optimal solutions, due to lack of synergy between the application developer and the database. The primary code in the book will be C#, but the code download will also be available in Visual Basic .NET (with an appendix describing terms of use). Hence, this book provides a one-stop reference for any VS .NET programmer using Oracle. The author maintains solid focus on databases, emphasizing the use of specific features from a Visual Studio application. The text also includes crucial aspects of developing Oracle-based applications. Assumably, you are already comfortable with the VS .NET environment, and with the aid of this book, you will come to work effectively with the Oracle database as well.