NAME Class::DBI - Simple Database Abstraction SYNOPSIS package Music::DBI; use base 'Class::DBI'; Music::DBI->set_db('Main', 'dbi:mysql', 'username', 'password'); package Artist; use base 'Music::DBI'; Artist->table('artist'); Artist->columns(All => qw/artistid name/); Artist->has_many('cds', 'CD' => artist); package CD; use base 'Music::DBI'; CD->table('cd'); CD->columns(All => qw/cdid artist title year/); CD->has_many('tracks', 'Track' => 'cd', { sort => 'position' }); CD->has_a(artist => 'CD::Artist'); CD->has_a(reldate => 'Time::Piece', inflate => sub { Time::Piece->strptime(shift => "%Y-%m-%d") }, deflate => 'ymd', } CD->might_have(liner_notes => LinerNotes => qw/notes/); package Track; use base 'Music::DBI'; Track->table('track'); Track->columns(All => qw/trackid cd position title/); #-- Meanwhile, in a nearby piece of code! --# my $artist = Artist->create({ artistid => 1, name => 'U2' }); my $cd = $artist->add_to_cds({ cdid => 1, title => 'October', year => 1980, }); # Oops, got it wrong. $cd->year(1981); $cd->commit; # etc. while (my $track = $cd->tracks) { print $track->position, $track->title } $cd->delete; # also deletes the tracks my $cd = CD->retrieve(1); my @cds = CD->retrieve_all; my @cds = CD->search(year => 1980); my @cds = CD->search_like(title => 'October%'); DESCRIPTION Class::DBI provides a convenient abstraction layer to a database. It not only provides a simple database to object mapping layer, but can be used to implement several higher order database functions (triggers, referential integrity, cascading delete etc.), at the application level, rather than at the database. This is particularly useful when using a database which doesn't support these (such as MySQL), or when you would like your code to be portable across multiple databases which might implement these things in different ways. In short, Class::DBI aims to make it simple to introduce 'best practice' when dealing with data stored in a relational database. PRE-REQUISITES Class::DBI requires on several other modules. Installing via the CPAN shell should take care of all these for you. But if you need to install by hand you need to have the following: To run the module: Class::Accessor Class::Data::Inheritable Class::Trigger Ima::DBI (which in turn requires DBI itself, and Class::WhiteHole) To test the installation: Test::More DBD::SQLite DBD::mysql DBD::Pg