JDBC Version and History

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This section provides some quick information about JDBC versions and history.

The following table lists JDBC past versions and implementations:

Year   JDBC Version   JSR Specification   JDK Implementation

2006   JDBC 4.0       JSR 221             Java SE 6
2001   JDBC 3.0       JSR 54              JDK 1.4
1999   JDBC 2.1                           JDK 1.2?
1997   JDBC 1.2                           JDK 1.1?

Main new features introduced in JDBC 4.0 API are:

• Automatic loading of java.sql.Driver
• ROWID data type support
• National Character Set Conversion Support
• SQL/XML and XML Support

Note that JDBC 4.0 API has been implemented in Java SE 6. But JDBC drivers of specific database servers for JDBC 4.0 API may still not available. Since JDBC 4.0 API is backward compatible, there is no problem with using Java SE 6 with JDBC 3.0 drivers, as long as you do not use the new methods or classes there were introduced in JDBC 4.0 API.

Sections in This Chapter

What Is JDBC?

JDBC Version and History

JDBC Driver Types

Establishing Connections from JDBC to Databases

DriverManager - Loading JDBC Driver

DriverManager - Connection URL