The aim of this book is to teach cross-platform database programming to Delphi 6 or Kylix programmers. The book will assume the reader has a basic understanding of databases, such as what tables, rows, columns, fields, indexes, etc. are. It will also assume the reader has a working knowledge of Delphi and/or Kylix. A thorough investigation of cross-platform database development using dbExpress will follow the introduction. Eric will cover topics ranging from setting up a database connection to single- and multi-tiered database applications. Along the way, he will present code snippets and small sample applications to illustrate the points being made. Also, a complete database application will be presented which will compile and run under either Delphi or Kylix, and will contain such discussed features as disconnected datasets.