OpenToro 4.0 has been released. OpenToro is a Web Database Publisher, a tool that allows the development of database-driven web applications (download the videodemo). Opentoro provides easy facilities for:

• Listing Database Tables.
• Visualizing Records.
• Generating Forms for inserting, modifying and deleting records.
• Managing database tables.

OpenToro Works with any SQL-92 compatible database, but if you want to use advanced features of some databases you can use (or develop) specific SQL Engines. OpenToro implements SQL Engines for the following databases: MySql,Oracle, Access, SQL-Server, HSqlDB. We have incorporated a configured HsqlDB database inside the OpenToro distribution, so you can test OpenToro without any additional configuration. Next version will have a advanced AJAX Grid and a Mixed Object Relational Mapper that will let you interact with objects and databases in a transparent way. You only will need objects for true business logic.

One thing I find most CRUD frameworks weak on is the ability to generate either "wizard" workflows or the ability to do extra validations before committing an object and its related objects that may have been edited as part of the workflow. Most of them give me only the option to commit or abort outright at the end of every request and not keep a transaction open in a "conversation" (or "flow" if you prefer). Anything supporting extended transactions has often disgustingly enough made it session-global, allowing only one object "open" at a time. My need for both wizard workflow and extended transactions has made many other otherwise elegant frameworks non-starters (It came down to Spring Webflow and Seam, I ended up choosing Seam) How's OpenToro do on this front?

No, OpenToro don´t support workflow specification. The idea behind OpenToro is that it´s provide you with a good 'engine' for automatic developing of web interface, and with an easy MVC, so you can develop your specific functionality on it.