Chapter 1. Introduction to PLSQL
Chapter 1. Introduction to PL/SQLPL/SQL stands for Procedural Language extensions to the Structured Query Language. SQL is the now-ubiquitous language for both querying and updatingnever mind the nameof relational databases. Oracle Corporation introduced PL/SQL to overcome some limitations in SQL and to provide a more complete programming solution for those who sought to build mission-critical applications to run against the Oracle database. This chapter introduces PL/SQL and its origins, and it provides a quick overview of the basic elements of the language. Our expectation is not to have you read this chapter and then immediately be able to write top-notch PL/SQL programs, but rather to make sure that you have sufficient grounding in the language to understand and work with the functionality and examples presented in the rest of this book. We'll try to give you an appreciation of the breadth of PL/SQL while focusing on the features that you are most likely to use as a DBA. There is a lot more to PL/SQL than we have room to include in this chapter, long as it is. If you have not previously written PL/SQL programs and scripts, we encourage you to check out Learning Oracle PL/SQL and Oracle PL/SQL Programming, two other O'Reilly books on PL/SQL that will give you much more information and guidance. |
