Murach's Oracle SQL and PL/SQL (Training & Reference) (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

If you're developing applications that access Oracle databases, you can save time and work by having SQL do more of the data handling for you: This new book shows you how. It teaches you how to create effective SQL queries to extract and update the data in an Oracle database. It teaches you how to design and implement a database, giving you insight into performance and security issues. It teaches you how to use PL/SQL to take advantage of powerful features like stored procedures, functions, and triggers. In short, it teaches you to create the kind of efficient database applications that make you a more effective and valuable developer.

Here are 5 of the ways that our book differs from the others

#1: You'll see how to take advantage of the Oracle SQL Developer tool
SQL Developer is a free tool for working with database objects and SQL statements. Its graphical interface makes it more intuitive and easier to use than older command-line tools like SQL*Plus. I think you ll find it boosts your productivity as you use it to write and run queries, to work with database objects, or to debug stored procedures.

#2: You'll start off with how to query a database, not how to design one
This book is written for application developers, and the first thing an application developer needs to know is how to write queries. So that's what's covered in the first 8 chapters of this book. It starts with simple queries, then moves on to complex inner and outer joins, summary queries, and subqueries that do more of the database processing so that your applications can do less.
Once you're comfortable with querying databases, this book shows how to design a database and how to create database tables. Having this background can help you query a database more effectively. And it provides a solid introduction to DBA skills if you're interested in that career path.

#3: You get 2 books in 1: A SQL book and a PL/SQL book
PL/SQL allows you to write complex scripts, stored procedures, functions, and triggers, all essential skills for most application developers. So along with SQL, this book covers the PL/SQL that you'll use most of the time; there's no need to buy a second book to learn PL/SQL.

#4: Complete applications show you how all the pieces interact
One key to mastering SQL is to have plenty of coding examples that show how the features you re learning work and what problems you may run into as you use them on your own. So this book provides dozens of SQL statements and PL/SQL scripts for various jobs that are routine in business applications. Download the examples for free from our website and use them as starting points for your own SQL routines.

#5: The paired-pages format lets you set your own pace
Depending on what you already know about Oracle SQL and how fast you want to go, you can read every page and study each example...skim through the headings for topics you don't know...scan through the righthand pages for development details you might have missed in the past...or turn to any two-page spread when you need reference information. The paired-pages format makes it easy and fast for you to use the book the way you want to.

(If you aren't familiar with how the paired pages work, please be sure to download a sample chapter from our website)

About the Author

Joel Murach has a background in software training and is a specialist in developing business applications, particularly web applications. In the past 5 years, he has written and edited books on Java, ASP.NET, and C# that have helped thousands of developers become proficient at creating the kind of applications that businesses rely on every day.

Product Details

• Paperback: 600 pages
• Publisher: Mike Murach & Associates (August 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890774502
• ISBN-13: 978-1890774509
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #65,908 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A life saver!!, November 2, 2008

By	I. Ximines (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Got stuck on one of my Oracle 9i assignments and it took just one look in this book and I was all set and ready to take on this other assignments. It is really a reliable reference book. One you should always have at your fingertips if you use the Oracle database system or if you are learning about the system. I wish I had this book as a backup to my textbook when I first bagan the class or even before I begin. Save the stress and don't fall into my misfortune of stressing over something that could be solved easily with this book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than just the basics, September 17, 2008

By	David O'Meara "JavaRanch Sheriff" (Australia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Murach books have a reputation for accessibility to the novice user. Murach's Oracle SQL and PL/SQL is just as accessible to the novice, but also contains plenty to assist other Oracle users.

The first section is truly non-threatening and is possibly too basic to be of real use in the context of the whole book. It is a short introduction to databases and the Oracle tools but doesn't contain much depth. The second section digs deeper into interacting with databases and is primarily aimed at standard and Oracle-specific SQL syntax. Section 3 introduces good (and essential) database practices such as normalisation, user and role management, indexes, foreign keys and other aspects of database design. Section 4 covers some PL/SQL basics and finally Section 5 covers the more complicated data types.

I mention all of that since I found the name of the book slightly misleading, but in a good way. The focus of the book is on building and maintaining the skills required for running Oracle SQL and PL/SQL and while Sections 3 and 5 could have been omitted, the book is better because of the inclusion.

Sections 2 and 4 are the main sections and both are well written for both teaching and reference resources, and Section 2 in particular highlights the important information for each piece of knowledge.

The result is a book that is great for Oracle novices, although possibly not if you are a complete database novice, but also great for intermediate users casual users like myself. Personally I use the database dictated by clients, so I look forward to having this on hand when making the next switch back to the Oracle database. It won't get you an Oracle DBA job, but it will help you get more out of your database.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Murach's Oracle SQL and PL/SQL, May 23, 2009

By	Richard John (Vallejo, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am new to Oracle SQL. I bought another book, but it did not have detail or examples. I found this book to a very straight forward presentaion that included sample code and explanations. I generally use it as a referece manual by looking up code and syntax. There are some PL/SQL featues not covered, but they are very advanced. My understanding of Oracle SQL has greatly improved since I obtained this book.