Frequently Asked Questions

What is this course about? This course gives you a comprehensive introduction to the relational features of Oracle Database 10g used to create powerful and robust database applications. Oracle 10g is a large, complex system. This course provides a broad overview of the power and flexibility of Oracle and the SQL language and serves as the foundation for the other courses in the Learning Tree Oracle Databases curriculum. You learn how to use SQL and PL/SQL so that you can begin to develop high-performance database applications right away. The extensive hands-on exercises provide invaluable practical experience solving business problems using Oracle 10g. Who will benefit from this course? This course benefits a wide range of professionals including: Developers, analysts, administrators, managers, programmers, consultants, power users and others who design and write Oracle applications using Oracle 10g Database administrators who want to become proficient in querying and manipulating an Oracle database Those who are familiar with SQL but wish to learn the special features of Oracle's PL/SQL Data processing professionals with experience working with traditional database systems (hierarchical or network), who are now moving to a client/server or Web environment Technology managers and project leaders who need a general overview of Oracle 10g What background should I have? Some experience working with a relational database and familiarity with basic programming concepts are helpful but not required. If you have a strong background in a dialect of SQL other than Oracle's, some parts of the course may be redundant for you, but you will still benefit from all the Oracle-specific material presented. What version of Oracle is used? This course is currently running on Oracle10g, Release 2 on the Windows platform. Is this course useful if I'm working with an earlier version of Oracle? This course uses Oracle 10g. If you are evaluating Oracle 10g, or if you are currently working on an earlier version but are planning to move to Oracle 10g, then this course is for you. The course highlights the main differences between the Oracle versions with icons ("10g", "9i", "8i"). How do Oracle 10g and Oracle9i differ from each other and does this course cover the new features of Oracle 10g? This course uses Oracle 10g. However, because the basic architecture is the same across all Oracle environments, this course would be applicable even if you are using an earlier version of Oracle. If you are evaluating Oracle 10g, or if you are currently working on an earlier version but are planning to move to Oracle 10g, then this course is for you. The course highlights the main differences between the Oracle versions with icons ("10g", "9i", "8i"). If you are interested specifically in Oracle9i, please refer to Course 590, Oracle9i: A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction Will the material I learn be relevant for my UNIX [or VMS] shop? Yes, SQL and PL/SQL are platform-independent. Everything you learn is applicable to a UNIX or VMS environment. How much time is spent on each topic? Content Hours Introduction to RDBMS 1.0 Architecture, installation and data modeling 2.0 Introduction to SQL*Plus 1.0 Working with SQL 5.0 Designing a database schema 1.5 Establishing integrity 2.0 Enforcing security 2.0 Improving performance 2.0 PL/SQL language concepts 4.0 Exception handling 1.0 Cursors and sub-programs 3.0 Developing triggers and packages 2.5 Times, including the workshops, are estimates; exact times may vary according to the needs of each class. What kind of hands-on exercises are included in the course? The hands-on exercises in this course provide immediate reinforcement of material covered. Exercises include producing queries using joins, set operators, groupings and subqueries, utilising declarative constraints to impose business rules, enhancing performance with indexes, controlling logic and handling exceptions, building PL/SQL procedures, triggers and packages, and creating object types and nested tables. How are object-relational databases addressed in Oracle 10g? The object-relational functionality in Oracle 10g fully supports the creation of reusable code. This enables you to quickly create additional functionality within new and existing applications simply by copying objects. The object capability also allows you to standardise code across applications, simplifying administration. What is the difference between this course and the one offered by Oracle? Learning Tree is dedicated to accelerating the careers of our clients by providing them with world-class technology and management training. Our independence from Oracle (and every other vendor) allows us to give an unbiased view of what works and what does not. This course is objective in its approach, having been developed independently from Oracle by industry experts who bring their real-world experience to the classroom. How does this course relate to other Learning Tree courses? Course 593 is the prerequisite for both Course 594, Oracle® Database 10g Administration: Hands-On, helps prepare you to set up and configure Oracle databases, control and administer user accounts, monitor and optimise database storage, and protect the database with appropriate backup and recovery strategies. The following courses may also be of interest: 382, Relational Database Design, Tools and Techniques: Hands-On provides a comprehensive introduction to relational databases 492, Application Development and Tuning for Oracle® Databases: Hands-On provides the knowledge and skills needed to create powerful and secure Oracle database applications and tune them for optimal performance 493, Oracle® PL/SQL Programming: Hands-On provides extensive experience in utilising advanced techniques to design PL/SQL applications that solve complex business problems 234, Developing SQL Queries for Oracle® Databases: Hands-On offers the skills needed to write robust, reliable and efficient SQL queries 518, Hands-On Oracle® Database 10g: Backup, Recovery and Server Tuning offers techniques to solve a range of issues, including media and site failures, invalid user input, lock contention, and poor memory and storage allocation.

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