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 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)