Oracle PL/SQL Best Practices: Write the Best PL/SQL Code of Your Life

I really enjoyed reading this book. Even if I don't agree with everything, it's an extremely usefull book to read.

A few years ago I bought the first edition of this book. It had a meaningful classification of the suggested best practices and each of them was presented in a consistent way e.g. Title, Example, Benefits, and Challenges. As the technology evolved (and the links mentioned were not there anymore), I bought this second edition expecting an update in the available tools to support the best practices and probably one or two chapters related to the new Oracle PL/SQL features. Those things were definitely there but I was surprised to find a totally rewritten book. Steven Feuerstein opted for a story-telling style instead of the formal approach followed in the first edition. By describing a project inside an imaginary company with its imaginary employees (each of them with a different character and a different way of working), it is definitely easier (and funnier) to read. Good programming practices are common to all languages so I didn't expect any big surprises (naming conventions, layout, keeping procedures short, avoid repeating code, etc). What I found extremely valuable was the chapter about exception handling, the advice about how to implement a test-driven approach for the PL/SQL code, the reference to software tools (free and commercial) that can be used in the development process, and the online resources (PL/SQL code, articles). My only criticism would be the Quick Reference provided in the book. After having read the book, it was not so easy for me to find again a particular section or example. I had to re-read a few pages in order to find what I was looking for (contrary to the first edition where this was very easy done). I would recommend this book to any beginner or intermediate PL/SQL developer, although I am sure that even experienced ones will learn valuable things.

1. I do not follow every practice in this book.2. Only some of those I don't follow do I think I should follow.3. All of the practices strike me as at least arguable.It does what it sets out to do. I believe that it will help the reader use PL/SQL more effectively. In the next edition, I'd like to see a section on unit testing, using the utPLSQL system that Feuerstein is managing the development of.

I found this book to be an excellent (re-)introduction to good programming practices in PL/SQL. After reading the first few pages a little defensively ("I don't make those sorts of mistakes do I?") I soon realised that there was much to learn in this book as well as much that I had forgotten. This book has lead to an instant improvement in the quality of my PL/SQL code. I particularly like the Quick Reference card in the back of the book.

I have been an avid reader of Steven's books ever since I started learning PL/SQL as part of my career in Oracle. Without a doubt he is an authority on this proprietary language from Oracle and has a vast repository of code that he can proudly claim his own. This book is ideal for those who have experience working with applications built on Oracle. You may have encountered situations in which you probably chose an approach to solve a problem or get something done in a hurry without thinking through the implications on performance or taking recourse to some useful features in PL/SQL. These practices classified by topic will not only explain the wisdom but also illustrate how to use it.Make sure you keep it handy and follow these guidelines religiously in your application code.Hats off to Steven and O'Reilly for another useful title !