PL/SQL is, in almost all ways, a straightforward and deceptively simple programming language. The "deception" lies in how simplicity can sometimes mask capability. It is easy to learn the basics of PL/SQL, and you can become productive very quickly. And then you also quickly see how powerful and capable is PL/SQL. So I offer another post on PL/SQL fundamentals, this one offering key points to remember when declaring constants and variables. Some General Points 1. You can only have declarations in the declaration section, which is found between the IS | AS | DECLARE keyword and the BEGIN keyword (which kicks off the executable section) or END keyword if declaring elements at the package level. /* Anonymous and nested blocks*/ DECLARE ...declarations... BEGIN /* Procedures and functions */ PROCEDURE my_proc (...) IS | AS ...declarations... BEGIN /* Package specification and body */ PACKAGE my_pkg IS | AS ...declarations... END; So to be clear: there is an ...
For the last twenty years, I have managed to transform an obsession with PL/SQL into a paying job. How cool is that?