1. Chapter 1 PL/SQL: What, When, and Where

   1. What Is PL/SQL?

   2. Why Use PL/SQL?

   3. What You Need to Get Started with PL/SQL

2. Chapter 2 Fundamentals

   1. PL/Lingo

   2. Running Your First PL/SQL Program

   3. Introduction to Program Structure

   4. Variables

   5. Common Operators

   6. Conditional Logic

   7. Executing in Circles: Loop Statements

   8. Code Formatting: Requirements and Guidelines

   9. Some Advanced Fundamentals

3. Chapter 3 Let's Code!

   1. Some Background on the Example

   2. A First Programming Exercise

   3. Retrieving a Book Count with a Function

   4. Make Your Code Resilient

   5. Using PL/SQL Packages to Organize Code

   6. Going to the Next Level

   7. Now What?

4. Chapter 4 Go Web, Young Man

   1. Introduction to HTML

   2. Using PL/SQL to Create Web Pages

   3. What Else?

5. Chapter 5 Fetch!

   1. What's the Big Deal?

   2. A Simple-Minded Approach to Retrieving One Row

   3. Retrieving More than One Row Using a Cursor

   4. Presenting Query Results via a Web Page

   5. Building a Web-Based Search Page Using Dynamic SQL

   6. Advanced Data Retrieval Topics

6. Chapter 6 Keeping House

   1. Organize Your Code

   2. Use Tools to Write Code Effectively

7. Chapter 7 Security: Keep the Bad Guys Out

   1. Oracle Security Primer

   2. Organizing Accounts to Improve Security

   3. Analyzing the Library System's Requirements

   4. Keeping a Trail of Database Changes

   5. Special Security Topics for PL/SQL Developers

8. Chapter 8 Communicating with the Outside World

   1. Sending Internet Email from PL/SQL

   2. Using the Mail Sender in the Library System

   3. Receiving Email Inside the Database

   4. Fetching Data from a Remote Web Site

   5. Integration with Other Languages

9. Chapter 9 Intermediate Topics and Other Diversions

   1. Riding the Software Lifecycle

   2. Lists o' Stuff (Collections) in PL/SQL

   3. Exception-Handling Packages

   4. Transaction Control

   5. The PL/SQL Compiler

   6. Managing Patron and Librarian Privileges

   7. Still More PL/SQL Features

10. Chapter 10 Afterword: "Making Good" of Database Programming

    1. The Evidence

    2. The Problem

    3. Answering the Objections

    4. What to Do

1. Glossary

2. Colophon

Our look is the result of reader comments, our own experimentation, and feedback from distribution channels. Distinctive covers complement our distinctive approach to technical topics, breathing personality and life into potentially dry subjects. The animal on the cover of Learning Oracle PL/SQL is a zebra butterfly, also known as a zebra longwing. The zebra butterfly is named for its long, narrow wings that have zebra-like yellow stripes. It has a thin abdomen and long black antennae. In caterpillar form, the zebra butterfly has a white body with long black spines and a yellow head. When zebra butterflies are caterpillars, they feed on the leaves of passion flowers, which contain toxins that make the butterflies poisonous and unpleasant tasting to predators.

Native to tropical climates, including the southern U.S. from Texas to Florida, heliconius charitonius is perhaps the most intelligent butterfly and leads a surprisingly social life. Zebra longwings roost in flocks with their kin, returning to the same perch every night, and giving first choice of perches to their elders. The butterflies sleep so soundly that you could pick them up, until th efirst light of day, when the first on up wakes the others with a gentle touch.

Adults live on flower nectar and pollen and are especially fond of lantana and shepherd's needle. The female lays her eggs on the passion vine, which will serve as food when the pupae emerge as caterpillars. The total life span of a zebra longwing can ran from as short as 21 days to as long as 8 months. Catherine Morris was the production editor and copyeditor, and Sue Willing was the proofreader for Learning Oracle PL/SQL. Leanne Soylemez and Claire Cloutier provided quality control. Judy Hoer wrote the index.

Ellie Volckhausen designed the cover of this book, based on a series design by Edie Freedman. The cover image is a 19th-century engraving from the Dover Pictorial Archive. Emma Colby produced the cover layout with QuarkXpress 4.1 using Adobe's ITC Garamond font.

Mihaela Maier converted the files from Microsoft Word to FrameMaker 5.5.6 using tools created by Mike Sierra. The illustrations that appear in the book were produced by Robert Romano and Jessamyn Read using Macromedia FreeHand 9 and Adobe Photoshop 6. THe tip and warning icons were drawn by Christopher Bing. This colophon was written by Linley Dolby.