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Rating: 
Summary: BEGIN IF you_are_beginner THEN dont_buy_this_book END;
Review: for my purposes, this book was ideal! I have a background in databases and have programed in VBA, C and normal SQL for some time. I have dabbled in PL/SQL a little bit and needed a refference book to get me going fully. If you lack basic SQL knowledge and basic procedural programming concepts then this book won't help you very much as it assumes the reader is looking for a hands-on refference book. one other reviewer mentioned the 'DUAL' table being introduced without explanation among other things. - 'dual' is an oracle psudo-table that you can select calculations from. e.g. "select 10 - 4 from dual" returns a column named '10 - 4' with a value of in the cell returned. anyway... I agree with other reviewers that this book has a few errors (for example table aliases in the questions are different to those in the answers) and perhaps it could have been layed out more efficiently, but as I have said, for my purposes (quick refference book) it was Ideal.
Rating: 
Summary: Almost Horrible
Review: Grammar mistakes that lead you to wonder exactly what they are attempting to say, not systematic in explaining all the parameters/options of a command/function, and only skimming the surface of many concepts. Save your money, there's got to be a better book out there...
Rating: 
Summary: An exercise in frustration
Review: I bought this in hoping to find a PL/SQL book that could give me a real life lab exercise. I gave up on this book. The examples would sometime refer to advanced topics not discussed. There were errors. The exercises did not appear to be kitchen tested before the book was published. I am still looking for a good PL/SQL book that has good interactive lab exercises, if you find one please let the rest of us know.
Rating:
Summary: Awful
Review: This book is awful. Elena, the author, mostly read from the textbook. Anyone can read from the textbook. Why buy this book if the author is just going to read from the text? My suggestions is to go to Oracle and buy their CBT. It is worth it.
Rating:
Summary: Awful
Review: This book is awful. Elena, the author, mostly read from the textbook. Anyone can read from the textbook. Why buy this book if the author just going to read from the text?
Rating: 
Summary: This is a good book!
Review: This book is excellent for getting into PL/SQL but keep in mind you should have some knowledge of SQL first. That is the sequence for Oracle. If you want to be a Developer you study SQL first, then PL/SQL, then Forms and so forth. I took two classes on SQL first then bought this book and then signed up for a PL/SQL course at a local college. The book helped me get ahead of the class and now that I am a few weeks into the course I study and review the book and it makes much more sense that way. Also, the text for the coures is Fuerstein's PL/SQL text. That is an additional source but the overall experience has been very positive. There are some typos but if you understand the language you can weed them out.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book!!!!!
Review: This is another awesome book by the PTR Oracle Series. First you need to read the first one, Oracle SQL by Alice Morrison, then you can read this one. This is a great book and you will learn PL/SQL efficiently, but there are a ton of grammatical errors and incorrect syntax being used in sentences which almost seems like as if nobody proof read this book haha. On page 85 Self-review question 2, it asks:
"When a COMMIT has been issued, which of the following are true? Choose all that apply.
A) All memory holds on the data have been released.
B) All data inserts are available to other users.
C) You have to get married.
D) The transaction is not finished because SQL statements are still pending. Well in the book they have the answers as: A, B, and Yes, EVEN C. You have to get married lol I mean, if you're talking about a relationship then C is correct haha. But we're talking about comitting SQL statements. Go figure
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Workbok
Review: We released the Second Edition of this book on Oct 25th 2002. The same reader reviews are appearing under the listing of both editions so please note that comments dated prior Oct 25th 2002 relate to the first edition. We have corrected the mistakes in the first edition for the second edition and added over 240 pages of new information. A few chapters were completely rewritten so as to cover the newer Oracle 9i features. The second edition is 688 pages vs. the first editon at 447 pages. If you are seeing this comment on the first edition you can find the second edition by searching for the ISBN number 0130473200
Rating:
Summary: Poorly structured
Review: With over twenty years in large scale IT development using Java/C++/C/Assembly languages on Unix/Windows 2000/NT platforms, but a neophyte with PL/SQL, I needed a PL/SQL package that would assume no background knowledge in PL/SQL, get me up to speed fast, and at the same time be comprehensive. In other words, I wanted everything. This package no only satisfied this need, but opened up new avenues of thought concerning approaches to database programming. The book is simply matchless (it should get 6 stars--an extra star for the terrific exercises that incorporate hidden pearls of IT wisdom), and yes I have perused others on the market. Ms. Silvestrova demonstrates that she is a consummate professional. The flow of the book, depth of the hands-on exercises, and scope of material is an inimitable combination. This so far may sound over-glowing, but a workman is worthy of her hire. I would recommend this package to any introductory or middle level PL/SQL student. If you desire to be a competent PL/SQL professional, look no further. If you desire to have a guide that provides you with a solid answer to specific types of PL/SQL problems, look no further. However, if you seek a slick product that spoon feeds you programming palaver (under the guise of teaching), fly you fool: you have many under-performing options available.
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