Transition to Oracle?

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Transition to Oracle?

airparkroad

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July 26, 2011 at 6:53 pm

#242008

I just interviewed for a position within my company in a different team that uses Oracle. So far my only career exposure has been with SQL Server, for 3.5 yrs. Would it be wise to make a move now? Or just stick with SQL Server? Or would it matter at all? After all, the concepts and fundamentals are all the same...
Any thoughts..?

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Lynn Pettis SSC Guru Points: 442467 More actions · Answer 1

Depends if you are moving from a development position to a development position or a DBA position to a DBA position.

Overall, yes the concepts are the same. As a developer it should be easier to make the shift from SQL Server to Oracle, but there are differences between the two. After 14 years as a SQL Server DBA/Developer I took a position as an Oracle Developer. It has been a slow move, but my experience with SQL Server has been very beneficial in learning Oracle from a development perspective.

I have been able to eliminate cursors where they are not valid options. I have used techniques I learned using T-SQL to solve problems using PL/SQL.

I will be honest, however, I have missed the SQL Server and more importantly, the SQL Server Community. I have yet to find a community in Oracle that truely wants to help other developers as I have found in the SQL Server Community. In fact, I have gotten more Oracle help right here on SSC than on any Oracle specific site I have visited. I am looking forward to finding a position that will bring me back to what I have learned is my first love MS SQL Server. It is what I cut my teeth on, and in many ways I think Microsoft actually got things right when compared to Oracle. There are some things Oracle has done that make development easier as well, but I can live without them.

As for being beneficial, it all depends on what you are looking for in your career. Knowing both Oracle and MS SQL Server will show a breadth of knowledge that can (and may) help as your career continues to grow.

airparkroad SSC-Addicted Points: 463 More actions · Answer 2

Thank you very much for your reply. I am a developer and would very much like to remain as a developer but I am not limiting myself here. No one knows what the future will hold. I very much agree on what you said about the SQL Server community. I love the community and will surely miss the happenings around SQL Server if I do migrate to Oracle.

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004279 More actions · Answer 3

My recommendation would be to study Oracle on your own a bit before making such a move. There's a huge paradigm shift between PL/SQL and T-SQL. At least study what a "reference cursor" is, how it should be used in a package, and why it's necessary. I'll give you a hint... you can't use a simple SELECT to return anything to a GUI... it has to go through a reference cursor. In fact, you will sometimes have to do a similar thing while you're developing just to see what the output of something was as a sanity check.

And, no... I'm not trying to turn this into an Oracle bashing thread. Just be very aware that SQL is not SQL. 😉

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

Lynn Pettis SSC Guru Points: 442467 More actions · Answer 4

Just to add a little more (and this isn't Oracle bashing, just what I am learning), you will find that you will develop your code in packages instead of as stand alone procedures, functions, etc. Although this was not true of the project I first started working on (the original team was SQL Server trained (SyBase, not Microsoft) and developed based on their experience. Plus, it appears the version of nHibernate they were using couldn't communicate with packages (don't ask why, I don't know).

I am now learning about developing in packages. It reminds me very much like Ada. It takes a little getting used to, but it isn't too difficult. It does allow you to develop the public interface and stub it out easily so that you can then develop the private procedures and functions easily.

airparkroad SSC-Addicted Points: 463 More actions · Answer 5

Hmph.. I'm getting scared now for Oracle.. ha! I guess there WILL be a learning curve..

Lynn Pettis SSC Guru Points: 442467 More actions · Answer 6

airparkroad (7/26/2011)
Hmph.. I'm getting scared now for Oracle.. ha! I guess there WILL be a learning curve..

Don't be scared. Yes, there is a learning curve but use your knowledge of T-SQL to help you figure out what you need to do in Oracle. Much of the code I have written is based on my knowledge and experience using T-SQL. You just have to figure out how to do it in Oracle. If you are joining a team of experienced Oracle developers be sure to ask them questions to help you learn.