Welcome to Linux

I am recently trying to get my hands smooth on Linux. Fortunately I found a very good book (Linux Administration Handbook) to help me out in this process. The book is not any distribution specific rather covers almost all major distributions. Well I chose Redhat Linux-4 for two reasons. First and the dominant is the availability of software and secondly I was told that it is user friendly. Normally Linux is not associated with the term User Friendly but I think otherwise. I am not an expert just a newbie but the thing I felt during this short experience of mine is that it's all matter of familiarity. We used Windows from day one and never tried Linux or UNIX not even Mac. Windows has become the trademark as for as using Computer is concerned but it is self made. There is no harm in trying others and getting familiar with other desktops. But I must admit that Windows is easier to use then Linux but Linux is not all that difficult as well if you try to use it without taking Windows in your mind. Break the psyche and that's it.

And look Linux really cares about you as well. If you are from Mac background then it has got Gnome for your ease and if your background is Windows then you have got KDE. Mainly my focus is on administration side that I will be in need of at some stage during my Oracle DBA career. And I am feeling much comfortable and fun then it is on Windows. Mainly it is because of the flexibility and power that you have in your hands while doing all that stuff. It's also known as Rootly Powers (term from the book I mentioned earlier). I am really enjoying and I will be updating my blog with some Linux stuff as well in the future.

A very good early lesson that I have learned is that Linux gives you the option of modifying system files by hand. This is lots of fun but be careful because if anything went wrong you will have yourself in series troubles and biggest of them all is there is no restart and get OK option here.

Oracle Database and its Development Tools

In very simple words and in one line they are at the far shores of the river. On the bright side you have got the database with all of its miracle powers that you see Oracle proclaims about on its website. And well on the other side…………. May be I think one more time before saying anything. But I really thought about it a lot. I mean just look at the features of the Oracle Database and then look at the development tools that it had; you will definitely get confuse enough and will start thinking something else. I mean from SQL Developer to Forms Builder to Application Express; all have only one problem and that is they are not up to the task.

I wrote about SQL Developer in my earlier post and there is no need to say anything it anymore. There is nothing wrong with its features they seem to be good. But when you start it; the way it will consumes you machine's resources is too overwhelming. May be using something else then Java may solve the problem. There is nothing wrong with Forms and Reports Developer but they are too old to be used. After 6i nothing has been done to improve them; just a web interface which hangs more and works fewer; again thanks to Java. Although I am new to application express and just a couple of days ago I loved everything of it but till yesterday. Although very frequently it happens that your LOV may stop working but yesterday I discovered something that made me annoyed more then what when I get over my end-user's response. You cannot use updatable Primary keys on tables in application that you are planning to build using Oracle Application Express. Primary keys must be auto update either using a trigger or some PL/SQL function. Don't get confuse that it offers an option because that does not work. Updates will not work. There are works around on internet but in my case all of them failed. The problem is in Application Express 3.0; I don't whether it got fixed in 3.1 or not.