Re: newbie: looking for guidance

I could use some good advice.

I am interested in learning SQL (using the hands-on self-study approach). However, when I visited the Oracle software downloads page (http://otn.oracle.com/software/content.html), I found myself not knowing exactly what to download that was "free". I am running Win98SE on an Athlon XP 1600+ system with 512 MB RAM. Please advise.

Thank you for your attention.

>
> From: Kevin McDaniel (kmcdaniel96_at_home.com)
> Subject: Re: Newbie: Looking for guidance
> Newsgroups: comp.databases.oracle.misc
> Date: 2001-05-14 17:05:28 PST
>
>
> Sean,
>
> All I can offer are the lessons from my own experiences. The Oracle DBA 101
> was the very first Oracle book I purchased. I bought that book to help me
> make the decision to become a DBA. And my initial reactions, and even my
> continued reactions, are similar to those you've experienced. The amount of
> required information to be consumed is nearly stroke-provoking. This is why
> there are so few DBAs, and so many companies needing them. This is by no
> means a simple "I'd think maybe this time around I'll be a DBA" kind of
> career change. The investment is substantial and road is very hard. As far
> as employment, I lucked out in mine. My company decided to implement a new
> system that used Oracle as a back-end. They needed a DBA and was willing to
> grow one. So now I'm attending classes offered by Oracle Univ. and working
> with the implementation team at the same time.
>
> As far as what to focus on... SQL! It's the foundation of Oracle. Without
> it, you'll go nowhere. PL/SQL is Oracle's programming extension to SQL.
> SQL, by itself, does not have much logic built into it. In order to do
> things like LOOPS, you'll need PL/SQL. You can download a free copy of
> Oracle from their website. Install it, making sure you create the demo
> database. A warning, it is beefy! So make sure you have the CPU and memory
> for it. Use this database to practice your SQL. I, personally, suggest
> classes. Others may suggest self-study. Choice is yours.
>
> Good luck.
>
>
> "Sean Flynn" <sflynn1_at_rcn8.com> wrote in message
> news:9dpimj$cjt$1_at_bob.news.rcn.net...
> > Greetings,
> > Trying to make the transition from a sales/acct mgmt background to an Oracle
> > DBA track and a bit overwhelmed by the initial crush of info. This decision
> > is after yet another startup has fallen by the wayside leaving me unemployed
> > (and truthfully a bit tired of sales). I've picked up "Oracle DBA 101" from
> > Oracle press and have seen mention of some other good books posted here, but
> > I'm still unsure of my next steps. In NYC (and certainly elsewhere) there
> > are several vocational schools and Universities (Oracle included) that
> > provide training for this track, but I don't know what standard to base an
> > evaluation on. Does anyone have any opinions on any of these programs one
> > way or the other, taking into account my lack of real programming
> > experience? I'm sure I can learn it, I just don't want to be at a
> > disadvantage without it if I do take a course.
> > Ideally I'd like to be able to start working in this field at some level as
> > soon as possible (that IS the goal here), so I can take advantage of the
> > gurus and hands-on usage that are available. At what point does someone
> > become employable in this regard? Is it more important to focus on SQL vs
> > PL/SQL?
> > Any advice/help/insight is most appreciated. Thanks in advance.
> >
> > Sean
> >
Received on Fri Sep 27 2002 - 20:30:24 CDT