Re: ORA-00999

From: Jonathan Lewis <jonathan_at_jlcomp.demon.co.uk>
Date: Fri, 23 Feb 2007 18:58:58 -0000
Message-ID: <9N2dnW6kJPLvpELYnZ2dneKdnZypnZ2d@bt.com>

"DA Morgan" <damorgan_at_psoug.org> wrote in message news:1172255605.776958_at_bubbleator.drizzle.com...
> Just found something without a single reference at metalink or that I
> can find using google.
>
> Can anyone explain what is happening here?
>
> SQL> CREATE OR REPLACE PACKAGE test AS
> 2 FUNCTION myfunc( args ...) RETURN VARCHAR2;
> 3 END test;
> 4 /
>
> Package created.
>
> SQL> CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION myfunc(args ...) RETURN VARCHAR2 AS
> 2 BEGIN
> 3 RETURN 'A';
> 4 END;
> 5 /
>
> Warning: Function created with compilation errors.
>
> SQL> sho err
> Errors for FUNCTION DUMMY:
>
> LINE/COL ERROR
> -------- -----------------------------------------------------------------
> 1/16 PLS-00999: implementation restriction (may be temporary)
> ellipsis not allowed in this context
>
> SQL>
>
>
> What is the meaning of (args ...) as an input parameter?
>
> And lest you think it invalid syntax ... check out
> /rdbms/admin/utllms.sql
>
> I am trying to figure out what the UTL_LMS package header means.
>
> Thanks.
> --
> Daniel A. Morgan
> University of Washington
> damorgan_at_x.washington.edu
> (replace x with u to respond)
> Puget Sound Oracle Users Group
> www.psoug.org

Not sure if this is the be-all and end-all, but it allows a convenient pl/sql interface to formatting error messages:

SQL> l
  1 declare
  2 mv varchar2(4000);
  3 begin

  4     mv := utl_lms.format_message(
  5             'unique constraint (%s.%s) violated',
  6             'schema',
  7             'constraint'
  8     );
  9     dbms_output.put_line(mv);

 10* end;
SQL> /
unique constraint (schema.constraint) violated

It's possible that there is an event you can set to make the "..." legal.

Basically, it looks like the Oracle equivalent of printf(), viz: a function that isn't a proper function because is can have any number of input parameters.

-- 
Regards

Jonathan Lewis
http://jonathanlewis.wordpress.com

Author: Cost Based Oracle: Fundamentals
http://www.jlcomp.demon.co.uk/cbo_book/ind_book.html

The Co-operative Oracle Users' FAQ
http://www.jlcomp.demon.co.uk/faq/ind_faq.html

Received on Fri Feb 23 2007 - 12:58:58 CST