How to perform fuzzy search on varchar columns?

Hi folks,

I would like to perform queries on a varchar column that finds not only exactly spelled words but also words that sound similar and tolerates minor typos.
E.g. I have a column "surname" and search for "Meyer" I also want to have returned "Meier", "Maier" and so on. I have read a bit about Oracle Text, but this seems to big for what we require. Especially we don't need searching within uploaded files! Could anyone be so kind to give me a hint, whether we have to install an additional package or if Oracle delivers it out of the box. What would a sample query look like?

TIA Frank
frank_ratzlow_at_nojunk.hotmail.com
P.S. Oracle 9iR2 Received on Sat Feb 03 2007 - 04:22:08 CST