Re: Oracle Data Warehouse builder

On Fri, 19 Jul 2002 15:43:24 GMT, "David A. Levy" <david.a.levy_at_rogers.com> wrote:

>The 9i version, which I have been using on a project for about 4 months now,
>isn't bad overall. Especially when you compare its price to say,
>Informatica. If your main goal is to generate PL/SQL ETL processes quickly,
>then you should at least download OWB and give it a good look. Some more
>details below.
>
>The good:
>
>Generates decent, flexible PL/SQL packages and SQL Loader scripts to load
>and transforms your data.
>
I can't speak for the SQL loader scripts, but the PL code leaves a lot to be desired in my opinion. Everything is done in PL tables, overkill for many loads. Joins (STILL) cannot span multiple talbes. It is difficult to use for subsequent revisions. It does not play well with source code control (CVS). However, a bit plus is that the code generated is consistent - a big plus for some shops.

>Some good performance enhancing capabilities - e.g. hints and partition
>swapping.
>
>Basic auditing and error handling included.
Very basic needs to be emphasized. Once you put in a decent exception handler or auditor, you loose the ability to use OWB for subsequent modifications.

>
>The bad:
>
>The table creation facilities are abysmal - don't even consider using
>Warehouse Builder to create database objects, use a real tool

I agree 100 percent.

>
>The data dictionary reports are next to useless. Plan to generate your own
>documentation.
>
>The ugly
>
>The interface can be somewhat clunky and irritating at times. It's Java and
>it shows. Still possible to be reasonably productive.
A faster processor does help this somewhat. I've started using OWB on my home system, an XP2200 and this does make the pain, shall we say, more bearable.

Overall though, I think you need to download a copy and take a look yourself. It is easy for me to point out shortcomings, but is does do a lot of things reasonably well. Received on Sat Jul 20 2002 - 03:21:49 CEST