Using Oracle Database 11g Hierarchical Profiler in SQL Developer

Oracle SQL Developer 1.5 exposes a few new Oracle 11g database features. These include the Flashback and the PL/SQL Hierarchical Profiler. For details on either of these feature it's best to dive in the the 11g documentation, available online here. The PL/SQL Hierarchical Profiler..."identifies hot spots and performance tuning opportunities... It reports the dynamic execution program profile organized by subprogram calls..."

I have recorded a brief demo to illustrate using the PL/SQL Hierarchical Profiler in SQL Developer.

Not only do you need Oracle 11g, you also need to have access to a set of tables and a new package called DBMS_HPROF. SQL Developer takes control of setting this up and so you need only acknowledge the steps being taken. If you don't want SQL Developer to create the required profiler tables, review the 11g documentation and ensure you set this up before hand.

Once you have created a profile you can review the detail. The reports provided include details such as:

• Number of calls to the subprogram
• Time spent in the subprogram itself
• All subprograms that a given subprogram called (children)
  

Have fun!

Oracle SQL Developer 1.5 is Production

You might be linked into the announcements RSS feed on the OTN forum and so will have received the alert from the SQL Developer team announcing that we have released SQL Developer 1.5.

The latest release of SQL Developer expands the file-based support by introducing tight integration with the CVS and Subversion version control systems. In addition to browsing and editing files in the file system, in this release you can now import files into your source control system, check them out, modify them, and commit the changed files back into the source control system.

SQL Developer 1.5 has two new navigators; a File Navigator, available on start up, and a Versioning Navigator. This latter is not opened by default, instead is accessed when needed using the View menu. Once you have created a connection to your version control system, you can use SQL Developer to import files and version files. SQL Developer tracks the history of a file and you can compare recent changes and accept or reject those changes. Once you have accepted changes and committed them back to the version control system, you can generate a patch, based on the differences.

SQL Developer 1.5 is more than version control. This is the release where we wanted to address as many of the community requests as we could. The snag with that is as soon as you respond to one request, a dozen more new ones pop up. We're no daunted by this, just accepted a long list of requests and if you look at the Exchange, you'll see that many made it into 1.5. Requests added include code insight, updated formatter and more connection options. For a full list of new features, you can review the New Feature list on OTN.

For all new supporting documents, please visit SQL Developer on OTN

An Update from Five and a Half Hours East of ‘Normal’

Even though I’m not a regular blogger, here’s an update about why things are quiet now. As a rule I keep this blog for SQL Developer related comment or features. I plan to continue in that vein, but sometimes it’s nice to talk about or read something slightly different. I was pinged a few times in January by various friends and colleagues to add a list of “8 Things …” At the time I thought this was quite a fun activity and despite the various mumbles and grumbles on a few sites, planned to add a short list to my blog, thinking it would be a great way to get blogging in 2008 and to break my ever-sporadic habit. You are welcome to stop reading at this point, I should just add that this is not a list of 8 things…just one. For those who pinged me, this would have been on the list of ‘8 things you don’t know about me’

If you are a regular reader or know me, you’ll know that I live and work in London. This month I am living and working in New Delhi, India. I’m working for an Indian based charity called Asha. Dr Kiran Martin, a paediatrician, established Asha some 18 years ago, when she started to treat the slum dwellers during a cholera outbreak. Asha is now active in about 40 slums in Delhi, working with over 200 000 people, with a programme that encompasses community and individual development, working on environmental improvements and providing health care. Asha uses volunteers to help, with many hundred from the slum communities. The slum volunteers are trained by Asha staff and then become part of the team working together with professional health care workers. Last year I came out with a team for 10 days from the UK, during a break from Oracle, to help paint a clinic in one of the slums. I documented my trip during that time on this separate blog. http://delhiminimission.blogspot.com
While we were there, we were told about their plans to start English and Computer Literacy programmes and to call for volunteers to get involved. They were hoping for TEFL or TESOL trained volunteers who could spare 2 – 3 months. I am here for a month, as one of the volunteers, teaching children English in one of the slums.

I do have access to the Internet sporadically and so you might see me pop up on the forum from time to time, but I’m officially on leave, so if you think I’m quieter than normal, you might find me chatting here, http://delhiminimission.blogspot.com or maybe even here, http://sueharper.visualblogging.com

I’ll be back in April.

SQL Developer EA2 is out now

Oracle SQL Developer1.5 Early Adopter's Release 2 (EA2) is out now. We made it available last night and already the forum is buzzing with EA2 feedback and the developers are focusing on the next phase.
Did you know you can build a gauge into a report or a data grid query in SQL Developer 1.5? Take a look at this quick demo. Below is a preview screen shot.

New Year, New Features, New Release and a Few Tips!

I should be blogging! So much to tell you and so little time! I thought when I was first tagged for the "8Things", that I'd use that to start blogging again, and then the second time I was tagged I was sure I would, but even the third time didn't help... Aah well, maybe one day I'll tell you a few things about me that you don't know. I want to tell you I'm going back to India in March (did you know I went last year?) and never got around to that either. All in good time.

The SQL Developer news is that Oracle SQL Developer 1.5 Early Adopters 1 (EA1) is out. If anything that should have had me straight on the blog, but I am tracking feature issues and feedback on the forum and so didn't. Then one of the team sent me this tip and it was just too good to lose:

You can use alt-shift-# (where # is a number) to create a "editor bookmark", then use alt-# to navigate to it.

So, if you have a number of worksheets open, you can create a bookmark selecting alt-shift-1, which assigns an alt-1 navigator shortcut to the active editor. You'll see a small numbered icon on editor's tab. If you repeat that for each open tab, then you can then navigate between tabs using keyboard strokes, alt-1, alt-2, etc.

A Few Other Keyboard Strokes:

• To use code editor templates you have created (in the preferences) use the keyboard shortcut ctrl+shift+T.
• The keyboard shortcut for the SQL History is crtl +up or ctrl + down. This replaces whatever is in the worksheet with lines from your history.
  
• To create a new, unshared worksheet, use the keystroke ctrl+shift+N. This creates a separate, unshared worksheet. The unshared worksheets are labeled as follows: HR_ _<1>

Did you know that if you open a xxx.trc file in Oracle SQL Developer you'll see a sortable, formatted view of the file?

So it seems there are lots of tips about, which you might like to know about or which you have discovered on your own and wished someone had told you. I'm going to try to tell you more and often as I can. If you have some for me, I'd love to hear about them.

Sue

After the Storm - Oracle Open World and a New Podcast

I've had a week back at the office following Oracle Open World in San Francisco and had some time to reflect on all that went on. If you have been following various blogs and write ups about the event you'll have heard about the various dinners bloggers or Ace's attended, which, while they may seem frivolous, are as an important part of any conference as the sessions themselves, by providing a valuable opportunity of meeting or catching up with folk in person. (See the updates from Mark Rittman on those.) Actually these kinds of events are really good for talking to folk about the products they use, their concerns, dislikes and likes.
This year the Oracle SQL Developer team were busy at the main event on the demo grounds. We had great feedback on the new Migration Workbench extension, which has been a great help to a number of companies. I also heard very positive feedback about the new Times Ten extension, now available in preview. We spent most of the time demonstrating the new features the team are currently working on. I found that SQL*Plus users, DBAs who use the command-line and our existing database developers all liked what they saw.

We also had a number of papers and a hands-on session at the Oracle Develop event. One of our sessions was in a room too small for the crowd and had to be moved to one larger. I was very pleased to see that our hands-on event was a sell out and only wished we had time for a second or even longer session. I'll upload all the hand-on material onto OTN.

I had an opportunity to meet and talk to Tom Haunert, editor of the Oracle Magazine. The brief podcast we recorded is available from the general Oracle Podcasts site on OTN. You'll find it under the Oracle Magazine.
I'd love to hear the kinds of topics you'd be interested in hearing. (Bearing in mind this is audio only and has a max time of about 12 minutes, although most are about 8 to 10 minutes.)

My only regrets not seeing everyone I'd hoped to see and not stopping to talk for longer with some folk I saw along the way, as I dashed to a presentation or back to the demogrounds. Maybe next year.

Gearing up for Oracle OpenWorld

One week to go before Oracle OpenWorld in San Francisco. There is a buzz in the air, with the preparation build-up, whether we are in California right now or not. One of the things they have added this year is "Oracle Connect" an on-line community for the conference, along with all the other information and events on the go. I think you can safely say, there is something for everyone! For those who don't like the formalities of some of the talks, there are 2 areas you might be interested in. The one is the "Unconference" and the other is the "No Slide Zone".

This year Larry is talking on Sunday night too. Take a look at the keynotes scheduled.

Kris and I will both be at the conference again this year, along with other developers from the team. Stop by the stand and introduce yourselves, we'd like to meet you.