Oracle SQL*Loader: The Definitive Guide

The authors have done a superb job of covering all corner cases that one might encounter while loading data in the database. The text is sprinkled with practical advise, do's & dont'sI am not sure if sqlloader development has kept up with the database development (i.e. if there exists a 10g version of the sqlloader to go with the 10g Oracle database). If so, then I wish they will come up with a second edition of the book.

This book is excellent. You can't just get better than this for a starter. It's written in simple plain english with relevant examples. I would recommend this to anyone. My only concern is if we could get new edition of this book for new Oracle versions such as 10g or 11g. Thanks to authors.

Great buy for the cost.Has everything you need to know before getting started using SQL*Loader.Quick read, a continuance reference.

I ot the book fast. It was exactly as described. I didn't have a need to contact the merchant because everything went so fast.

Great reference book I find it handy

It's no secret why anyone would seek out a book on SQL*Loader, considering that Oracle's documentation on SQL*Loader, even with 11g, is notably worse than their usual excellent standard.This book shows promise, particularly in offering a much more logical flow than the official documentation. However, now that I've owned it for several years now, I have to admit that it has never once helped me solve a SQL*Loader problem.Why? Its examples are trivial, being far too simple when compared to practical needs, and its explanations for some of the finer points of SQL*Loader are too thin. As a classic example, consider the authors' treatment of the WHEN clause in the SQL*Loader control file, pp 146-147, 149-150. Much of the first couple of pages mirrors the syntax diagrams and such from Oracle's documentation. Moving to the examples, one sees, for example a control file that tests for two conditions in order to load a record. But what about more than one set of conditions? How do we get around the lack of an "OR" test in the control file in order to test for multiple combinations that would all load to the SAME table? Nothing. What if you want to combine multiple file records into a single database row AND test AND transform, all at the same time? Examples of this sort would be invaluable, but, again, there's nothing.There's no coverage of external tables (which were introduced in 9i, the latest version covered by the book), even though the syntax is rather similar, and external tables offer the ability to replace SQL*Loader in many cases.Overall, I think I'm finally going to cull this one from my collection in favor of the Internet.

This book is totally without value.My distinct impression is that this book was written by people who had never used SQL*Loader until the day they decided to write the book. This is not a "Definitive Guide", but rather, it is a rewording of the original manual, but with lots of information left out. In other words, it is less than the manual. There is no added value here. There is no evidence of any experience, let alone expertise, on the part of the authors. It's like some journalism students decided to write a technical manual.Here's just one example: Anyone who's loaded much data knows that dates come in all forms. Wouldn't you suppose I should be able to go to the index and find "date" and from there get a complete list of date formatting tokens, like something to tell me "MM" is month, not minute? No such luck. Some "Definitive Guide" this is -- NOT!This book is a rip-off; don't waste your money. With or without the book you are going to need the Oracle utility manual, since this thing is incomplete and was written at a baby level.

This is a good book for anyone needing or wanting to learn more about SQL Loader. The book begins by laying the foundation for SQL Loader and discussing "The Mysterious Control File". After that it discusses the two types of files that can be loaded - fixed lenght and delimited files. With the basics covered, the authors turn to error recovery and advanced features such as selective loading and direct path loads. After reading this book, you should have a good idea of what SQL Loader can and cannot do along with some of the finer points of when to and not to use SQL Loader. A knowledge of Oracle SQL is really all that is required to understand the material presented. This book is a must have for any shop using Oracle for their database.