If you have Oracle9i, you have the database to beat all databases. Besides being among the cream of the crop when it comes to relational database packages, Oracle9i is one of the more complex. Oracle9i does some amazingly fancy things, but the easy things are sometimes tricky.

Oracle9i For Dummies covers the tough stuff in a straightforward and conversational manner, touching on key points and new features. This friendly guide leads you through a complete tour of Oracle9i, hitting the highlights the object relational world and these important product components:

• Enterprise Manager Console
• Major DBA tools
• SQL *Plus
• XML Developer's Kit
• Dataspeak
• Java applets

If you're new to relationship databases, you're bound to appreciate the many examples of simple database designs in Oracle9i For Dummies. As you consider each example, you begin to get a feel for how relational databases are used to model real-world situations. The down-to-earth coverage includes

• Getting to know the meat and potatoes of SQL
• Befriending Schema Manager elements
• Making the most of Oracle9i's built-in functions
• Traveling back in time with Flashback Queries
• Connecting relational tables with objects
• Creating a role and assigning object privileges
• Knowing why, what, when, and how to back up your data – and where to store it

The majority of the subject matter in this friendly – and believe it or not, fun – book applies to PCs, Macs, and mainframes and to all platforms from Windows to MacOS to UNIX. (Oracle9i's primary tools, Enterprise Manager and Console, have caught the Java wave and use the same mouse-driven screens no matter what operating system you’re using.) With Oracle9i For Dummies, you won't be able to use the "no experience" excuse when you face the task of building, using, or administering an Oracle database. This is the guide that packs in all you need to put Oracle9i to work – starting today!