Scope and visibility- pl/sql, PL-SQL Programming

Assignment Help:

Scope and Visibility

The References to an identifier are resolved according to its visibility and scope. The scope of an identifier is that area of a program unit (subprogram, block, or package) from which you can reference the identifier. An identifier is visible only in the areas from which you can reference the identifier using an unqualified name. The Figure shows the visibility and scope of a variable named x that is declared in an enclosing block, and then re-declared in a sub-block.

The Identifiers declared in a PL/SQL block are considered local to that block and global to all its sub-blocks. If a global identifier is re-declared in a sub-block, both the identifiers remain in the scope. Within the sub-block, though, only the local identifier is visible as you must use a qualified name to reference the global identifier.

Though you cannot declare an identifier twice in the similar block, you can declare the same identifier in two various blocks. The two items represented by the identifier are discrete, and any change in one does not affect the other. Though, a block cannot reference the identifiers declared in other blocks at the similar level as these identifiers are neither global nor local to the block.

 

2006_Scope and Visibility.jpg

 

                                          Figure: Scope and Visibility




The example below describes the scope rules. Note that the identifiers declared in one sub-block cannot be referenced in another sub-block. That is because the block cannot reference the identifiers declared in another blocks nested at similar level.


DECLARE
a CHAR;
b REAL;
BEGIN

-- identifiers available here: a (CHAR), b
DECLARE
a INTEGER;
c REAL;
BEGIN
-- identifiers available here: a (INTEGER), b, c
END;
DECLARE
d REAL;
BEGIN
-- identifiers available here: a (CHAR), b, d
END;
-- identifiers available here: a (CHAR), b
END;


Remember that the global identifiers can be re-declared in a sub-block, in that case the local declaration prevails and the sub-block cannot reference the global identifier unless you use a qualified name. The qualifier can be the label of an enclose block, as the example below shows:


<>
DECLARE
birthdate DATE;
BEGIN
DECLARE
birthdate DATE;
BEGIN
...
IF birthdate = outer.birthdate THEN...


As the next illustration shown below, the qualifier can also be the name of an enclosing subprogram:


PROCEDURE check_credit (...) IS
rating NUMBER;
FUNCTION valid (...) RETURN BOOLEAN IS
rating NUMBER;
BEGIN
...
IF check_credit.rating < 3 THEN...


Though, within the same scope, a label and a subprogram cannot have the similar name.


Related Discussions:- Scope and visibility- pl/sql

Biconditional - sql, Biconditional - SQL The biconditional p ↔ q can b...

Biconditional - SQL The biconditional p ↔ q can be expressed in Tutorial D by p = q and the same is true of SQL. The question then arises as to whether, in SQL, p = q is equiv

Substitution and instantiation - sql, Substitution and Instantiation - SQL ...

Substitution and Instantiation - SQL It shows how NULL might appear in substitution for a parameter of a predicate and how it might thus participate in instantiation of that p

Predefined exceptions, Predefined Exceptions The internal exception is ...

Predefined Exceptions The internal exception is raised implicitly whenever your PL/SQL program exceeds a system-dependent limit or violates an Oracle rule. Each & every Oracle

Develop data business intelligence project, Develop Data Business Intellige...

Develop Data Business Intelligence Project Project Description: We are linking our Microsoft SQL Database to GoodData Business Intelligence. We are seeking somebody who has e

Use of table comparisons - sql, Use of Table Comparisons - SQL Table ...

Use of Table Comparisons - SQL Table comparisons where it is noted that although table expressions cannot be compared, we have TABLE (t) to convert a table expression t into

Primary key - sql, Primary Key - SQL A PRIMARY KEY specification carri...

Primary Key - SQL A PRIMARY KEY specification carries an implicit NOT NULL constraint on each column of the specified key. When more than one key constraint is required, the k

Merge and truncate in sql, MERGE and TRUNCATE in SQL SQL has two more ...

MERGE and TRUNCATE in SQL SQL has two more table update operators, MERGE and TRUNCATE. MERGE, like INSERT, takes a source table s and uses it to update a target table t. Brief

Advantages of invoker rights, Advantages of Invoker Rights The Invoker-...

Advantages of Invoker Rights The Invoker-rights routines centralize the data retrieval. They are particularly helpful in applications which store data in various schemas. In su

Calculating a Shopper''s Total Spending, Many of the reports generated from...

Many of the reports generated from the system calculate the total dollars in a shopper''s purchases. Follow these steps to create a function named TOT_PURCH_SF that accepts a shopp

Data types in sql - character, Data Types in SQL - Character CHARACTER...

Data Types in SQL - Character CHARACTER or, synonymously, CHAR, for character strings. When this type is to be the declared type of something (e.g., a column), the permissible

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd