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

Theory of spontaneous generation - origin of life, THEORY OF SPONTANEOUS GE...

THEORY OF SPONTANEOUS GENERATION - ABIOGENESIS OR AUTOGENESIS - According to this theory, the existing living communities have originated from non-living organic matter with

Functions - syntax, Functions The function is a subprogram which can ta...

Functions The function is a subprogram which can take parameters and be invoked. Normally, you can use a function to calculate a value. The function has 2 sections: the specifi

Block structure in pl/sql, Block Structure The PL/SQL is a block-struct...

Block Structure The PL/SQL is a block-structured language. That is, the fundamental units (procedures, anonymous blocks, and functions) that make up a PL/SQL program are logi

Type versus representation confusion in sql, Type versus Representation Con...

Type versus Representation Confusion in SQL This describes how a value might have two or more distinct representations. For example, user-defined type POINT might have a decla

Example of alternative formulation as a table constraint, Example of Altern...

Example of Alternative formulation as a table constraint Example: Alternative formulation as a table constraint ALTER TABLE EXAM_MARK ADD CONSTRAINT Must_be_enrolled_to_

Character types, ROWID and UROWID Internally, every database table has ...

ROWID and UROWID Internally, every database table has a ROWID pseudo column that stores binary values known as rowids. Each rowid shows the storage address of a row. A physical

Parameter default values, Parameter Default Values As the illustration ...

Parameter Default Values As the illustration below shows, you can initialize the IN parameters to the default values. In that way, you can pass various numbers of actual par

Tautology - equivalences rules, Tautology - Equivalences Rules: If the...

Tautology - Equivalences Rules: If there Tautologies are not all the time as much easy to note as the one above so than we can use these truth tables to be definite that a sta

Join query, Using a join on 3 tables, select 5 columns and 10 rows from the...

Using a join on 3 tables, select 5 columns and 10 rows from the 3 tables without the use of a Cartesian product Query: SELECT E.LAST_NAME, E.FIRST_NAME, S.BUILDING, S.BRAN

Using commit, Using COMMIT The COMMIT statements end the present trans...

Using COMMIT The COMMIT statements end the present transaction and make permanent any changes made during that transaction. Till you commit the changes, other users cannot acc

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