On the Oracle Base website, you’ll find plenty of articles about the new Oracle Database 23c release: the developer edition.
Finally, this new release brings features that make developers’ lives easier again.

Here’s a small list of our favorites from the range of new features:

  • Automatic PL/SQL to SQL transpiler: with a simple SQL command: alter session set sql-transpiler = ‘ON’; calls to simple PL/SQL functions/packages in SQL are resolved by the SQL engine, eliminating the back-and-forth with the PL/SQL engine. But we wonder, why isn’t this set by default?
  • SQL Boolean-type: finally. Long available in PL/SQL, it’s now also available in SQL and as a column type.
  • DB-DEVELOPER-ROLE: We have mixed feelings. We regularly create schemas for demo, testing, or training purposes. Until now, these were given the default “create session” and “resource” roles. The new DB-DEVELOPER-ROLE can replace this. If Oracle systematically expands this role with new features, it could add value. However, as architects, we still want to know who can do what.
  • Direct joins voor update en delete: today, we solve this with a subquery, but it’s not pretty. From 23c, we can now directly join with the base table. This will certainly improve performance in complex database schemas.
  • Domains: for large applications aiming to maintain consistency in types and lengths, this can be a huge help.
  • Aliassen in group by-clause: from now on, we can use the aliases from the SELECT clause in the GROUP BY and HAVING clauses.
  • Relational duality views: these new view structures allow us to perform CRUD operations on JSON documents using standard SQL CRUD commands: insert, select, update, and delete.
  • “FROM DUAL”: no Longer Needed! For simple queries or queries that add static data, we can now drop the “FROM DUAL” clause. Behind the scenes, it’s still added, but it saves us from some typing. It will feel strange at first, though.
  • Table values constructor: this is even more interesting than “FROM DUAL.” It allows you to add fixed data as a table to the WITH, FROM, INSERT, and MERGE clauses. Perfect for adding LOV or status lists.

Here you can find this and many other articles about the new database release for developers.

If you have any questions or want to learn more about how the Oracle Database can help you, feel free to contact us.