Kemjisuper:

Hello Database Newbies, Gurus & Guruettes

I'd like us to use this forum to educate ourselves & discuss issues

concerning ORACLE Database Administration. I know there's already a

thread on Oracle, but it's packed full of Professionals and some of

the discussion points are way beyond the scope for us Newbies. We

really need to pick up on the very basics of being a DBA like for

instance

- What's the job of a DBA like?

The link below will help in addressing some of the tasks of a DBA.

http://www.oracle.com/technology/getting-started/coredba.html

- Would you be going to work every morning to issue SELECT statements?

Not necessary. Except when you're a Developer DBA, your use of SELECT statement is very minimal. Your use of this is restricted mainly for exploring the database for information. There is this wrong conception here that being a DBA is all about SQL and PL/SQL. Please there is far more to being a DBA than knowing PL/SQL and SQL.

- Is it an interesting job besides high paying?

It a fun job. Being in it for a few years now and cant see myself giving it up for anything.

- What professional ethics are associated with being a DBA?

This is one of those unwritten rules of being a DBA. As a DBA you have access to sensitive information stored in the databases you manage. So as a DBA a high standard is expected. That is why these days in the US after 9/11 certain DBA jobs require not only being a US citizen but also having a Secret Clearance.

- What professional Certifications are attainable for ORACLE?

There are just so many. Here is a link to help you.

http://education.oracle.com/pls/web_prod-plq-dad/db_pages.getpage?page_id=141

- Which are the best Institutions to study Oracle in Nigeria?

Unfortunately cant help here. More or less a visitor to Nigeria these days.

- What's the demand for Oracle DBA's like in Nigeria?

I believe the demand for those with relevant experience is high. That i know for sure going by what my contacts on ground tell me. But like everywhere else in the world, there is this apathy towards beginner. Employers seem to forget there the guru of tomorrow needs somewhere today to cut his teeth.

- What are the risks involved if something goes terribly wrong?

Very high. That's why the job interviews are always very demanding. You tend to e grilled on practical aspect of the job that even the exams dont cover. Employers put a lot of emphasis on ability to demonstrate hands-on capability than anything else. I remember sometimes in 2004 when i nearly ran into trouble for refreshing a listener on one of my environments that the client can not afford to go down for a minute. It takes something like less than the twinkle of an eye lid for a listener to be refreshed. Believe me, i hardlylogged out of the listener command line when the phones starting ringing and questions were being asked.
But all in all, even the strictest employers give room for mistakes. Most Oracle shops are segregated. DBAs are assigned job and duties based on their experience and comfortability. In such environments, junior DBAs are expected to ask questions from the senior DBAs. But in some one DBA environments, then you have a jack of all DBA. Here the margin for error is very minimal. It is more important for a DBA to know where to look for solution to a problem than to claim to know it all. As such employers these days are incorporating questions on the Internet Search engines like google and metalink as part of drill for DBAs being interviewed for a job.
Generally though, Oracle database is so robust that the possibility of a DBA doing something grave is very minimal. Unless for someone masquerading as a DBA. What is common though i DBAs being slow or unable to solve a problem. For example while it may take an experience DBA a short time to recover and restore a lost control file, it may take a beginner DBA like forever to do it.
All the above being said, its easier for a DBA to be fired for incompetence just like in other jobs than for a DBA to be fired for doing something stupid. It will really take a stupid DBA to go and delete all his control file.

- , and so on!

Lastly, let me add here being a DBA requires a lot of hardwork and lots and lots of continous education. Thank God for the internet. There are so many resources out there for one to access. Nearly any possible problem a DBA will encounter must have been encountered by someone before. So to succeed as a DBA you need to know where to look for for help. This key. And be ready to read wide.

Please note what i have written here can be aid to be global in nature. I wish i can give more Nigerian specific situations.

Here we'll be seeking help and advice from those who have gone far,

and those possibly through with their Oracle Certification.

As time goes on, we'll also practice revising some codes and SQL

statements which may be familiar or strange to us (Professional help

required here pls).

Please, let's respond to this topic positively in our best interests.

Cheers

I hope you find my post useful. If you have further questions please dont fail to post them and time permitting i will try my utmost best to address your concerns.

Goodluck.

A-40:

T[b]he sore point is there are not that many DBA jobs[/b] in Nigeria its still a growing field definitely and the experience thing is another issue people expect you to have been on the job for donkey years so its still a bit hard out there for most of us that are still pretty new to it

azum:

Are you really sure about the bold part. Yes it is a growing field just as it is anywhere in the world. Yes the experience matters. But believe me these two are not limited to Nigeria alone. But i dont quite think it is right to say there are not many DBA jobs in Nigeria. I know for sure that 5 of the following banks: GTB, First Bank, Union Bank, UBA, Intercontinental, Oceanic and Zenith run various versions of Oracle RDBMS server. Many of the second tier banks do. Infact i used to work for one of them before i left Nigeria in the late 1990s. Even as at then many other banks run Oracle environments.
I also know for a fact that all the major Oil companies including most of the local ones have complex Oracle environments requiring DBAs. Not to talk of most of the major companies in Nigeria. These i know for a fact. Then quite a number of State Govts have various ERPs running on the Oracle Database. Then there are various software houses all undertaking one Oracle project or the other.
Also note Oracle Corporation has a Nigerian office since 2001/2002: Oracle Corporation that i know of will not have an office in Nigeria unless it is revenue generating.
So definitely there are Oracle DBA jobs out there but the key thing is the experience. And then the issue of these banks and companies wanting to recruit Nigerians living abroad to come and work for them.

Le Moor:

Azum,
You are tight, a number of the large companies run Oracle in their environment. But with that said, it is not unsual to see DBA's sit tight at most jobs. When a company has more developmental/QA environments than production, then you have more fluidity in the DBA industry, but when what you have for the most part is production support, then most of the available jobs are taken up without new jobs been necessarily added.

I thinkthis might account for why there seems to be a dearth in Oracle DBA jobs in Nigeria

Kemjisuper:

Hey Guru's and Newbies - which of you can help me out in deciphering this Oracle code? I mean, an explanation of what exactly it's meant to achieve. Thanks

Here's the code:

SELECT first_name ||' '|| last_name ||', who was employed as '||job_id ||' has been granted a salary increase of '|| salary ||' . His New Salary is =N='|| (Salary + 10000) as "SALARY INCREASE" from employees where salary < 3000;

jabbok:

Looking at the code, it simply gives a report generated from the employees table with the condition of where salary is less than 3000. However, the use of concatenation symbol (||) and sentences quoted in single quotes will give the report some decriptions/explanations as the quoted words will come out as literal strings against d variables. The "as" of course is used to give the long column a more understandable alais of "SALARY INCREASE"