Re: PL/pgSQL 2

On 09/04/2014 09:02 AM, Craig Ringer wrote:
> There are a few things I would like to see, like secure session
> variables in PL/PgSQL. Mostly, though, I think talk of "Oracle
> compatibility" seems to be something that comes up before the speaker
> has really understood what that would mean, and the sheer scope of the
> endeavour.
>
> It's not going from 50% compatible to 80% compatible, it's going from 5%
> compatible to 7% compatible. The most used 5% maybe, but still...

However, there are users who want certain features from PL/SQL not for
compatibility but because they're useful. For example:

* A "package" concept for encapsulation of multiple procedures, session
variables, etc.

* The ability to "compile" functions/procedures for faster execution.

* Autonomous transactions

We'd also like to borrow stuff from other DBMSes, such as multisets.
All of the above are worth implementing, even if it means implementing
them with different syntax (and mechanics) than PL/SQL.

Sadly, what's prevented us from having "packages" already has been the
insistence of potential feature sponsors that they work *exactly* like
PL/SQL's packages, which is incompatible with Postgres namespacing.
Also, we'd want any "package" concept to be usable with external PLs as
well as PL/pgSQL, which necessitates other Oracle-incompatible changes.

--
Josh Berkus
PostgreSQL Experts Inc.
http://pgexperts.com