AboutPeter Choi Expertise I am a senior Oracle DBA, PeopleSoft Administrator and Project Manager with
10 years experience. I have been working with PeopleSoft (HRMS 5, 7, 7.x and
8.9), Oracle RDBMS (7.3 - 10gR2) on various Unix and Windows platforms, and some Oracle Application Server (9i/10gR2). I also have experience with the configuration and administration of BEA`s Tuxedo and WebLogic for PeopleSoft 8.x.
Expert: Peter Choi Date: 7/15/2008 Subject: Regarding Oracle DBA
Question QUESTION: Hello. I want to learn Oracle Apps DBA. But to learn Apps some said I shud have a prior knowledge of OraDBA. So I want to learn DBA first & then Apps. There are so many versions available for this Ora DBA. Can you please suggest me which one shud I opt.. I mean Ora 9iDBA, Ora 10gDBA or Ora 11iDBA?
ANSWER: Hi Anup,
Oracle 9i and 10g are still in production use. These two represent almost 90%+ of the companies using Oracle. There's a small number that's still on Oracle 7/8i or 11g.
Your best bet, learn as much as you can about Oracle 10g. Be advised that it may have new features that do not exist in 9i (for a listing, see http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/B19306_01/server.102/b14214.pdf for a listing of the new features introduced with 10g that's not in 9i).
Oracle 11g was introduced early this year so you would have time to catch up.
Hope this helps.
Peter
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hello Sir,
Thank you for the reply.
Can I learn Oracle Apps DBA directly without having a knowledge on Oracle DBA?
Answer Hi Anup,
While you may be able to learn Oracle Apps DBA without first having an Oracle DBA background, you will probably not be as effective as if you have some (3-5 years) DBA knowledge and experience.
The Apps DBA role contains about 50% functional (business) and 50% technical knowledge requirements. So while you may be able to learn the functional side, your technical side will lack the efficiency - for example in your ability to refresh a database, recovery a failed database, or optimize queries in the database. You may learn on the job, but it may take you twice as long as if you have the necessary background.
Some companies don't mind having junior staff with limited knowledge on board so that they can develop the necessary hands-on experience. Most companies want the quickest solution by having the cost effective and rapid implementation.
The choice ultimately is yours. But as a great mentor of mine once said, "there is no shortcut in life".
