Oracle PL/SQL Best Practices

Chapter 1. The Development Process

To do your job well, you need to be aware of, and to follow, both “little” best practices—very focused tips on a particular coding technique—and “big” best practices. This chapter offers some suggestions on the big picture: how to write your code as part of a high-quality development process.

My objective isn’t to “sell” you on any particular development methodology (though I must admit that I am most attracted to so-called “lightweight” methodologies such as Extreme Programming and SCRUM).^[1] Instead, I’ll remind you of basic processes you should follow within any big-picture methodology.

In other words, if you (or your methodology) don’t follow some form of the best practices in this chapter, you are less likely to produce high-quality, successful software. I don’t (with perhaps a single exception) suggest a specific path or tool. You just need to make sure you’ve got these bases covered.

^[1] This chapter contains numerous references to Extreme Programming resources. For more information about SCRUM, “a process for empirically managing product development and improving team productivity,” visit http://www.controlchaos.com. Note that SCRUM isn’t an acronym, but a reference to the “scrum” in the sport of rugby, a metaphor for the daily meetings that are the core of the SCRUM methodology.