PL/SQL Developer alternative

Question

Hello!

We have a lot of our business logic in an oracle database. So we use a lot of PL/SQL code. We build, test, and debug PL/SQL packages, procedures, triggers, and functions. Our current tool is the PL/SQL Developer (http://www.allroundautomations.com/).

What are your tools for PL/SQL coding and why do you prefer it to the PL/SQL Developer? Or would you prefer to work with PL/SQL Developer?

There are some alternatives I know (but have no experience):

• Oracle SQL Developer
• Toad for Oracle
• TOra
• SQuirreL SQL

Answer 1

Personally, we use TOAD, but I would say it is inertia as much as anything else (i.e. we've always used it).

Stepping from TOAD to SQL Developer, I prefer TOAD for most things, even though SQL Developer seems less buggy - but that may be familiarity.

I'm not sure whether I would pay the price for TOAD if we did not already have licenses.

However, I will say that I do most of my actual PL/SQL coding (as opposed to testing/debugging) using e-editor (a Windows equivalent to Textmate) because as a code editor I find TOAD (and SQL Developer) to be pretty limited. They feel a decade behind other language IDEs (Eclipse, XCode, etc). Just the ability to have simple auto-complete speeds me up dramatically.

Answer 2

I have been used Toad for many years and it my opinion it is the best tool for Oracle, but I use it for many other tasks besides PL\SQL development but the price is rather high.

Although, in my company some developers uses Oracle SQL Developer only for PL/SQL and they are quite happy with it.

Answer 3

You could try Eclipse with the plugin "Toby's PLSQL Editor". Gives you most of the normal functions like syntax highlighting, code completion and F3 to jump to code. It relies upon your source organised into directories that roughly correspond to schemas.

Answer 4

I say, keep using the tool you currently feel comfortable with. My primary tool is pl/sql developer, which I started with, and which I've been using for years, but I also tried both TOAD and Oracle SQL developer. They both have some of their unique and very nice features, and both miss some of pl/sql developer features, that are crucial for me. So, as long as none of these IDEs appeared to be ultimate for me, I came to a conclusion that switching to a new IDE while I feel ok with developer is nothing but a whim. :)

Answer 5

I use Oracle SQL Developer, and it is decent, but it's free - and you get what you pay for. There are a few irritating features (such as the ability to create documents of any type but the inability to see them to then open them) and it sometimes seems a bit slow. It seems to be more designed as a GUI for script writing than a full debugging IDE - although the features are there they are a little clunky. On the whole, it meets my needs, though - and the price is right. And my opinion is that is will keep getting better as it is used by more people.

If free is not a requirement, I have heard great things about both Toad and PL/SQL.