Before the introduction of LOB data types, LONG and LONG RAW data types served as the storage types for large data. But soon the incompetency of the data types added the discomfort to the database developers and created an urgency for a stable data type. Some of the limitations of LONG and LONG RAW are as follows:
A table can have only one LONG or LONG RAW column. Also, the data would always be stored inline with the record—thus dumping the same segment all the time.
LONGdata type can support sequential access of data. Besides, there are multiple restrictions associated with the usage ofLONGdata type. Limitations such as single column specification in a table and no possibility of indexing add to the compatibility concerns.
With the introduction of LOB data types in Oracle8i, the limitations of LONG and LONG RAW were overruled with multiple features. The LOB data types are CLOB, NCLOB, BLOB, and...