Book Image

Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial

Book Image

Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial

Overview of this book

Spatial applications should be developed in the same way that users develop other database applications: by starting with an integrated data model in which the SDO_GEOMETRY objects are just another attribute describing entities and by using as many of the database features as possible for managing the data. If a task can be done using a database feature like replication, then it should be done using the standard replication technology instead of inventing a new procedure for replicating spatial data. Sometimes solving a business problem using a PL/SQL function can be more powerful, accessible, and easier to use than trying to use external software. Because Oracle Spatial's offerings are standards compliant, this book shows you how Oracle Spatial technology can be used to build cross-vendor database solutions. Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial shows you the clever things that can be done not just with Oracle Spatial on its own, but in combination with other database technologies. This is a great resource book that will convince you to purchase other Oracle technology books on non-spatial specialist technologies because you will finally see that "spatial is not special: it is a small, fun, and clever part of a much larger whole".
Table of Contents (20 chapters)
Applying and Extending Oracle Spatial
Credits
About the Authors
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Table Comparing Simple Feature Access/SQL and SQL/MM–Spatial
Index

Partitioning of spatial tables


Spatial tables can be partitioned using any of the previously described methods. However, spatial indexing imposes some restrictions on the type of partitioning used for the spatial tables. When a table is partitioned, the index on the table can be created as global or local. A global index treats the table as a non-partitioned table and creates one large index to cover all the rows of the table. A local index is partitioned the same way as the table and each partition of the table will have one index.

Oracle Spatial only supports the range-based partitioning approach for spatial indexes; that is, an Oracle Spatial table can be partitioned using any of the methods, but if a partitioned (or local) spatial index is required, then only the range-based partitioning must be used. Due to this restriction, the rest of the discussion in this chapter will focus on the range-based partitioning.

Partitioning spatial indexes

A range-partitioned table must have a column that...