Overview
There are two ways of reading table records within a stored procedure:
- Using a SELECT INTO statement
- Using a cursor.
The SELECT INTO statement can be used to read only a single record.
If more than one record is returned by a SELECT INTO statement, an error will be raised.
Therefore, in a situation where it can be expected that more than one record will be returned, it is required to use a cursor.
In general, basic procedures to handle cursor of ALTIBASE HDB and ORACLE are almost equal.
Descriptions about the difference of handling cursor will be followed in the subdivided pages.