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                           Release Bulletin
                            SQL*Plus 8.1.7
                            September 2000

     Copyright (c) Oracle Corporation 2000. All Rights Reserved.

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    README.doc   README.doc  README.doc  README.doc  README.doc  README.doc
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  Contents
  --------

      1.   Restricted Rights Legend
      2.   Documentation
      3.   New Features in SQL*Plus
      4.   Bugs Fixed
      5.   Known Restrictions


  1. Restricted Rights Legend
  ---------------------------

      This software contains proprietary information of Oracle
      Corporation; it is provided under a license agreement
      containing restrictions on use and disclosure and is also
      protected by copyright law. Reverse engineering of software
      is prohibited.

      If this software/documentation is delivered to a U.S.
      Government Agency of the Department of Defense, then it is
      delivered with Restricted Rights and the following legend is
      applicable:

      RESTRICTED RIGHTS LEGEND: Use, duplication, or disclosure of
      the Programs by the Government is subject to restrictions as
      set forth in subparagraph (c)(1)(ii) of DFARS 252.227-7013,
      Rights in Technical Data and Computer Software (October
      1988).

      Oracle Corporation, 500 Oracle Parkway, Redwood City, CA 94065.

      If this software/documentation is delivered to a U.S.
      Government Agency not within the Department of Defense, then
      it is delivered with "Restricted Rights", as defined in FAR
      52.227-14, Rights in Data - General, including Alternate III
      (June 1987).

      The information in this document is subject to change
      without notice. If you find any problems in the
      documentation, please report them to us in writing. Oracle
      Corporation does not warrant that this document is error
      free.

      Oracle and SQL*Plus are registered trademarks, and Oracle7 and
      Oracle8 are trademarks of Oracle Corporation.


  2. Documentation
  ----------------

  SQL*Plus 8.1 is a superset of SQL*Plus 8.0. The following
  documentation is available for SQL*Plus release 8.1.7:

    A82950-01  SQL*Plus User's Guide and Reference
    A82951-01  SQL*Plus Quick Reference
    A82954-01  SQL*Plus Getting Started for Windows
    A85448-01  SQL*Plus Accessibility Guide for Windows

  The SQL*Plus online help (HELP command) no longer contains
  information on SQL, or PL/SQL syntax. For information on SQL
  commands, see the Oracle8 SQL Reference. For information on PL/SQL
  commands, see the PL/SQL User's Guide and Reference.


  3. New Features in SQL*Plus
  ---------------------------

  The following subsections describe new features introduced to
  SQL*Plus in this and previous releases.


  3.1 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.1.7 Production
  ---------------------------------------------
      The following commands or features have been modified or
      introduced:

          SQLPLUS -MARKUP and SET MARKUP
          COLUMN ENTMAP {ON|OFF}

    SQLPLUS -MARKUP and SET MARKUP
    ------------------------------

      Overview:

        You can use the MARKUP command to generate either a complete
        stand alone web page from your query or script, or HTML output
        which can be embedded in a web page.

        Use SQLPLUS -MARKUP HTML ON or SET MARKUP HTML ON SPOOL ON to
        produce standalone web pages.  SQL*Plus will generate complete
        HTML pages automatically encapsulated with <HTML> and <BODY>
        tags.

        SQLPLUS -MARKUP HTML ON is useful when embedding SQL*Plus in
        program scripts.  When SQL*Plus starts it outputs the HTML
        page prolog tags before executing any commands.  Subsequent
        command output is marked up in HTML tags and the HTML output
        is closed only when SQL*Plus terminates.  The -SILENT and
        -RESTRICT command line options may be used in conjunction with
        -MARKUP.

        SET MARKUP HTML ON SPOOL ON will generate complete HTML pages
        for each subsequently spooled file.  The HTML tags in a spool
        file are closed when SPOOL OFF is executed or SQL*Plus exits.

        You can use SET MARKUP HTML ON SPOOL OFF to generate HTML
        output suitable for embedding in an existing web page.  Output
        generated this way has no <HTML> or <BODY> tags, but is marked
        up in HTML format.

        In this release, you can use MARKUP HTML ON to produce HTML
        output in either the <PRE> tag or in an HTML table.  Output to
        a table uses standard HTML <TABLE>, <TR> and <TD> tags to
        automatically encode the rows and columns resulting from a
        query.  Output to an HTML table is now the default behavior
        when the HTML option is set ON.  You can generate output using
        HTML <PRE> tags by setting PREFORMAT ON.

        SQL*Plus gives you the power to embed your own tags in
        reports, titles or at any time in commands such as PROMPT.
        SQL*Plus does not restrict the use of these tags.  It does not
        check the HTML syntax of user embedded tags.

      Syntax:

        The new MARKUP syntax for SQLPLUS -MARKUP and SET MARKUP is:

          HTML [ON|OFF] [HEAD text] [BODY text] [TABLE text]
               [ENTMAP {ON|OFF}] [SPOOL {ON|OFF}] [PRE[FORMAT] {ON|OFF}]

          Note: MARKUP arguments may also need to be contained
                in quotes on some operating systems.

       For further details about the MARKUP option, see Chapter 7 and
       the SET MARKUP command in Chapter 8 of the SQL*Plus User's
       Guide and Reference.


    COLUMN ENTMAP {ON|OFF}
    ----------------------

      A new option, ENTMAP {ON|OFF}, has been added to the COLUMN
      command to add flexibility for mapping entities. The default for
      COLUMN ENTMAP is the current value of the MARKUP HTML ENTMAP
      option.

      "ENTMAP {ON|OFF}" in the COLUMN command allows you to explicitly
          turn entity mapping on or off for selected columns in HTML
          output.

          This feature allows you to include, for example, HTML links
          in a column of data, while still automatically mapping
          entities in other data columns.  By turning entity mapping
          off for a column containing HTML links, the HTML anchor tag
          delimiters ("<" and ">") are correctly interpreted in the
          report.  Otherwise they would be replaced with their
          respective entities, &lt; and &gt;, preventing web browsers
          from interpreting the HTML link.

          Entities in the column heading and any COMPUTE labels or
          output appearing in the column are mapped or not mapped
          according to the value of ENTMAP for the column.

      For further details about the COLUMN ENTMAP option, see
      the COLUMN command in Chapter 8 of the SQL*Plus User's
      Guide and Reference.

  3.2 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.1.6 Production
  ---------------------------------------------

      The following commands or features have been modified or
      introduced:

          SQLPLUS -MARKUP
          SET MARKUP
          SHOW MARKUP
          SQLPLUS -RESTRICT
          Help System

    SQLPLUS -MARKUP and SET MARKUP
    ------------------------------
      See Section 3.1 for the latest syntax and examples for SQLPLUS
      -MARKUP and SET MARKUP.

    SHOW MARKUP
    -----------
      A new system variable, MARKUP, has been created for use with
      SQLPLUS -MARKUP and SET MARKUP. You can use SHOW MARKUP to see
      the status of MARKUP options.

    SQLPLUS -RESTRICT
    -----------------
      The syntax for the SQLPLUS command is now:

      SQLPLUS [ [option] [logon] [start] ]

      where option has the following syntax:
         - | -? | [ [-M[ARKUP] markup_option] [-R[ESTRICT] level] [-S[ILENT]] ]

      See Section 3.1 for the latest syntax for -MARKUP markup_option.

      and where logon has the following syntax:
          username[/password][@net_service_name] | / | /NOLOG

      and where start has the following syntax:
          @filename[.ext] [parameter ...]


      The SQLPLUS -RESTRICT command option allows you to disable
      certain commands that interact with the operating system. This
      is similar to disabling the same commands in the Product User
      Profile (PUP) table. However, commands disabled with the
      -RESTRICT option are disabled even if there is no connection to
      a server, and remain disabled until SQL*Plus terminates.

      The restriction level must be between 1 and 3.

      If the -RESTRICT option is not used, than all commands can be
      used, unless disabled in the PUP table.

      If -RESTRICT 3 is used, then login.sql is not read.  Glogin.sql
      is read but restricted commands used will fail.

      The commands disabled in each restriction level are shown in the
      table below.

        Command           Level 1       Level 2     Level 3
        -------------------------------------------------------------
        EDIT              disabled      disabled    disabled
        GET                                         disabled
        HOST, !           disabled      disabled    disabled
        SAVE                            disabled    disabled
        SPOOL                           disabled    disabled
        START, @, @@                                disabled
        STORE                           disabled    disabled


    Help System
    -----------

      The SQL*Plus command line help system is now installed with
      SQL*Plus scripts.  SQL*Loader is no longer required.  A script
      to drop the help system is now supplied.

      If you need to install the help system manually, locate the
      directory containing the helpbld.sql and helpus.sql files
      (typically $ORACLE_HOME/sqlplus/admin/help) and run:

         sqlplus system/<system_password> @helpbld.sql helpus.sql

      Some operating systems automate this in a script file.  The
      script is typically called 'helpins' or 'helpins.bat' and is
      located in the same directory as the Oracle executables.  Refer
      to the comments in the top of the script for usage information,
      which may have changed since the previous release of SQL*Plus.

      The SQL*Plus script to remove the help system is called
      helpdrop.sql and is located in the same directory as
      helpbld.sql.  To remove the help system run:

         sqlplus system/<system_password> @helpdrop.sql

     In this release, the help system is only available in English.

     Note the help system documents only SQL*Plus, not SQL or PL/SQL
     commands.


  3.3 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.1.5 Production
  ---------------------------------------------

     The following commands or features have been modified or
     introduced:

          SET SQLBLANKLINES
          SHOW SQLBLANKLINES
          SQL*Plus Messages


   SET SQLBLANKLINES
   -----------------
      Controls whether SQL*Plus allows blank lines within a SQL
      command. ON interprets blank lines and new lines as part of a
      SQL command. OFF, the default value, does not allow blank lines
      or new lines in a SQL command.  SQL*Plus returns to the default
      behavior when a SQLTERMINTATOR or BLOCKTERMINATOR is
      encountered. The syntax is:

          SET SQLBL[ANKLINES] {ON|OFF}

      SET SQLBLANKLINES OFF is the default.

    Example:
    --------
          SQL> SET SQLBLANKLINES OFF
          SQL> select *
            2
          SQL>
          SQL> SET SQLBLANKLINES ON
          SQL> select *
            2
            3  from
            4
            5  dual
            6
            7  ;

          D
          -
          X

          SQL>


    SHOW SQLBLANKLINES
    ------------------
      The SHOW SQLBLANKLINES command displays whether the SET
      SQLBLANKLINES command is set ON or OFF. SQL*Plus allows
      blanklines in SQL commands when SET SQLBLANKLINES is ON. The
      syntax is:

          SHOW SQLBL[ANKLINES]


    SQL*Plus Messages
    -----------------
      The success message returned from any CREATE/ALTER/DROP SNAPSHOT
      or SNAPSHOT LOG commands has been altered to use the phrase
      "Materialized view". The terms "snapshot" and "materialized
      view" are synonymous. These commands are documented in the
      Oracle8 SQL Reference. For example:

          SQL> CREATE SNAPSHOT all_emps
            2    AS SELECT * FROM emp;

          Materialized view created.


  3.4 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.1.4 Beta
  ---------------------------------------

     The prefix for SQL*Plus Messages has changed for this release.

    SQL*Plus Messages
    -----------------
      SQL*Plus errors and messages now have a prefix of "SP2". The
      syntax of the error message is similar to that of the COPY
      command error messages, for example :

         SP2-0172: No HELP available

      or

         SP2-0691: expected SYSDBA or SYSOPER, not "scott"
         Usage: CONNECT <username> [AS {SYSDBA|SYSOPER}]


  3.5 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.1.3 Beta
  ---------------------------------------

      The following commands or features have been modified or introduced:

          ARCHIVE LOG
          DESCRIBE
          RECOVER
          SET
            AUTORECOVERY
            DESCRIBE
            INSTANCE
            LOGSOURCE
          SHOW
             AUTORECOVERY
             DESCRIBE
             INSTANCE
             LOGSOURCE
             PARAMETERS
             SGA
           SHUTDOWN
           STARTUP

      A discussion of each command follows.


    ARCHIVE LOG
    -----------
      Starts or stops automatic archiving of online redo log files,
      manually (explicitly) archives specified redo log files, or
      displays information about redo log files. The syntax is:

          ARCHIVE LOG {LIST|STOP}|{START|NEXT|ALL|integer} [TO destination]


    DESCRIBE
    --------
      The DESCRIBE command can now describe objects recursively to the
      level set in the SET DESCRIBE command. It can also display the
      line number and indentation of an attribute or column name when
      an object contains multiple object types. Use the SET LINESIZE
      command to control the data display width. The syntax is:

          DESCRIBE {object}

    Example:
    --------
      To describe the table EMP, enter

          SQL>DESCRIBE EMP

      DESCRIBE lists the following information:

         Name                                      Null     Type
         ----------------------------------------- -------- -------------------
         EMPLOYEE                                           RECUR_PERSON
         DEPT                                               RECUR_DEPARTMENT
         START_DATE                                         DATE
         POSITION                                           VARCHAR2(1)
         SAL                                                RECUR_SALARY

      To describe the table EMP to a depth of three levels, enter

          SQL>SET DESCRIBE DEPTH 3 LINENUM ON INDENT ON
          SQL>DESCRIBE EMP

      DESCRIBE lists for the following information:

                 Name                            Null     Type
                 ------------------------------  -------- --------------------
          1      EMPLOYEE                                 RECUR_PERSON
          2    1   NAME                                   VARCHAR2(20)
          3    1   ADDR                                   RECUR_ADDRESS
          4    1   ADDR1                                  RECUR_ADDRESS1
          5    1   DOB                                    DATE
          6    1   GENDER                                 VARCHAR2(10)
          7      DEPT                                     RECUR_DEPARTMENT
          8    7   DEPTNO                                 NUMBER
          9    7   DEPT_NAME                              VARCHAR2(20)
         10    7   LOCATION                               VARCHAR2(20)
         11      START_DATE                               DATE
         12      POSITION                                 VARCHAR2(1)
         13      SAL                                      RECUR_SALARY
         14   13   ANNUAL_SAL                             NUMBER(10,2)
         15   13   EMP_TYPE                               VARCHAR2(1)
         16   13   COMM                                   NUMBER(10,2)
         17   13   PENALTY_RATE                           NUMBER(5,2)


    RECOVER
    -------
      Performs media recovery on one or more tablespaces, one or more
      datafiles, or the entire database. The syntax is:

          RECOVER [DATABSE [[UNTIL options] [USING BACKUP CONTROLFILE]
                  [PARALLEL clause]]
                  |TABLESPACE {tablespace [, tablespace ...]}
                  [PARALLEL clause]
                  |DATAFILE {datafilename [, datafilename ...]}
                  [PARALLEL clause]]

      where options requires the following syntax:

          {CANCEL|CHANGE integer|TIME date}

      and where clause requires the following syntax:

          {PARALLEL ([DEGREE {integer|DEFAULT}
            |INSTANCES {integer|DEFAULT}]...)|NOPARALLEL}


    SET Command
    -----------
      The SET command has four new clauses, AUTORECOVERY, DESCRIBE,
      INSTANCE, and LOGSOURCE.

      The SET AUTORECOVERY command sets the RECOVER command to
      automatically apply the default filenames of the archived redo
      log files needed during recovery. The syntax is:

          SET AUTORECOVERY {ON|OFF}


      The SET DESCRIBE command sets the level to describe objects in
      the DESCRIBE command. It also sets whether to display the line
      number and indentation when describing an object. The syntax is:

          SET DESCRIBE [option ...]

      where option requires the following syntax:

         [DEPTH {1|n|ALL}] [LINENUM {ON|OFF}] [INDENT {ON|OFF}]

      The default for SET DESCRIBE DEPTH is 1 and can be any figure
      between 1 and 50. SET DEPTH ALL describes all objects up to a
      depth of 50 levels. The default for SET DESCRIBE LINENUM is
      OFF. The default for SET DESCRIBE INDENT is OFF.


      The SET INSTANCE command changes the default instance for your
      session to the specified instance path. The syntax is:

          SET INSTANCE [instance_path|LOCAL]


      The SET LOGSOURCE command specifies the location from which
      archive logs are retrieved during recovery. The syntax is:

          SET LOGSOURCE [pathname]


    SHOW Command
    ------------
      The SHOW command has six new clauses, AUTORECOVERY, DESCRIBE,
      INSTANCE, LOGSOURCE, PARAMETERS, and SGA.


      The SHOW AUTORECOVERY command displays the setting for the SET
      AUTORECOVERY command. The syntax is:

          SHOW AUTORECOVERY


      The SHOW DESCRIBE command displays the setting for the SET
      DESCRIBE command. The syntax is:

          SHOW DESCRIBE


      The SHOW INSTANCE command displays the setting for the SET
      INSTANCE command. The syntax is:

          SHOW INSTANCE


      The SHOW LOGSOURCE command displays the setting for the SET
      LOGSOURCE command. The syntax is:

          SHOW LOGSOURCE


      The SHOW PARAMETERS command displays the current values for one
      or more initialization parameters. You can use a string after
      the command to see a subset of parameters whose names include
      that string. The syntax is:

          SHOW PARAMETERS [parameter_name]


      The SHOW SGA command displays information about the current
      instance's System Global Area. The syntax is:

          SHOW SGA


    SHUTDOWN
    --------
      Shuts down a currently running Oracle instance, optionally
      closing and dismounting a database. The syntax is:

          SHUTDOWN [ABORT|IMMEDIATE|TRANSACTIONAL|NORMAL]

      SHUTDOWN NORMAL is the default.


    STARTUP
    -------
      Starts an Oracle instance with several options, including
      mounting, and opening a database. The syntax is:

          STARTUP [FORCE][RESTRICT][PFILE=filename][MOUNT[OPEN[RECOVER]]
                  [database]][mount_options]|[NOMOUNT]

      where mount_options requires the following syntax:

          [EXCLUSIVE|[PARALLEL|SHARED][RETRY]]


  3.6 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.0.5 Production
  ---------------------------------------------

      The following commands or features have been modified or introduced:


    CONNECT
    -------
      The syntax of CONNECT command is extended to support the "mode"
      of connection. The syntax is:

          CONN[ECT] [logon] [AS [SYSOPER|SYSDBA]]|[INTERNAL]

      where logon requires the following syntax:

          username[/password][@database_specification]|/


  3.7 New Features in SQL*Plus 8.0.3 Production
  ---------------------------------------------

      The following commands or features have been modified or introduced:
          CREATE TYPE
          DESCRIBE
          PASSWORD
          CONNECT
          SET
            MAXDATA
            CLOSECURSOR
            COMPATIBILITY
            CONSTRAINT
            NEWPAGE
            LOBOFFSET
          VARIABLE
          SHOW ERRORS
          ATTRIBUTE
          EXIT
          Version variable

      A discussion of each command follows.


    CREATE TYPE
    -----------
      The CREATE TYPE command is processed as a PL/SQL command.


    DESCRIBE
    --------
      The describe command now supports the following objects:

          TABLE/VIEW
          PROCEDURE/FUNCTION
          SYNONYM
          PACKAGE
          OBJECT TYPE


    PASSWORD
    --------
      Allows password to be change without echoing the password on an
      input device. The syntax is:

          PASSW[ORD] [username]

      Where username specifies the user. If no username is given, the
      current user is used.

      To change the password of another user you must have been
      granted the appropriate privilege.


    CONNECT
    -------
      If you logon or connect as a user whose account has expired, you
      will be prompted to change your password before being allowed to
      connect.

      If the account it locked, a message is displayed and connection
      as this user is not permitted until the account is unlocked by
      your DBA.

      For more information on account management refer to the
      documentation on the CREATE and ALTER USER commands, and the
      CREATE PROFILE command in the "Oracle8 Server SQL Reference".


    SET Commands
    ------------
      - The SET MAXDATA and CLOSECURSOR commands have been obsoleted and
        have no effect in SQL*Plus 8.0.4

      - The SET COMPATIBILITY command is modified for SQL*Plus 8.0.4.
        The syntax is:

            SET COM[PATIBILITY]  {v7|v8|NATIVE}

        The default is NATIVE. You cannot use version 6 or lower with
        this version of SQL*Plus.

      - The SQL language SET CONSTRAINT command is supported. Refer to
        your SQL Language documentation for the syntax.

      - The SET NEWPAGE command has the new keyword NONE. The syntax is:

            SET NEWP[AGE] {1|n|NONE}

        The default is 1. SET NEWPAGE NONE prints no blank lines and
        no formfeed between report pages. For compatibility, SET
        NEWPAGE 0 prints a formfeed and no blank lines between pages.

      - The SET command now has a LOBOFFSET clause. The syntax is:

            SET LOBOF[FSET] {n|1}

        The default is 1. The LOBOFFSET clause sets the starting
        position from which CLOB and NCLOB data is retrieved and
        displayed.


    VARIABLE
    --------
      The VARIABLE command now supports bind variables of following
      datatypes:

          NCHAR
          NVARCHAR2
          NCLOB
          CLOB

      The maximum lengths of NCHAR and NVARCHAR2 bind variables is
      2000 and 4000 respectively. For more information on these new
      datatypes please refer to the Oracle8 SQL Language
      documentation.

      The maximum lengths of CHAR and VARCHAR2 bind variables have
      been increased to 2000 and 4000 respectively.


    SHOW ERRORS
    -----------
      The syntax is:

          SHOW ERRORS [{FUNCTION|PROCEDURE|PACKAGE|PACKAGE BODY
                      |TRIGGER|VIEW|TYPE|TYPE BODY} [schema.]name]


    ATTRIBUTE
    ---------
      The ATTRIBUTE command has been introduced. It can be used to
      format the attribute of an object when that object is
      selected. The format of an attribute will not be affected when
      selected as object.attribute, however, the COLUMN command can be
      used in this case. The syntax is:

          ATTRIBUTE [type_name.attribute_name [option ...]]

      where option may be

          ALI[AS] alias
          CLE[AR]
          FOR[MAT] format
          LIKE {type_name.attribute_name|alias}
          ON|OFF

      Note that clearing columns will also clear all attributes.


    EXIT
    ----
      The EXIT command now allows numeric bind variables to be used.
      The syntax is:

          {EXIT|QUIT} [SUCCESS|FAILURE|WARNING|n|variable|:BindVariable]
                      [COMMIT|ROLLBACK]


    Version Variable
    ----------------
      A new define variable _SQLPLUS_RELEASE contains a numeric form
      of the SQL*Plus release number. The format is the same as the
      Oracle Server release number _O_RELEASE already available.


  4. Bugs Fixed
  -------------

  The following subsections list bugs fixed in SQL*Plus in this and
  previous releases. Numbers in parentheses following the problem
  description refer to bug numbers in the Oracle Bug Database.

  4.1 Version 8.1.7 Production
  ----------------------------

  - The command line length is now set to 5120 characters on both
    NT and Solaris platforms, instead of just NT (646064).

  - Status of ENTMAP was being altered by other HTML options (1001773)

  - When object name is longer than 30 bytes, SQL*Plus returns SP2-565 error,
    sometimes, it is possible that object name is longer that 30 bytes for
    multibyte database scenario. (664798)

  - SQL*Plus goes into an infinite loop and eventually terminates
    abnormally when an operating system environment variable value is
    provided for the NLS_DATE_FORMAT variable. (695579)

  - Describe synonym via database link will result in ORA-04043
    error. (763958)

  - Define variable names defined by ACCEPT were restricted to English
    characters for single-byte character sets.  Using DEFINE with an
    invalid variable name did not display an error message. (842798)

  - Fixed various memory access errors and small leaks for error
    conditions when selecting object types that SQL*Plus cannot
    convert to a text representation (984823, 886471)

  - Fixed a memory access error when printing some error messages
    (1159255)

  - SQL*Plus must trap for the server status and handle accordingly to allow
    re-connection after a server status changes. (949590)

  - An abnormal termination was occurring when first logging in to
    SQL*Plus and then issuing a "SHOW ERRORS PROCEDURE 'procname'" or
    " print ''test'' " (954433)

  - SQL*Plus now does not issue a recovery unless the OPEN fails with
    recovery needed error. (963874)

  - Set instance doesn't not give message to indicate the status of
    the instance just set. (977041)

  - Include quote for the head & body option for the markup command
    when issuing the store command. (989120)

  - When selecting CLOB column with Japanese character set, some chars
    were missing (1008404)

  - The default html title is not being displayed in the appropriate
    language for a given character set. It always in English. (989596)

  - Inconsistent case for meta tag in set markup html command (994545)

  - SQL*Plus uses wrong MODE for the SYSOPER connection. (1002732)

  - The DBA command RECOVER, ORADEBUG, ARCHIVE LOG do not preprocess
    '&' substitution variables. (1009546)

  - SQL*Plus must re-attach for connection following a connect internal.
    (1018626)

  - Set appinfo command returns error message even server is geater
    than V7 database. (1043461)

  - An abnormal termination was occurring on some platforms if a
    DESCRIBE command was issued with the LINESIZE set to one less than
    a multiple of four (eg. 131) (1069320)

  - Can not login as internal for non-DBA group user when enter
    password separately. (1078060)

  - Column not displayed correctly with shift sensitive
    characters. (1114517)

  - Value function unable to display attribute of type raw (1129911)

  - Show errors prints incorrect message for java object that has
    compilation errors. (1132921)

  - SQL*Plus need to trap for server session status to allows for
    subsequence connection after a server session status has
    changed. (1134891)

  - Select join aggregate group by parallel results in ORA-24347 and
    "No row selected" (1149002)

  - If NLS_LANG is set to an EBCDIC character set on an ASCII
    platform, SQL*Plus gives various odd errors when setting the
    _EDITOR value and fails to start.  It is not valid to use EBCDIC
    characters sets in non ECDIC environments. The detection of some
    (known) invalid character sets has been added.  At startup
    SQL*Plus now prints an error "Invalid NLS character set for this
    OS environment Error 19 initializing SQL*Plus" and returns to the
    OS. (1167044)

  - Using 'alter user password expire;' option produces an Ora-988
    error in SQL*PLUS when user logs in and is prompted to change
    password. (1225555)

  - HTML entity mapping does not convert double quotes (1227772)

  - SQL*Plus does not free temporary lob after data is fetched and
    displayed.  (1282663)

  - Internal code changes (984823, 886471, 1159255, 1015221, 1015235,
    1086606, 1087990, 1093771, 1097298, 1179762, 1186233, 1194429,
    1221856, 1272028, 1283615, 1312546.)


  4.2 Version 8.1.6 Production
  ----------------------------

  - On Windows NT, errors from trying to run a console file are now
    echoed to spool files (617398)

  - When connected to a V7 database using a V8 SQL*Plus client,
    changing the date format with 'ALTER SESSION' no longer has the
    potential to truncate the displayed dates (663806)

  - SQL*Plus on Windows NT and UNIX now have similar output for HELP,
    BREAK, and SET TIMING (690909, 874656)

  - The statistics for AUTOTRACE now report only on the user SQL.  The
    AUTOTRACE features also works for externally authenticated
    ("OPS$") users. (690925)

  - The initial extent size of the HELP table has been reduced
    (691638)

  - Dynamic SQL compilation errors within PL/SQL blocks are now trapped.
    Use the expliction object name with SHOW ERRORS to view the warnings
    (716198)

  - Some internal functions were changed to handle 8-bit data (727622)

  - SHOW ERROR now handles case conversion of names in the server
    character set (730690)

  - The default format for number types in collections is now the same
    as for scalar columns (731416)

  - SHOW PARAMETER no longer truncates names or values.  The "IFILE"
    parameter now displays the correct type.  Parameter names used in
    "SHOW PARAMETERS <parameter_name>" are no longer case sensitive
    (733501, 959439)

  - SET LOGSOURCE "" is now accepted.  This allows files created with
    the STORE SET command to be loaded without error. (734764)

  - A memory access error with SET AUTOTRACE was fixed (746313)

  - Some internal changes to SET DESCRIBE were made (751078, 933606)

  - SET AUTOTRACE shows the correct output when using stored outlines
    (757580)

  - SHOW PARAMETER now orders output so the parameters that can have
    multiple initialization file entries are listed in the order they
    were written (776577)

  - A memory access error that occurred on some operating systems with
    the COPY command has been fixed (785150)

  - A memory leak when selecting from VARRAYS no longer occurs and
    memory use has been optimized (691247)

  - A problem preventing users being prompted to change their expired
    password in some cases has been fixed (697133)

  - A problem connecting to SQL*Plus when in the password expiry grace
    period is fixed (739529)

  - A number of problems with the STARTUP and SHUTDOWN commands have
    been resolved (731789, 758873, 771058, 777723, 777732, 770840,
    780377, 781702, 790865, 820739, 836631, 861750, 877682, 928680,
    939122, 957368)

  - SET AUTOTRACE TRACEONLY no longer causes an abnormal termination
    when connected as internal (755620)

  - Substitution ('&') variables can now be used in the STARTUP and
    SHUTDOWN commands (777617)

  - Some internal changes were made for message handling (812337,
    826100, 869496)

  - A DESCRIBE formatting problem occurring on several platforms has
    been fixed (813744)

  - A memory access error no longer occurs when using SQL commands
    with long initial keyword string (eg. CREATE OR REPLACE AND
    RESOLVE NOFORCE JAVA) has been fixed (815059)

  - Error messages from STARTUP and SHUTDOWN now have individual error
    messages (820683)

  - A memory access error for the PRINT command has been fixed (836620)

  - An abnormal termination doing a DESCRIBE with a large LINESIZE has
    been fixed (842965)

  - A problem displaying report output in the KO16DBCS character set was
    fixed (870090)

  - The character mode SQL*PLus on Windows NT can now have input
    redirected into it (874666)

  - A problem connecting with usernames containing Latin-1 characters
    has been fixed (876573)

  - SQL*Plus now resyncronizes with the server character set after
    CREATE DATABASE commands (877018)

  - Entering "/nolog" at the "Username:" prompt no longer causes an
    abnormal termination.  The "/nolog" option is valid only as a
    parameter to the "sqlplus" command (887502)

  - A problem causing ORA-1458 when using COPY has been fixed (898213)

  - The HIREDATE field of the EMP demonstration table is now created
    with explict four digit years (911745)

  - SQL*Plus supports the new connection syntax of Net8 (913977)

  - A success message is now printed for the RECOVER command (923081)

  - The SET DESCRIBE usage message is no longer hard coded and may now
    be translated (930478)

  - A duplicate 'rm' entry in the ins_sqlplus.mk file has been removed
    (933662)

  - The feedback message for ALTER DATABASE is no longer printed for
    unsuccessful commands (955315)

  - A duplicate error message when attempting to connect with an invalid
    service name no longer occurs (957653)

  - Errors when "connect internal" fails are now displayed (971223)

  - Some new DATETIME and interval types can be described (975262)

  - Collections no longer have extraneous NULLs displayed (993216)

  - Internal code changes (1010644, 704182, 754503, 759630, 825347,
    874808, 892013, 896196, 903144)


  4.3 Version 8.1.5 Production
  ----------------------------

  - SQL*Plus now accepts a Net8 net service name at the password
    prompt eg. Enter password: pw@net_service_name (716295)

  - Schema names are no longer truncated when describing types (729459)

  - Changes were made to parsing usernames, passwords and net service
    names.  Preceding and embedded whitespace, and quotes are handled
    better (731901, 745122, 662178)

  - Describing a type with attributes of large size no longer causes a
    memory exception (745289)

  - The EXECUTE command now works in I18N mode (728349)

  - The capitalization of the statistics feedback messages was
    corrected (734703)

  - Using an uninitialized bind variable in an EXIT statement no longer
    causes an abnormal termination (692895)

  - Internal changes (718668, 719337, 719339, 734189)

  4.4 Version 8.1.4 Beta
  ----------------------

  - The maximum length for spool file names was increased.  Error
    checking was improved to prevent a core dump with long names
    (690415)

  - SQL*Plus nows displays a user error message instead of an internal
    error when selecting from a nested table or varray of raw (726753)

  - Corrected some command usage messages and regularized some error
    messages (672460)

  - A display bug for multi-byte column names with shift-in/out bytes
    has been fixed (695505)

  - The SQL*Net network service name is no longer ignored after an
    ORA-1017 occurs (695663)

  - Selecting a number column with a to_char(col, 'FM99') conversion
    no longer displays an extra character (644529)

  - Internal changes (664915, 700687, 702954, 719356)


  4.5 Version 8.1.3 Beta
  ----------------------

  - ORA-01089 WHILE CONNECT INTERNAL (642150)

  - WHEN INSTANCE IDLE, CONNECT INTERNAL SHOULD SHOW CONNECTED TO IDLE
    INSTANCE (633194)

  - SET INSTANCE INSTANCE_NAME IS NOT SUPPORTED IN SQLPLUS (630142)

  - DESCRIBE OBJECT TYPE WITH METHOD RESULT ORA-24328 (663606)

  - DESCRIBE A TYPE DOES NOT DISPLAY THE SCHEMA OF THE TYPES OF ITS ATTRIBUTES
    (654349)

  - DESCRIBE <TYPE> FAILS IF ITS ATTRIBUTES ARE IN A DIFFERENT SCHEMA.
    (657660)

  - CAN NOT DESCRIBE A SYNONYM WHICH POINTS TO A REMOTE OBJECT (624720)

  - RECONNECCT AFTER ALTER USER USER1 PASSWORD EXPIRE WILL RESULT DISCONNECT
    (661550)

  - SQLPLUS EXITS WITH MULTIPLE ORA-1012S AND MEMORY ERROR AFTER INVALID
    'CONNECT' (661485)

  - STARTUP USING SQLPLUS GETS ERROR MESSAGES (BUT SUCCEEDS) (655716)

  - SQLCODE NOT AFFECTED BY SUCCESSFUL STATEMENT (650528)

  - SQLPLUS CORE DUMPS WHEN SUBSTITUTION STRING IS TOO LONG (646064)

  - STARTUP WITH PFILE SPECIFIED RESULT LRM-00109 AND ORA-01078 (639811)

  - SHOW ALL SHOW SHIFTINOUT IN WRONG POSITION (594672)

  - Internal code changes (656797, 664915, 666769, 671924, 642147, 660109,
    664921)


  5. Known Restrictions
  ---------------------

   * Columns of type NCLOB cannot be formatted with WORD_WRAPPING.
     When "COLUMN" command is used to format such columns with the
     "WORD_WRAP" option, the column data will WRAP instead of
     WORD_WRAP.

   * Non-blocking database calls are not supported by the new
     interface to the Oracle8 server.  This does not affect
     multi-tasking operating systems.

   * Querying of LONG columns requires enough local memory to store
     the amount of data, as specified by the value of SET LONG
     command, irrespective of the value of the SET LONGCHUNKSIZE
     command.

   * When connected to a V7 server, the syntax for DESCRIBE command is
     DESCRIBE {[schema.]object[.subobject|@db_link] [column]} which is
     the same as SQL*Plus version 3 (released with V7).

   * When connected to a V8 server, the DESCRIBE command can not be
     used for describing objects on a V7 server.


  End of Release Bulletin.

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