Accepting user input and executing a PL/SQL block using it

Question

Hi All,
I am working on a requirement wherein I have to accept values from the user for the various arguments to be supplied to a PL/SQL block and then execute it using these values. For now, I am using the following logic:
PROMPT Enter value for the Category
ACCEPT cCategory CHAR PROMPT 'Category:'
DECLARE
cCategry CHAR(1) := '&cCategory';
BEGIN
DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE('The value of the Category as entered by you is' || cCategory);
END;
PROMPT Press y if you want to proceed with the current values, or press n if you want to re-enter the values
ACCEPT cChoice CHAR Prompt 'Enter y or n:'
DECLARE
cCategry CHAR(1) := '&cCategory';
sErrorCd VARCHAR2(256);
sErrorDsc VARCHAR2(256);
BEGIN
IF '&cChoice' = 'y'
THEN
DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE('Starting with the process to execute the stored proc');
--- schema1.package1.sp1(cCategry, sErrorCd, sErrorDsc);
--- DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE('Error Code :' || sErrorCd);
--- DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE(' Error Description :' || sErrorDsc);
ELSIF '&cChoice' = 'n'
THEN
Now I want that the proc again start executing in the loop from the 1st line i.e. PROMPT Enter value for the Category. However i see that this is not possible to do that PROMPT statements and accepting user inputs execute only on the SQL prompt and not inside a PL/SQL block.
Is there an alternate method to establish this?
Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Hi,
You can write a genric procedure to achive the desired output. Pass 'Y' or 'N' in the procedure.
Call that procedure in simple pl/sql block during runtime using substituton operator.
For ex
create or replace procedure p1(category_in in varchar2)
IS
BEGIN
if (category_in='Y')
then
prcdr1()
/** Write your logic here ***/
elsif(category_in='N') then
prcdr2()
/** write your logic here***/
end if;
exception
/***write the exception logic ***/
end p1;
Begin
p1('&cat');
end;Regards,
Achyut K
Edited by: Achyut K on Aug 6, 2010 5:20 AM