Mixing 1 digits etype and 4 digits etype

Question

Oracle Spatial 8.1.7: 1 digits ETYPE vs 4 digits ETYPE
Problem Statement:
In oracle spatial 8.1.7 pdf Part Number A85337-01 I see in page 2-9
Note: For polygon ring elements in a single geometry, you can use
either 1-digit or 4-digit SDO_ETYPE values for all elements;
however, you cannot mix 1-digit and 4-digit SDO_ETYPE values.
Question: we are currently mixing ETYPE 1004 and 4, 1005 and 5 etc....
Does the "cannot mix" apply ONLY to polygon rings and not other types?
Can anyone clarify, because we will be mixing inserting data through SDO_API and do not want any problems later on.
thanks

Answer 1

Does the "cannot mix" apply ONLY to polygon rings and not other types? Only polygons use the 4 digit etypes.
If you use the 4 digit etype, you must use the 4 digit gtype (includes dimensionality).
If you use the 4 digit etype, your geometry must have correct rotation and ring ordering.
All elements in a geometry must be consistent.
Some functions in 9i and 10i require migrated data.
In 9iR2, there is a single geometry interface so data can be migrated before it is inserted into the database using sdo_migrate.to_current.
In 10i, there is a new java api that is completely supported and will create geometries in the current format.