Solving or planning for performance issues is a core part of the database professional's toolkit. The Oracle database is very flexible, making it suitable for a wide range of applications but presenting a bewildering set of tuning choices to the inexperienced.   

Tuning Oracle is as much about approach as understanding the technology. It is more than tweaking parameters, or following a set prescription - it involves matching application - specific knowledge with what's happening inside the database.

Based on the author's long experience working with Oracle, the book uses a five-step model to help identify, isolate, and fix the causes of non-performance. This book shows you how to approach problems, get the information you from Oracle, and follow the process through to success.

Chapter 1 The Challenge of Performance Tuning
Chapter 2 Why Many Tuning Strategies Fail
Chapter 3 The Oracle Physician
Chapter 4 Dealing with Humans
Chapter 5 The Oracle Detective
Chapter 6 Gethering More Clues
Chapter 7 The Oracle Pathologist
Chapter 8 Analyzing SQL Bottlenecks
Chapter 9 Analyzing SQL Joins
Chapter 10 The Pathologist's Toolkit: Other Tactics
,etc.