What is the difference between a cursor and a cursor variable in PL/SQL?

PL/SQL Developer Interview Question: Difference Between Cursor and Cursor Variable

In PL/SQL, a cursor is a pointer to a private SQL area that stores information about the processing of a SELECT or DML statement. It allows you to fetch and manipulate the rows returned by the SQL query one at a time. On the other hand, a cursor variable is a reference to a cursor that allows dynamic SQL statements to be executed within PL/SQL.

The main difference between a cursor and a cursor variable is that a cursor is associated with a specific query at compile time, while a cursor variable allows the query to be specified at runtime. This flexibility makes cursor variables useful when dealing with dynamic SQL statements or in situations where the query needs to be changed dynamically based on different conditions.

Overall, understanding the distinction between a cursor and a cursor variable is essential for efficient database programming in PL/SQL.