PL/SQL CONTINUE Statement ⏭️¶

Mentor's Note: EXIT kills the whole loop. CONTINUE is different—it just says, "I'm done with this specific turn, let's move to the next one." It's like skipping a song in a playlist rather than turning off the music player. 💡

🌟 The Scenario: The Bad Apple 🍎¶

Imagine you are sorting a basket of 10 apples. - Task: Wash each apple. - Logic: If an apple is rotten, Skip it and move to the next one. Don't stop washing the other good apples! ✅

💻 1. Basic CONTINUE¶

Skips the rest of the code in the current loop and jumps back to the top.

BEGIN
   FOR i IN 1..5 LOOP
      IF i = 3 THEN
         CONTINUE; -- ⏭️ Skip number 3
      END IF;

      DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE('Processing number: ' || i);
   END LOOP;
END;
-- Result: 1, 2, 4, 5 (3 is missing!)

💻 2. The CONTINUE WHEN Clause (Shorthand)¶

A cleaner way to write conditional skipping.

BEGIN
   FOR i IN 1..10 LOOP
      -- 🚀 Logic: Skip even numbers
      CONTINUE WHEN MOD(i, 2) = 0;

      DBMS_OUTPUT.PUT_LINE('Odd Number: ' || i);
   END LOOP;
END;

📊 Comparison: EXIT vs. CONTINUE¶

Command	Action	Analogy
EXIT	Terminates the loop 🛑	Closing the store
CONTINUE	Skips current iteration ⏭️	Skipping one customer

🏗️ Architect's Note: Performance 🛡️¶

CONTINUE was introduced in Oracle 11g. In older versions, developers had to use complex nested IF statements or GOTO to skip logic. - Tip: Use CONTINUE WHEN to make your loops cleaner and more readable for teammates.