Feature Request – Configurable Numeric Formatting in Data Grid (Avoid Scientific Notation)

[adrian_star]

Hello,
I would like to propose an enhancement regarding numeric value rendering in the data grid within PL/SQL Developer.

Current behavior​

When browsing table data, large numeric values (e.g. identifiers such as: 20260223104801224119) are automatically displayed in scientific notation, for example: 2.02602231048012E19.
This makes it impossible to correctly read or verify long numeric identifiers.

Existing workaround and its limitation​

There is an available option: Preferences → SQL Window → Number fields to_char

Enabling this forces numbers to be converted using TO_CHAR, which prevents scientific notation.
However, this introduces a significant limitation:

• Numeric columns lose proper numeric sorting behavior.
• Sorting becomes lexical instead of numeric.
• This impacts data analysis and verification tasks.

Requested enhancement​

I would like to request a configurable numeric rendering option that:

1. Allows disabling scientific notation display.
2. Preserves numeric data type behavior (especially sorting).
3. Provides optional configuration based on number length.

Suggested configuration options​

For example:

• Checkbox: “Disable scientific notation for numeric values”
• Optional parameter: “Apply formatting only for numbers longer than X digits”
• Optional display format mask (e.g. full precision without exponent)

This would allow users to:

• View long numeric identifiers accurately
• Maintain correct numeric sorting
• Avoid global conversion to character data
• Customize behavior according to project needs

Business and technical justification​

In modern database systems:

• Numeric primary keys often exceed 18–20 digits.
• Many systems use timestamp-based or composite numeric identifiers.
• Accurate visual representation is critical for:
  • Debugging
  • Data validation
  • Incident analysis
  • Comparing values across environments

Automatic scientific notation may lead to:

• Misinterpretation of values
• Errors during manual verification
• Additional overhead from enabling/disabling TO_CHAR formatting

A more granular numeric rendering configuration would significantly improve usability, especially in enterprise environments working with high-precision numeric identifiers.

Thank you for considering this enhancement.

Best regards,
Adrian

 

[Marco Kalter]

I have added this to the list of enhancement requests.