Functionality

Hi

I have been learning postgresql for the last couple days and I have been
trying to determine what it can and cannot do in relation to Oracle (where I
have several years experience).

Questions

1. Can postgresql load/pin objects (i.e. tables, procedures, etc.)  into
memory at startup?
2. Does postgresql use a SQL cache like Oracle? If so, can the cache be
viewed or summarized using SQL?
3. Is it possible to return anything other than a single value from a
server-side procedure. If so, how?
4. Can SQL be parameterized like in Oracle (i.e. "SELECT name FROM table
WHERE somefield = :var1")?
5. Does postgresql support SQL hints (belong using the JOIN keyword)?
6. Does postgresql use table spaces like in Oracle (i.e. database objects
are placed if different tables spaces according to usage)?

Thanks