Re: Cool but ugly SQL

On 6/19/06, Vernon Hamberg <vhamberg@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

LOL Dan - you've definitely come over to the dark side!

I can still hear James Earl Jones speaking the line "Do not underestimate
the power of the force."  I look at SQL these days in the same "light" that
I remember seeing OPNQRYF 15 years ago.  "Awesome!  You can do *that*?!?!?"
So much to soak in.  (Since I bring it up, I wonder if anyone uses OPNQRYF
in new development anymore?)

I will give your examples a run-through when I get a chance. (Thanks!)

I recommend the SQL Reference on IBM's site for more on this.


Maybe it's just me, but I find the SQL Reference useful only when you *know*
what you're looking for.  Maybe it's just the nature of the beast, 2000 ways
to skin a cat and all that, but in the case of the questions "Can I do
this?" or "How do I do that?", the SQL Reference more often then not leads
me on a wild goose chase.  A colleague here has "Joe Celko's SQL for
Smarties" that I've been meaning to have a look at, but it's also labeled
"Advanced SQL Programming", so I don't know.

- Dan