keywords FIRST / LAST // COM licensing

[Ruslan Zasukhin]

On 8/25/06 9:34 PM, "fellerd at cox.net" <fellerd at cox.net> wrote:

Hi Douglas,

> I also don't see the FIRST and LAST keywords to use in your
> set_function_specification. I see AVG, MAX, MIN, COUNT, STDDEV, CORR, COVAR
> and BIT functions, but no FIRST or LAST functions. We use the FIRST or LAST
> functions with string type fields.

Hmm, they are not in SQL92 standard I believe.
So sounds like you talk about some non-standard extension of SQL

> These other functions work with returning values and not returning a string as
> the result. This is the one of the most important features we need in our
> Excel type Quoting system.

:-) okay.

Again, PLEASE subscribe into our MANTIS and add your feature requests.
I am glad to meet developer who need so many new features.

> When we import the records from the database into the spreadsheet. The
> crosstab/pivot must return the FIRST value (Not MIN or MAX) for a particular
> quoting parameter. That's coz the values are a mixture of numbers,
> alphanumeric and MSExcel formulas that get set into the spreadsheet grid
> from the database.
 
> I believe the MIN and MAX functions will only work on number fields and not
> text fields. 

Text field no, but String and VarChar I think yes.

> This is why MSAccess has the FIRST and LAST functions to work
> with string/text type of values. If you have other group functions that
> return string values then I would like to know about them coz it is very
> important part of any db we build.


> Group By     TRANSFORM Col Heading     Value
> ==============================================================
> Line Item    Parameter                 FIRST( [Parameter Value]

> That's coz the Value returned from the function will contain a mixture of
> numbers, alphanumeric and MSExcel formulas that get imported into the
> spreadsheet grid from the database. I believe your AVG, MAX, MIN, COUNT,
> STDDEV, CORR, COVAR and BIT functions all return numbers. So this may become
> a major downfall of the Valentina-db.

Again not exactly. MIN / MAX can work on STRING and VarChar fields and
return string value of course.

Hmm, you know, as far as I see in this case MIN = FIRST, MAX = LAST.
Because group is sorted. Your FIRST command returns MIN in group. You see?
 
If MS Acccess is not able return strings for MIN/MAX then this is problem of
Access. :-)



-- 
Best regards,

Ruslan Zasukhin
VP Engineering and New Technology
Paradigma Software, Inc

Valentina - Joining Worlds of Information
http://www.paradigmasoft.com

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