User's Guide

Part II. Tutorials

Chapter 6. Using Character-Mode ISQL

One of the principal uses of ISQL is to look at information in databases.

The database used in this tutorial is for a fictional company. The sample database contains information about employees, departments, sales orders, and so on.

All this information is organized into a number of tables, consisting of rows and columns.

You display information from a database using the SELECT statement. The following example shows the command to type in the ISQL command window. Once you have typed the command, you must click Execute to carry out the command. The example displays the first several columns and rows of the results of the query, which are displayed in the ISQL data window. The format is used throughout this manual.

To list all the columns and rows of the employee table:

• Type the following statement:

       SELECT *cd2
       FROM employee
  

emp_id	manager_id	emp_lname	emp_fname	...
102	501	Fran	Whitney	...
105	501	Matthew	Cobb	...
129	902	Philip	Chin	...
148	1293	Julie	Jordan	...
160	501	Robert	Breault	...
...

Notes

• SQL statements are case insensitive. SELECT is the same as select is the same as Select. In the examples, SQL keywords are shown in upper case, but you do not have to type them in upper case.
• SQL statements can be typed on more than one line. You can type the statements all on one line, or break them over several lines as you wish. Some SQL statements, such as the SELECT statement, consist of several parts, called clausesIn many examples, each clause is placed on a separate line, but you do not have to type them this way.

The ISQL Data window displays a set of rows and columns containing information about the employees. Each row contains information about one employee, and each column contains a particular piece of information for all employees.