Scribd
Upload
46 views

Retrieving Data Using The SQL SELECT Statement

The document summarizes a SQL lesson that teaches how to retrieve data using SELECT statements. It covers selecting all or specific columns from tables, arithmetic expressions, NULL values, column aliases, concatenation operators, literal strings, the DISTINCT keyword, and using the DESCRIBE command to view table structures. The lesson agenda is broken into sections for the basic SELECT statement, expressions and NULLS, column aliases, concatenation/strings, DISTINCT, and DESCRIBE.

Uploaded by

Wilson Lima
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
46 views

Retrieving Data Using The SQL SELECT Statement

The document summarizes a SQL lesson that teaches how to retrieve data using SELECT statements. It covers selecting all or specific columns from tables, arithmetic expressions, NULL values, column aliases, concatenation operators, literal strings, the DISTINCT keyword, and using the DESCRIBE command to view table structures. The lesson agenda is broken into sections for the basic SELECT statement, expressions and NULLS, column aliases, concatenation/strings, DISTINCT, and DESCRIBE.

Uploaded by

Wilson Lima
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 29

Retrieving Data Using

the SQL SELECT Statement


Objectives

After completing this lesson, you should be able to do the


following:
• List the capabilities of SQL SELECT statements
• Execute a basic SELECT statement
Lesson Agenda

• Basic SELECT statement


• Arithmetic expressions and NULL values in the SELECT
statement
• Column aliases
• Use of concatenation operator, literal character strings,
alternative quote operator, and the DISTINCT keyword
• DESCRIBE command
Capabilities of SQL SELECT Statements

Projection Selection

Table 1 Table 1

Join

Table 1 Table 2
Basic SELECT Statement

SELECT *|{[DISTINCT] column|expression [alias],...}


FROM table;

• SELECT identifies the columns to be displayed.


• FROM identifies the table containing those columns.
Selecting All Columns

SELECT *
FROM departments;
Selecting Specific Columns

SELECT department_id, location_id


FROM departments;
Writing SQL Statements

• SQL statements are not case-sensitive.


• SQL statements can be entered on one or more lines.
• Keywords cannot be abbreviated or split across lines.
• Clauses are usually placed on separate lines.
• Indents are used to enhance readability.
• In SQL Developer, SQL statements can optionally be
terminated by a semicolon (;). Semicolons are required when
you execute multiple SQL statements.
• In SQL*Plus, you are required to end each SQL statement
with a semicolon (;).
Column Heading Defaults

• SQL Developer:
– Default heading alignment: Left-aligned
– Default heading display: Uppercase
• SQL*Plus:
– Character and Date column headings are left-aligned.
– Number column headings are right-aligned.
– Default heading display: Uppercase
Lesson Agenda

• Basic SELECT statement


• Arithmetic expressions and NULL values in the SELECT
statement
• Column Aliases
• Use of concatenation operator, literal character strings,
alternative quote operator, and the DISTINCT keyword
• DESCRIBE command
Arithmetic Expressions

Create expressions with number and date data by using


arithmetic operators.

Operator Description
+ Add
- Subtract
* Multiply
/ Divide
Using Arithmetic Operators

SELECT last_name, salary, salary + 300


FROM employees;

…
Operator Precedence

SELECT last_name, salary, 12*salary+100


FROM employees; 1

…
SELECT last_name, salary, 12*(salary+100)
FROM employees;
2

…
Defining a Null Value

• Null is a value that is unavailable, unassigned, unknown, or


inapplicable.
• Null is not the same as zero or a blank space.

SELECT last_name, job_id, salary, commission_pct


FROM employees;

…
Null Values in Arithmetic Expressions

Arithmetic expressions containing a null value evaluate to null.

SELECT last_name, 12*salary*commission_pct


FROM employees;

…
Lesson Agenda

• Basic SELECT statement


• Arithmetic expressions and NULL values in the SELECT
statement
• Column aliases
• Use of concatenation operator, literal character strings,
alternative quote operator, and the DISTINCT keyword
• DESCRIBE command
Defining a Column Alias

A column alias:
• Renames a column heading
• Is useful with calculations
• Immediately follows the column name (There can also be the
optional AS keyword between the column name and alias.)
• Requires double quotation marks if it contains spaces or
special characters, or if it is case-sensitive
Using Column Aliases

SELECT last_name AS name, commission_pct comm


FROM employees;

…
SELECT last_name "Name" , salary*12 "Annual Salary"
FROM employees;

…
Lesson Agenda

• Basic SELECT Statement


• Arithmetic Expressions and NULL values in SELECT
statement
• Column Aliases
• Use of concatenation operator, literal character strings,
alternative quote operator, and the DISTINCT keyword
• DESCRIBE command
Concatenation Operator

A concatenation operator:
• Links columns or character strings to other columns
• Is represented by two vertical bars (||)
• Creates a resultant column that is a character expression
SELECT last_name||job_id AS "Employees"
FROM employees;

…
Literal Character Strings

• A literal is a character, a number, or a date that is included in


the SELECT statement.
• Date and character literal values must be enclosed within
single quotation marks.
• Each character string is output once for each row returned.
Using Literal Character Strings

SELECT last_name ||' is a '||job_id


AS "Employee Details"
FROM employees;

…
Alternative Quote (q) Operator

• Specify your own quotation mark delimiter.


• Select any delimiter.
• Increase readability and usability.
SELECT department_name || ' Department' ||
q'['s Manager Id: ]'
|| manager_id
AS "Department and Manager"
FROM departments;
Duplicate Rows

The default display of queries is all rows, including duplicate


rows.
SELECT department_id
FROM employees; 1

…
SELECT DISTINCT department_id
FROM employees;
2

…
Lesson Agenda

• Basic SELECT statement


• Arithmetic expressions and NULL values in the SELECT
statement
• Column aliases
• Use of concatenation operator, literal character strings,
alternative quote operator, and the DISTINCT keyword
• DESCRIBE command
Displaying the Table Structure

• Use the DESCRIBE command to display the structure of a


table.
• Or, select the table in the Connections tree and use the
Columns tab to view the table structure.
DESC[RIBE] tablename
Using the DESCRIBE Command

DESCRIBE employees
Summary

In this lesson, you should have learned how to:


• Write a SELECT statement that:
– Returns all rows and columns from a table
– Returns specified columns from a table
– Uses column aliases to display more descriptive column
headings

SELECT *|{[DISTINCT] column|expression [alias],...}


FROM table;
Practice 1: Overview

This practice covers the following topics:


• Selecting all data from different tables
• Describing the structure of tables
• Performing arithmetic calculations and specifying column
names

You might also like