Re: order by

> Is there a known problem with the SQL order by clause within
> postgres version 7.2.3? I am trying to sort a field which holds file
> names that have some spaces as well non-alphanumeric characters,
> including underscores (see below).
>
> The results of:
> select study_name from study order by study_name;
>
> Study1a
> Study 1b
> Study 1c
> Study1d
>
> The results of sorting in Perl (which uses Linux's underlying sort
> function)
>
> Study 1c
> Study 1b
> Study1a
> Study1d
>
> Is there any way around this difference? Blank spaces should show up
> first in the sort.
I made a test table with varchar field and filled it with your values.
I got the same result as in Perl. I have Postgresql 7.3. I'm not sure what
you really want to get.
template1=# create table test (x varchar);
template1=# insert into test values ('Study1a');
template1=# insert into test values ('Study 1b');
template1=# insert into test values ('Study 1c');
template1=# insert into test values ('Study1d');
template1=# SELECT * from test order by x asc;
x
-----------
Study 1c
Study 1b
Study1a
Study1d
(4 rows)

Regards,
Tomasz Myrta