Glad you found a solution. Good luck.

Using old school technique, you could use subqueries instead of CTEs to do it in steps. I'm sorry that WITH gives you a problem, because I find CTEs...

Sorry if the entire thread was too intimidating, but the FOR XML technique doesn't require that you know the values in advance.

Here it is applied to...

Although I have no preference, aren't they using VB with SSIS?

I have nothing against synonyms, but wouldn't the use of synonyms require distinct sets of code for each synonym accessed? When pulling numbers from similar tables in...

Just a suggestion, for readability purposes, use CTEs to build up what you want step-by-step. You don't take a performance hit because the optimizer treats it as a...

I have no doubt they could create additional functions within SQL. Look at what can be done with FOR XML concatenation now. If they chose, they could...

Our head DBA and I both agree that using dynamic SQL to pull together information from multiple databases is a good way to go. In our...

Just out of curiousity...

Why are you looking for a solution like

@X = ( @X + ABS(@X) ) / 2

instead of

@X = CASE WHEN @X <0 THEN 0...

A thought here for some of you who might have the ear of the powers that be at Microsoft. Given that CLR is demonstrably faster at some things...

This is a fairly common question. Various solutions are posted here:

http://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic695359-338-1.aspx#bm695486

Take a look at the FOR XML solution near the front, and please let me know if you...

Ask and ye shall receive...

No promises about efficiency, but it's not a case statement either 😉

-- for any given function or expresion "@X"

declare @x int

set @x = -5

while @x...

Hey Lynn,

I told your friend a long time ago that his problem is that...

GUS!!!! :w00t:

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Next thing you'll be blabbing about the secret handshake. 😛

THREAD be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so...

OLD?

Old age hath yet his honour and his toil;

The Thread closes all: but something ere...