The following conventions are used for syntax diagrams in this manual:
|
Keywords |
Symbol |
Syntax Convention |
| Keywords |
SELECT |
SQL keywords are shown in uppercase. |
| Placeholders |
name |
Items that the user must replace with appropriate identifiers or expressions are shown in italics. |
| Options |
| |
Options are separated by vertical bars. Any one of the items is allowed. |
| Continuation |
... |
Lines beginning with ... are a continuation of the statements from the previous line. |
| Lists |
",..." |
Lists are shown with a list element followed by ",...". This means that one or more list elements are allowed and if more than one is specified, they must be separated by commas. |
| Optional portions |
[ ] |
Optional portions of a statement are enclosed by square brackets.
For example, [ ASC | DESC ] indicates that ASC or DESC are optional.
The square bracket should not be typed. |
| Alternatives |
{ } |
When one of the options must be chosen, the alternatives are enclosed
in curly braces. For example [ QUOTES { ON | OFF } ] indicates that
if the QUOTES option is chosen, one of ON or OFF must be provided.
The braces should not be typed. |