Presents your 
SQL SERVER E-NEWSLETTER for March 2, 2004

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HOW YUKON T-SQL ENHANCEMENTS BOOST PRODUCTIVITY 
 
Yukon offers a number of feature enhancements to T-SQL, including two 
extensions to the TOP keyword. Here's how this keyword works in SQL 
Server 2000: 
 
SELECT TOP 10 [PERCENT] * 
FROM Table1, Table2, Table3 
WHERE SomeCondition 
ORDER BY SomeColumn 
 
The PERCENT keyword requires a value from 1 to 100; without the value, 
an integer is required. In both cases, it isn't possible to pass a 
variable to be plugged into this value. In Yukon, both versions of TOP 
accept variables in the following form: 
 
DECLARE @MyValue AS BIGINT 
SET @MyValue = 10 
SELECT TOP (@MyValue) [PERCENT] * 
FROM Table1, Table2, Table3 
WHERE SomeCondition 
ORDER BY SomeColumn 
 
This code declares the value @MyValue; it doesn't accomplish anything 
new in this context, but the value could be passed into a stored 
procedure or table function, enabling you to create a variety of result 
sets from a single source. 
 
In the past, I would duplicate this functionality with the 
copy-and-paste technique. This new functionality will enable me to 
delete loads of almost identical procedures and replace them with a 
single parameterized procedure. And, instead of canning a few 
variants (sales10, sales20, etc.), I'll be able to let the user 
decide how many results to include in her request--without changing
a line of code. Now that's productivity! 
 
NOTE: This information is subject to change by the release date of Yukon. 
 
Arthur Fuller has been developing database applications for 20 years. 
His experience includes Access ADPs, Microsoft SQL 2000, MySQL, and .NET. 

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