Re: OCTET_LENGTH is wrong

> Tom Lane writes:
>
> > What's bothering me right now is the difference between client and
> > server encodings. It seems that the only plausible use for
> > octet_length is to do memory allocation on the client side, and for
> > that purpose the length ought to be measured in the client encoding.
>
> OCTET_LENGTH returns the size of its argument, not the size of some
> possible future shape of that argument. There is absolutely no guarantee
> that the string that is processed by OCTET_LENGTH will ever reach any kind
> of client. There are procedural languages, for instance, or CREATE TABLE
> AS.

Yes, agreed. I argued that server-side octet_length would be valuable
for server-side functions. However, others felt client-side was more
important.

--
Bruce Momjian | http://candle.pha.pa.us
pgman(at)candle(dot)pha(dot)pa(dot)us | (610) 853-3000
+ If your life is a hard drive, | 830 Blythe Avenue
+ Christ can be your backup. | Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania 19026