Jesper Krogh <jesper(at)krogh(dot)cc> writes:
> Why doesn't it use an index on the "like" operator when it doesn't
> contain a wildcard in the beginning of the pattern?
Probably because your locale isn't C --- locale-specific sort ordering
usually isn't compatible with the needs of LIKE, so we can only make
that optimization in C locale.
You can either re-initdb in C locale, or (if you're using 7.4) create a
specialized index with non-locale-dependent comparison operators. See
the manual concerning specialized index operator classes.
regards, tom lane