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* Re: Syntax error needs explanation
@ 2025-07-14 19:36 Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Adrian Klaver @ 2025-07-14 19:36 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Rich Shepard <[email protected]>; [email protected]
On 7/14/25 12:12, Rich Shepard wrote:
> I have the following script:
>
> select c.company_nbr, c.company_name, i.industry, from companies as c,
> industry as i, enforcement as e
> where exists (
> select c.company_nbr, count(e.action_date), sum(e.penalty_amt)
> from e.enforcement
> where c.company_nbr = e.company_nbr
> )
> group by industry
> order by industry;
>
> When I run it psql reports an error:
> psql:companies-with-enforcement-actions.txt:127: ERROR: syntax error at
> or near "company_nbr"
> LINE 1: company_nbr | company_name
The above looks like the format 'aligned' output from a query.
When you did \0 you captured that.
As example:
production=# \o test.sql
production=# select * from cell_per;
production=# \e test.sql
line_id | category | cell_per | ts_insert | ts_update
| user_insert | user_update | plant_type | season | short_category
[...]
> ^
> and I'm not seeing the error. What am I missing?
>
> TIA,
>
> Rich
>
>
--
Adrian Klaver
[email protected]
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: Syntax error needs explanation
2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
@ 2025-07-14 19:45 ` Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:56 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:59 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
0 siblings, 2 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Adrian Klaver @ 2025-07-14 19:45 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Rich Shepard <[email protected]>; +Cc: pgsql-general
On 7/14/25 12:38, Rich Shepard wrote:
Reply to list also.
Ccing list.
> On Mon, 14 Jul 2025, Adrian Klaver wrote:
>
>> The above looks like the format 'aligned' output from a query.
>
> Adrian,
>
> I mistyped the script's extension as .txt rather than .sql.
That does not matter, that is more for user convenience in figuring out
what the files are for.
\o test.txt
select * from cell_per;
Then doing:
psql -d production -U postgres -h localhost -p 5432 -f test.sql
Null display is "NULL".
psql:test.sql:82: ERROR: syntax error at or near "line_id"
LINE 1: line_id | category | cell_per | ts_insert |
psql -d production -U postgres -h localhost -p 5432 -f test.txt
Null display is "NULL".
psql:test.txt:82: ERROR: syntax error at or near "line_id"
LINE 1: line_id | category | cell_per | ts_insert | ...
The error is the same as psql just processes the file without regard to
the extension.
>
> Regards,
>
> Rich
--
Adrian Klaver
[email protected]
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: Syntax error needs explanation
2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
@ 2025-07-14 19:56 ` David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
1 sibling, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: David G. Johnston @ 2025-07-14 19:56 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>; +Cc: Rich Shepard <[email protected]>; pgsql-general
On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 12:45 PM Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
wrote:
> >
> > I mistyped the script's extension as .txt rather than .sql.
>
> That does not matter, that is more for user convenience in figuring out
> what the files are for.
>
>
I think all that is being said is the error was a simple typo, choosing the
wrong file to execute. Not reading the error message was the real issue,
not a failure to understand how psql scripting works.
David J.
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: Syntax error needs explanation
2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
@ 2025-07-14 19:59 ` Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 20:07 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
1 sibling, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: Rich Shepard @ 2025-07-14 19:59 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: pgsql-general
On Mon, 14 Jul 2025, Adrian Klaver wrote:
> That does not matter, that is more for user convenience in figuring out what
> the files are for.
Adrian,
Okay.
I still have issues with the script. I want a count of companies with
regulatory enforcement actions by industry. Since not all regulated
companies have had such actions I want only those with rows in the
enforcemewnt table and haven't before used the EXISTS operator and a
subquery.
The current version of the script:
select c.company_nbr, c.company_name, c.industry
from companies as c
where exists (
select e.company_nbr
from enforcement as e
)
group by c.industry
order by c.industry;
And psql tells me that c.company_nbr must be in the group by clause.
However, when I do that the output is a list of company numbers and names in
each industry.
My web searches on using the exists operator haven't provided the knowlege
for me to use it properly.
Rich
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: Syntax error needs explanation
2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:59 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
@ 2025-07-14 20:07 ` David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 20:13 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation [RESOLVED] Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
0 siblings, 1 reply; 6+ messages in thread
From: David G. Johnston @ 2025-07-14 20:07 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: Rich Shepard <[email protected]>; +Cc: pgsql-general
On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 12:59 PM Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
> The current version of the script:
>
> select c.company_nbr, c.company_name, c.industry
> from companies as c
> where exists (
> select e.company_nbr
> from enforcement as e
> )
> group by c.industry
> order by c.industry;
>
> And psql tells me that c.company_nbr must be in the group by clause.
> However, when I do that the output is a list of company numbers and names
> in
> each industry.
>
> My web searches on using the exists operator haven't provided the knowlege
> for me to use it properly.
>
>
Yeah, you need both to read up on aggregate queries and correlated
subqueries which is typically how one makes uses of exists (it's called a
semi-join in this formulation)
Not tested, but:
select c.industry, count(*)
from companies as c
where exists (
select from enforcement as e
where e.company_nbr = c.company_nbr
)
group by c.industry;
David J.
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
* Re: Syntax error needs explanation [RESOLVED]
2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:59 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 20:07 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
@ 2025-07-14 20:13 ` Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
0 siblings, 0 replies; 6+ messages in thread
From: Rich Shepard @ 2025-07-14 20:13 UTC (permalink / raw)
To: pgsql-general
On Mon, 14 Jul 2025, David G. Johnston wrote:
> Yeah, you need both to read up on aggregate queries and correlated
> subqueries which is typically how one makes uses of exists (it's called a
> semi-join in this formulation)
David,
Thanks. I wasn't sure what to read.
> Not tested, but:
>
> select c.industry, count(*)
> from companies as c
> where exists (
> select from enforcement as e
> where e.company_nbr = c.company_nbr
> )
> group by c.industry;
Works as intended.
Many thanks,
Rich
^ permalink raw reply [nested|flat] 6+ messages in thread
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2025-07-14 19:36 Re: Syntax error needs explanation Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:45 ` Adrian Klaver <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:56 ` David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 19:59 ` Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 20:07 ` David G. Johnston <[email protected]>
2025-07-14 20:13 ` Re: Syntax error needs explanation [RESOLVED] Rich Shepard <[email protected]>
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