Message-ID: <46640B8F.8040503@bluegap.ch>
Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:54:39 +0200
From: Markus Schiltknecht <markus@bluegap.ch>
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To: "Miha D. Puc" <miha.puc@eba.si>
CC: pgsql-interfaces@postgresql.org
Subject: Re: Bytea network traffic: binary vs text result format
References: <466299A7.20403@eba.si>
In-Reply-To: <466299A7.20403@eba.si>
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Hi,

Miha D. Puc wrote:
> So there is a need (people asking) and reason (performance) to use
> binary format.

You are aware that PostgreSQL itself *can* transfer values in binary 
format? Check the Documentation: "43.1.3. Formats and Format Codes":

http://www.postgresql.org/docs/8.1/interactive/protocol.html

This works since protocol version 3, AFAICT. The client needs to support 
that, though. But the php pgsql binding, just as an example, doesn't use 
that feature.

> So with all the above there should be a utility for conversion between
> binary format and native types and/or string format in libpq.

There already are. Not in libpq, though. Most (if not all) internal 
types have those functions. See for example:

   # SELECT typinput, typoutput, typreceive, typsend
   #   FROM pg_type WHERE typname='int4';

    typinput | typoutput | typreceive | typsend
   ----------+-----------+------------+----------
    int4in   | int4out   | int4recv   | int4send
   (1 row)


The input and output functions deal with the textual representation, 
while send and receive convert to a binary representation in network 
byte order.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Markus