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Numeric Functions
Oracle Tips by
Burleson
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The following functions all accept numeric values as parameters and
return numeric values. Each of the functions listed in this section is
accurate to 38 significant digits.
abs()
The abs() function accepts a single number as a parameter
and returns the absolute value of that number. For example,
abs (-9.37)
returns
9.37
mod()
The mod() function accepts two numbers as parameters, x and
y, and returns the remainder of x divided by y. For instance, calling
the function to get the remainder of 5 divided by 2,
mod (5, 2)
returns
1
If y is zero, the function returns x. For instance,
mod (5, 0)
returns
5
power()
The power() function accepts two numbers as parameters, x
and y, and returns the value of x raised to the power of y. For
instance, calling the function to get the value of 10 raised to the
6th power,
power (10, 6)
returns
1000000
If the value of x is negative, the value of y must be an integer.
For instance,
power (-3.54, 2)
returns
12.5316
round()
The round() function accepts a single number, x, as a
parameter and rounds that number to the nearest integer value. For
instance, calling the function with a value of 15.37,
round (15.37)
returns
15
The function can also take an integer parameter, y, following the
number parameter. This parameter tells the function how many
significant digits should be left in place. Using the same value as
the previous example while passing 1 for the y parameter,
round (15.37, 1)
returns
15.4
If y is a negative value, the function rounds backwards from the
decimal. For example,
round (153.17, -1)
returns
150
which has been rounded at the ones position in the final value.
The function can be called with only one parameter. In this case, y
defaults to 0, and the function returns an integer value.
sqrt()
The sqrt() function accepts a single number as a parameter
and returns the square root of that number. For instance, passing 4 to
the function,
sqrt (4)
returns
2
This function can’t accept a negative value as a parameter, but the
function can return a decimal value. For example,
sqrt (5.25)
returns
2.29128785
trunc()
The trunc() function accepts a single number, x, as a
parameter and returns that number truncated to 0 decimal places. For
instance,
trunc (15.37)
returns
15
The function’s second parameter, y, tells the function how many
digits of the number should be left intact. This second parameter
defaults to 0 and must be an integer value. Using the same value as
the previous example, but passing 1 for y,
trunc (15.37, 1)
returns
15.3
This is an excerpt from the book "High Performance Oracle
Database Automation" by Jonathan Ingram and Donald K.
Burleson, Series Editor. |
