Help with change in Data type

[sshettar]

Hi All,

I have this job where i am getting 32 fields at the output . these fields later has to mapped to a fields in a table most of whose data types do not match with these .
well the data types of all the fields in the output are of type Varchar and of different lengths.
well some these should be changed to decimal of length 8 and few to int of length 4 .
and few to dates of length 8
well how do i change the data type from varchar to decimal of length 8 and varchar to Int of length 4 and the same to date of length 8?

well i tried using PROMO_ID:decimal[8,0]= decimal_from_string(PROMO_ID)
for changing from varchar to decimal of length 8 .
am i correct and how do i do for int and date?



Please need help on this

Thanks in advance

[Krazykoolrohit]

Just make sure the input field is integer and map it to the output field. same goes for other data type conversions. You need not do any conversions if you are sure that the input data values correspond to the output data type

[kcbland]

Look under the functions listed in the Transformer stage on the right click menu. The subfolder of type conversions should help you out. You can always read the .pdf under your Start menu for more descriptions.

[sshettar]

Well i need to convert the data type of the field from varchar to Int of lenght 8
and also from varchar to data type Date of length 8

what is the function i need to use for this in the modify stage?

Thanks

[sshettar]

Well unfortuantely i cannot use the Parallel transformer as there is some problem with the parallael transformer here.
hence forth i cannot make use of those functions available in the transformer . i can only use basic transformer.

Any other way out to do this?

Thanks

[DSguru2B]

AsInteger() and StringToDate().

[Krazykoolrohit]

AsInteger() and StringToDate().

Why do we need to use this function if i am sure the data contains all integers and dates respectively?

I cant check it out as i dont have parallel installed with me. Can you please help me out on this?

[DSguru2B]

In server it does not matter. In px it does. If you have any background in programming, especially c, you will know that characters are not the same as integers. They need typecasting to be changed from one form to another. Similarly with PX, as it is strongly typed like C, you need the conversions. Thats why these functions exist in the first place.

[Krazykoolrohit]

In server it does not matter. In px it does. If you have any background in programming, especially c, you will know that characters are not the same as integers. They need typecasting to be changed from one form to another. Similarly with PX, as it is strongly typed like C, you need the conversions. Thats why these functions exist in the first place.

Thanx.

[kcbland]

Because PX is strictly data typed. You must promote or demote accordingly. As for not have the Transformer, the only reason would be that your compiler is not configured. You can use the Modify stage, but you'll find that while a much faster stage, it is less "friendly" because of it's obvious manual typing effort.

The Transformer stage has made significant strides in flexibility and functionality. It's more legible and easier to understand and use. In the new few releases I'm confident engineering will get it to the point of matching the Modify in terms of performance. Unless you're counting microseconds and are concerned about significant accumulation of microseconds, consider the Transformer stage.

The "Rule of Thumb" to never use the Transformer stage in favor of Modify stage should be carefully reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The Modify stage cannot replace the Transformer stage all situations.

[ray.wurlod]

Slightly off topic, the decision about Transformer versus other stage types is also a function of version. Somewhere in version 7.1 Transformer stage performance was enhanced, and can now be preferred to Filter or Switch (for example) which are effectively interpreted rather than compiled. However, Modify stage is still best for the things that it can do - it's very primitive nature is the secret of its speed.