Re: BUG #14405: ORDER BY TABLENAME, possible bug - Mailing list pgsql-bugs

From Francisco Olarte
Subject Re: BUG #14405: ORDER BY TABLENAME, possible bug
Date
Msg-id CA+bJJbz=7rU1r94PLTt0MiPJJGsitybF6TR8HNpXkC5La_uGTg@mail.gmail.com
Whole thread Raw
In response to BUG #14405: ORDER BY TABLENAME, possible bug  (udv.mail@gmail.com)
Responses Re: BUG #14405: ORDER BY TABLENAME, possible bug
List pgsql-bugs
Hi:

On Sat, Oct 29, 2016 at 2:19 PM,  <udv.mail@gmail.com> wrote:
> The following bug has been logged on the website:
> E.g. query:
>
> SELECT col1, col2, col3
> FROM table1
> ORDER BY table1
>
> Postgres uses col1 for ASC ordering, if we write "ORDER BY table1
> DESC" then DESC-ordering. I'm not sure this is a bug, but didn't find
> description for such behaviour.

That piked my curiosity, and I found doing the equivalent of (select
table1 from table1) sends back a single column output of record
values, with one record in each one, so if col1 is the first column in
table1 as rows seem to sort lexicographically that will explain the
behaviour. Try it yourself. ( Note, not the same as select table1.*
from table1, which gives n column )

Then, I do not remember whether that's a bug or a feature, and have
not been able to see it in the docs, do not even know how to do it (
tried some places without luck ), so someone more knowledgeable can
point us in the right direction.

Francisco Olarte.

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