For column values with the following data types, a code attribute can be entered as part of a column definition, if required: CHAR[ACTER], VARCHAR, LONG[VARCHAR].
A code attribute defines the sort sequence to be used for comparing values.
Code Attribute |
Column Values |
No code attribute |
The column values have the code attribute defined in the database system. |
ASCII |
The column values are stored in ASCII code. |
BYTE |
The column values are stored in a code, that is, the column values are not converted by the database system. |
UNICODE |
The application data in a table column is stored in UNICODE. |
If you do not specify a code attribute, the code defined in the database system is used. The code can be defined for specific users or globally using the following options:
· The code can be defined for specific users using appropriate SQL statements (for more information, see: CREATE/ALTER USER Statement or CREATE/ALTER USERGROUP Statement).
· The code can be defined globally during the installation of the database system using the special database parameter DEFAULT_CODE.
The code defined for a user overrides the code specified globally in the database system.