Conditional Expressions

and Operators
 SQL

● Section Overview
○ CASE
○ COALESCE
○ NULLIF
○ CAST
○ Views
○ Import and Export Functionality
 SQL

● These keywords and functions will allow us to add

logic to our commands and workflows in SQL.
● Let’s get started!
CASE
 SQL

● We can use the CASE statement to only execute SQL

code when certain conditions are met.
● This is very similar to IF/ELSE statements in other
programming languages.
 SQL

● There are two main ways to use a CASE statement,

either a general CASE or a CASE expression.
● Both methods can lead to the same results.
● Let’s first show the syntax for a “general” CASE.
 SQL

● General Syntax
○ CASE
WHEN condition1 THEN result1
WHEN condition2 THEN result2
ELSE some_other_result
END
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT * FROM test;

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE WHEN a =1 THEN ‘one’

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE WHEN a = 1 THEN ‘one’
WHEN a = 2 THEN ‘two’

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE WHEN a = 1 THEN ‘one’
WHEN a = 2 THEN ‘two’
ELSE ‘other’
a

2
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE WHEN a = 1 THEN ‘one’
WHEN a = 2 THEN ‘two’
ELSE ‘other’
END
a Case
FROM test; 1 one

2 two
 SQL

● Simple Example
○ SELECT a,
CASE WHEN a = 1 THEN ‘one’
WHEN a = 2 THEN ‘two’
ELSE ‘other’ AS label
END
a label
FROM test; 1 one

2 two
 SQL

● The CASE expression syntax first evaluates an

expression then compares the result with each value
in the WHEN clauses sequentially.
 SQL

● CASE Expression Syntax

○ CASE expression
WHEN value1 THEN result1
WHEN value2 THEN result2
ELSE some_other_result
END
 SQL

● Rewriting our previous example:

○ SELECT a,
CASE a WHEN 1 THEN 'one'
WHEN 2 THEN 'two'
ELSE 'other'
END
a label
FROM test; 1 one

2 two
 SQL

● Let’s work through some examples in pgAdmin!

 CASE
Challenge Task
 SQL

● We want to know and compare the various amounts of

films we have per movie rating.
● Use CASE and the dvdrental database to re-create this
table:
 SQL

● Hints
○ Review our CASE expression example that used
SUM in the previous lecture
 SQL

● Let’s jump to pgAdmin to walk through the solution!

COALESCE
 SQL

● The COALESCE function accepts an unlimited

number of arguments. It returns the first argument that
is not null. If all arguments are null, the COALESCE
function will return null.
○ COALESCE (arg_1,arg_2,...,arg_n)
 SQL

● Example
○ SELECT COALESCE (1, 2)
■ 1
○ SELECT COALESCE(NULL, 2, 3)
■ 2
 SQL

● The COALESCE function becomes useful when

querying a table that contains null values and
substituting it with another value. Let’s see a simple
example
 SQL

● Table of Products
○ Price and Discount in Dollars
Item Price Discount
A 100 20
B 300 null
C 200 10
 SQL

● Table of Products
○ What is the final price?
Item Price Discount
A 100 20
B 300 null
C 200 10
 SQL

● SELECT item,(price - discount) AS final

FROM table

Item final
A 80
B null
C 190
 SQL

● SELECT item,(price - discount) AS final

FROM table
● Doesn’t work for item B, should be 300.

Item final
A 80
B null
C 190
 SQL

SELECT item,(price - COALESCE(discount,0))

AS final FROM table

Item final
A 80
B 300
C 190
 SQL

● Keep the COALESCE function in mind in case you

encounter a table with null values that you want to
perform operations on!
CAST
 SQL

● The CAST operator let’s you convert from one data

type into another.
● Keep in mind not every instance of a data type can be
CAST to another data type, it must be reasonable to
convert the data, for example ‘5’ to an integer will
work, ‘five’ to an integer will not.
 SQL

● Syntax for CAST function

○ SELECT CAST(‘5’ AS INTEGER)

● PostgreSQL CAST operator

○ SELECT ‘5’::INTEGER
 SQL

● Keep in mind you can then use this in a SELECT

query with a column name instead of a single
instance.
○ SELECT CAST(date AS TIMESTAMP)
FROM table
 SQL

● Let’s explore some examples in pgAdmin!

NULLIF
 SQL

● The NULLIF function takes in 2 inputs and returns

NULL if both are equal, otherwise it returns the first
argument passed.
○ NULLIF(arg1,arg2)
● Example
○ NULLIF(10,10)
■ Returns NULL
 SQL

● The NULLIF function takes in 2 inputs and returns

NULL if both are equal, otherwise it returns the first
argument passed.
○ NULLIF(arg1,arg2)
● Example
○ NULLIF(10,12)
■ Returns 10
 SQL

● This becomes very useful in cases where a NULL

value would cause an error or unwanted result.
● Let’s see an example.
 SQL

● Given this table calculate the ratio of Department A to

Department B

Name Department

Lauren A

Vinton A

Claire B
 SQL

● We can see easily the ratio of A to B is 2:1 or 200%

● Let’s use SQL to solve for this with CASE

Name Department

Lauren A

Vinton A

Claire B
 SQL

● Let’s jump to pgAdmin, quickly create this table and

walk through solving the RATIO and why we may
need NULLIF

Name Department

Lauren A

Vinton A

Claire B
VIEWS
 SQL

● Often there are specific combinations of tables and

conditions that you find yourself using quite often for
a project.
● Instead of having to perform the same query over and
over again as a starting point, you can create a VIEW
to quickly see this query with a simple call.
SQL
SQL

t1 t2

c1 c2 c3 c4
SQL
c1 c2 c3 c3

SELECT c1,c2,c3,c4
t1 t2
FROM t1
c1 c2 c3 c4 INNER JOIN t1
ON t1.c1 = t2.c3
SQL
c1 c2 c3 c3
SELECT * FROM view

SELECT c1,c2,c3,c4
t1 t2
FROM t1
c1 c2 c3 c4 INNER JOIN t1
ON t1.c1 = t2.c3
 SQL

● A view is a database object that is of a stored query.

● A view can be accessed as a virtual table in
PostgreSQL.
● Notice that a view does not store data physically, it
simply stores the query.
 SQL

● You can also update and alter existing views.

● Let’s explore this in pgAdmin!
Importing and Exporting
Data
 SQL

● In this lecture we will explore the Import/Export

functionality of PgAdmin, which allows us to import
data from a .csv file to an already existing table.
● There are some important notes to keep in mind when
using Import/Export
 SQL

● Important Note!
○ Not every outside data file will work, variations in
formatting, macros, data types, etc. may prevent
the Import command from reading the file, at
which point, you must edit your file to be
compatible with SQL.
 SQL

● Details of compatible file types and examples are

available in the online documentation:
● postgresql.org/docs/12/sql-copy.html
 SQL

● Important Note!
○ You MUST provide the 100% correct file path to
your outside file, otherwise the Import command
will fail to find the file.
○ The most common mistake if failing to provide the
correct file path, confirm the file’s location under
its properties.
 SQL

● VERY Important Note!

○ The Import command DOES NOT create a table
for you.
○ It assumes a table is already created.
○ Currently there is no automated way within
pgAdmin to create a table directly from a .csv file.
 SQL

● Let’s work through an example in pgAdmin!