Re: SHOW TABLES

On Jul 15, 2010, at 2:45 PM, Heikki Linnakangas wrote:

> On 15/07/10 19:06, Aaron W. Swenson wrote:
>> The best solution is to offer a hint to the user in psql when they submit
>> 'SHOW . . . .' with a response like: SHOW . . . . is not a valid command.
>> Perhaps you mean \d . . . .
>
> +1. That doesn't force us to implement a whole new set of commands and syntax to describe stuff in the backend,
duplicatingthe \d commands, but is polite to the users, and immediately guides them to the right commands. 
>
> You could even do that in the backend for a few simple commands like SHOW TABLES:
>
> ERROR: syntax error at "SHOW TABLES"
> HINT: To list tables in the database, SELECT * FROM pg_tables or use the \d psql command.


This sounds roughly like the patch I submitted in January (linked upthread), although that swiped the input before it
hitthe backend.  I don't know if I like the idea of that HINT or not. 

Regards,

David
--
David Christensen
End Point Corporation
david@endpoint.com