[rt-users] TicketSQL question

[Bob Goldstein]

>>    I basically want to know, did the requestor
>>    send that last Correspond?  If he did,
>>    and did it 3 days ago, I need to crack some
>>    heads.  But if we sent the last correspond,
>>    the heads can stay healthy.
>
>I don't believe that is possible in raw TicketSQL.
>
>It wouldn't be hard to add a "LastTransaction" concept to TicketSQL,
>but then you have to ask the question: "Do we generalize this?  What
>if I want the 2nd to last transaction?"  "What if I want the last
>Comment?"  And suddenly the world explodes.
>

 Boom! I think you're right, but still, what SHOULD
 TicketSQL do?  How much should it be like SQL?

     ...(select max(Transaction.date) where Transaction.type='correspond') ...

  The 'S' in SQL basically means subqueries, but not in TicketSQL.
  I agree that "last Comment" is fair game, but the "2nd to last"
  is a lot harder and less useful, so I'm less concerned there.

  Let me generalize my question/quandry.  I need some reports.
  My options are:
     1. TicketSQL
     2. Real SQL
     3. Perl with Objects and DBIx::SB

  TicketSQL doesn't have the features, although the fact it works
  in a url is very attractive. Real SQL would be great if the
  schema docs were ok (am I missing them?) and I could count on
  the schema not changing, but the book kinda recommends against
  raw sql (I'm talking read-only though). Perl would work, of
  course, but that seems so laborious and ad hoc compared to sql
  (much as I like perl).

  What would you do?

     bobg