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SQL syntax conventions

Table 1 lists the conventions for syntax statements in this manual:

**Table 1: Syntax statement conventions**
Key	Definition
command	Command names, command option names, utility names, utility flags, and other keywords are in Courier in syntax statements, and in bold Helvetica in paragraph text.
variable	Variables, or words that stand for values that you fill in, are in italics.
{ }	Curly braces indicate that you choose at least one of the enclosed options. Do not include braces in your option.
[ ]	Square brackets indicate that choosing one or more of the enclosed options is optional. Do not include brackets in your option.
( )	Type parentheses as part of the command.
\|	The vertical bar means you may select only one of the options shown.
,	The comma means you may choose as many of the options shown as you like, separating your choices with commas.

Syntax statements (displaying the syntax and all options for a command) are printed like this:
```
sp_dropdevice [device_name]
```
or, for a command with more options:
```
select column_name 
    from table_name 
    where search_conditions 
```
In syntax statements, keywords (commands) are in normal font and identifiers are in lowercase: normal font for keywords, italics for user-supplied words.
Examples showing the use of Transact-SQL commands are printed like this:
```
select * from publishers
```

Examples of output from the computer are printed like this:

pub_id  pub_name                 city        state 
------- -------------------      ----------- -----
0736    New Age Books            Boston      MA 
0877    Binnet & Hardley         Washington  DC 
1389    Algodata Infosystems     Berkeley    CA 
 
(3 rows affected)

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