SHIFT( ) function

Returns a single character string with the bits in the first character of the input value shifted to the left or right.

Syntax

SHIFT(character, number_of_bits_to_left)

Parameters

Name	Type	Description
character	character	The value to shift bits for.
number_of_bits_to_left	numeric	Specifies the number of bits to shift the character value. If the value is positive character is shifted to the left If the value is negative character is shifted to the right If the specified value is greater than 15 or less than -15 the result is binary zero, CHR(0).

Output

Character.

Examples

Basic examples

Returns the letter "X", or CHR(88) (00010110 becomes 01011000):

SHIFT(CHR(22), 2)

Returns the backspace character, or CHR(8) (00010000 becomes 00001000):

SHIFT(CHR(16), -1)

Returns the grave accent character, or CHR(96) (10011011 becomes 01100000):

SHIFT(CHR(155), 5)

Remarks

When to use SHIFT( )

Use the SHIFT( ) function in conjunction with the BYTE( ), CHR( ) and MASK( ) functions to isolate and move individual bits in a record.