Set operators are used to include, exclude, or intersect data sets. All operators use sets as operands and return a set as result.
You can use set operators in two different situations:
-
To perform a set operation on set identifiers, representing sets of records in data.
-
To perform a set operation on the element sets, on the field values, or inside a set modifier.
The following table shows the operators that can be used in set expressions.
| Operator | Description |
|---|---|
| + | Union. This binary operation returns a set consisting of the records or elements that belong to any of the two set operands. |
| - | Exclusion. This binary operation returns a set consisting of the records or elements that belong to the first but not the other of the two set operands. Also, when used as a unary operator, it returns the complement set. |
| * | Intersection. This binary operation returns a set consisting of the records or elements that belong to both set operands. |
| / | Symmetric difference (XOR). This binary operation returns a set consisting of the records or elements that belong to either, but not both set operands. |
The following table shows examples with operators.
| Example | Result |
|---|---|
|
Sum ({1-$} Sales) |
Returns sales for everything excluded by current selection. |
|
Sum ({$*BM01} Sales) |
Returns sales for the intersection between the selection and bookmark #160;BM01. |
|
Sum ({-($+BM01)} Sales) |
Returns sales excluded by the selection and bookmark BM01. |
|
Sum ({$<Year={2009}>+1<Country={'Sweden'}>} Sales) |
Returns sales for the year 2009 associated with the current selections and add the full set of data associated with the country Sweden across all years. |
|
Sum ({$<Country={"S*"}+{"*land"}>} Sales) |
Returns the sales for countries that begin with S or end with land. |
See also: