base64 {en,de}code mysql

Hello. I know this is comp.lang.php but I really can't find a
specific mysql newsgroup. Can someone point one out?

It seems to me that mysql doesn't have a couple of functions for
encoding and decoding strings using base64 algorithm. I really
need it *in* mysql, not php or something else.

The reason why it's because I have some strings encoded in a
table which I need to sort so I'd need to decode them first and I
don't want to handle the sorting outside mysql because it will
make the job totally harder.

If there is any chance of finding a solution for that, i'd like
to hear about it if for example, there's a way to implement the
function in mysql somehow. I would even try to change the source
code of mysql, but that wouldn't be too nice because then I'd
have to impose a patch on everyone who would like to run the
system... :\

Thanks for any information.

Kevin wrote:

> Hello. I know this is comp.lang.php but I really can't find a
> specific mysql newsgroup. Can someone point one out?
>
> It seems to me that mysql doesn't have a couple of functions for
> encoding and decoding strings using base64 algorithm. I really
> need it *in* mysql, not php or something else.

Did you consider *not* storing these strings in base64 encoded form? I think
that's your easiest solution to the problem.

--
phil [dot] ronan @ virgin [dot] net
http://vzone.virgin.net/phil.ronan/

"Philip Ronan" <invalid@invalid.invalid> wrote in message
news:BE2EF24E.2A93A%invalid@invalid.invalid...
> Kevin wrote:
>
> > Hello. I know this is comp.lang.php but I really can't find a
> > specific mysql newsgroup. Can someone point one out?
> >
> > It seems to me that mysql doesn't have a couple of functions for
> > encoding and decoding strings using base64 algorithm. I really
> > need it *in* mysql, not php or something else.
>
> Did you consider *not* storing these strings in base64 encoded form? I
think
> that's your easiest solution to the problem.
>
> --
> phil [dot] ronan @ virgin [dot] net
> http://vzone.virgin.net/phil.ronan/
>

I once worked with a guy who urlencode (!) all strings going into the
database. It was his way of handling strings with quotation marks :-p