In addition to other display formats for numeric columns, numeric templates for specialized needs are provided.

The general syntax of a numeric template is:

The character c is one of the special template characters. Use one special character for each space of the column width. For example, '$$$$' specifies that the column is four digits wide and a dollar sign must be printed to the left of whatever number is displayed in the field. You must delimit the template with single (') or double (") quotation marks; single quotes are recommended for consistency with requirements for quoting string constants.

You can include any printable character explicitly in a numeric template by preceding it with a backslash (\). For example, to include the percent symbol in a template, enter \%. The backslash is ignored and the character immediately following the backslash is read or displayed.

When input masking is off, checking is only performed when you exit Ingres.