====== substr ======
~~NOTOC~~
<WRAP right box>
**From Version 5.21.0-beta-2**
== Syntax ==
  string substr(
      string $fieldName,
      int $startPoint,
      optional int $length
      )
</WRAP>
===== Description =====
The method ''substr()'' creates an SQL statement that returns the substring of a specified string field. 
 ===== Parameters =====
==== $fieldName ====
The fieldname to be substringed. The fieldname must be accessible as part of the current SQL statement.

==== $startPoint ====
The starting point within the original string for the substring to begin. Offsets in SQL statements are 1 based, rather than the normal 0 (Zero) based offsets used in PHP.

==== $length ====
If specified, the length of the string to return. If not specified, then the remainder of the string starting at the start point is returned

===== Usage =====

<code php>
/*
* To return the an associative array of codes plus 
* the first 20 characters of a description.
*/
$sql = "SELECT code, {$db->substr('description',1,20)} FROM some_table";
$data = $db->getAssoc($sql); 
</code>

===== Negative Offsets =====
Not all databases support the use of negative offsets (to return values based on the end of the string), so use in portable applications is not recommended.