Abs(), Sign()

These two functions let you take the sign off a number.

Usage

nAbsoluteValue = ABS( nValue )
nSign = SIGN( nValue )

ABS() returns the absolute value of the number, that is, the number without the sign. SIGN() does the reverse and returns the sign without the number—it uses 1, 0 and -1 to represent positive, zero and negative signs, respectively. ABS() and SIGN() work on all four number types: currency, double, integer and numeric.

Example

? ABS(37)     && returns 37
? ABS(-37)    && returns 37
? SIGN(37)    && returns 1
? SIGN(-37)   && returns -1
? SIGN(0)     && returns 0

ABS() and SIGN() both handle null values, returning .NULL.