MySQL Bugs: #14481: Insufficient upgrade information on VARCHAR

Bug #14481	Insufficient upgrade information on VARCHAR
Submitted:	30 Oct 2005 1:52	Modified:	26 May 2006 20:44
Reporter:	Jørgen Thomsen	Email Updates:
Status:	Closed	Impact on me:	None
Category:	MySQL Server: Documentation	Severity:	S3 (Non-critical)
Version:	5.0.15	OS:	Linux (Linux)
Assigned to:	Paul DuBois	CPU Architecture:	Any

Description:
2.10.2. Upgrading from Version 4.1 to 5.0

"DECIMAL columns now are stored in a more efficient format. To convert a table to use the new DECIMAL type, you should do an ALTER TABLE on it. The ALTER TABLE also will change the table's VARCHAR columns to use the new VARCHAR column type."

How does that ALTER STATEMENT look like ?

How to repeat:
Read the manual once again

Suggested fix:
List the ALTER statement

Thank you for the documentation request. I agree with you that the examples of ALTER TABLE statements to be used for DECIMAL columns and VARCHAR columns (although they are simple and usual ones, ALTER TABLE ... MODIFY ...) will be useful for the users.

And you just do once again what I am criticizing:

"ALTER TABLE ... MODIFY ..."

Please write the entire statement.
For people not especially fluent in seldom used SQL statements  Reading the 13.1.2. ALTER TABLE Syntax does not exactly explain what to do.

The ALTER TABLE statement is no longer necessary.
We now provide a mysql_upgrade program that should be
run when you upgrade MySQL. It checks and repairs tables
as necessary.  For more information, please see:

http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.0/en/mysql-upgrade.html