decode(string, decode_format [, start] )

The decode function takes a binary string that has been created using the encode function and converts it back into values based on the format specification. The encode/decode functions are similar to the Perl pack and unpack functions and are very useful for storing multiple values in a VARCHAR field during analytical or ETL processing.

Example

str = encode( 'Zi2A10', 'foo', 123456789, 987654321, 'bar' )
str1,int1,int2,str2 = decode(str,'Zi2A10')