**Course Title:** SQLite Mastery: Lightweight Database Management **Section Title:** Basic Data Retrieval and Filtering **Topic:** Limiting results with LIMIT and OFFSET. ### Introduction In the previous topics, we have learned how to filter data using the WHERE clause, sort data using ORDER BY, and retrieve specific columns using the SELECT statement. However, in many cases, we need to limit the number of results returned by a query or skip a certain number of rows before starting to return results. This is where the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses come in. In this topic, we will learn how to use these clauses to limit the number of results returned by a query. ### Understanding the LIMIT Clause The LIMIT clause is used to specify the maximum number of rows to return in a query. It takes an integer value that represents the maximum number of rows to return. For example, if we have a table called 'employees' and we want to retrieve only the first 10 rows, we can use the following query: ```sql SELECT * FROM employees LIMIT 10; ``` This query will return the first 10 rows from the 'employees' table. ### Understanding the OFFSET Clause The OFFSET clause is used to skip a certain number of rows before starting to return results. It takes an integer value that represents the number of rows to skip. For example, if we want to skip the first 5 rows and return the next 10 rows, we can use the following query: ```sql SELECT * FROM employees OFFSET 5 LIMIT 10; ``` This query will skip the first 5 rows from the 'employees' table and return the next 10 rows. ### Using LIMIT and OFFSET Together We can use the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses together to retrieve a specific range of rows from a table. For example, if we want to retrieve rows 6-15 from the 'employees' table, we can use the following query: ```sql SELECT * FROM employees OFFSET 5 LIMIT 10; ``` This query will skip the first 5 rows and return the next 10 rows. ### Best Practices Here are some best practices to keep in mind when using the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses: * Always use the LIMIT clause when retrieving data from a large table to improve performance. * Use the OFFSET clause to skip rows that are not relevant to your query. * Use the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses together to retrieve a specific range of rows. ### Example Use Cases Here are some example use cases for the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses: * Paginating data: We can use the LIMIT and OFFSET clauses to paginate data in a web application. For example, if we want to display 10 employees per page, we can use the LIMIT clause to limit the number of rows returned and the OFFSET clause to skip rows that are not relevant to the current page. * Retrieving recent data: We can use the LIMIT clause to retrieve the most recent data from a table. For example, if we want to retrieve the 10 most recent orders from an 'orders' table, we can use the LIMIT clause to limit the number of rows returned. * Skipping rows: We can use the OFFSET clause to skip rows that are not relevant to our query. For example, if we want to skip the first 5 rows from an 'employees' table, we can use the OFFSET clause to skip these rows. ### Conclusion In this topic, we have learned how to limit the number of results returned by a query using the LIMIT clause and skip rows using the OFFSET clause. We have also learned how to use these clauses together to retrieve a specific range of rows. By using these clauses, we can improve the performance of our queries and retrieve the data that we need. ### What's Next? In the next topic, we will learn about aggregate functions in SQLite, including COUNT, SUM, AVG, MIN, and MAX. These functions allow us to perform calculations on data in a table and retrieve summary information. **External Resources:** * SQLite Documentation: [https://www.sqlite.org/lang_select.html](https://www.sqlite.org/lang_select.html) * SQLite Tutorial: [https://www.tutorialspoint.com/sqlite/index.htm](https://www.tutorialspoint.com/sqlite/index.htm) **Comments and Questions** If you have any questions or comments about this topic, please feel free to ask in the comments section below.