At 01:26 AM 2/06/2007, you wrote:

>Let me rephrase the question.
>
>I am familiar with other dialects of SQL, such as T-SQL

This is a utility interface, similar in some ways to isql, not a
"dialect" of SQL.

>PL/SQL

is Oracle's vendor-specific procedural language extensions, not a
flavour of SQL.

>, and FoxPro.

FoxPro is a user interface to a desktop database. Its user interface
includes an SQL interpreter, along with a whole lot of other stuff.

> In T-SQL, for example, I can bring up an IDE such as SSMSE or
>Query Analyzer and execute the following:
>
>DECLARE @i INT
>SET @i = 1
>PRINT @i
>
>The IDE would give me a message: "1". (This is, of course, a
>simplified example for purposes of discussion.)
>
>Currently I am getting funds from my organization to buy a license to
>IBExpress, so I can have a debugger. Until I can get that, I have to
>resort to other means. I would like to do the same sort of thing as
>above in PSQL:
>
>DECLARE VARIABLE i INT
>SET i = 1
>PRINT i

What you want is not SQL or PSQL. It is a tool feature, a client
utility, like isql but with more bells and whistles. I would be
surprised if you can't find a third-party tool that emulates some of
these things.

>The Script Executive of IBExpert does have a message area. It seems to
>me that the value of i should appear there.

I expect IBExpert's vendors would consider implementing feature requests.

>It would be great if FlameRobin would have this capability sometime,
>but I'm sure they have plenty to work on as it is. If anyone has any
>suggestions about any other tool, please let me know.

Try posting a question to the firebird-tools list.

^ heLen