SQL: What's New + landing page + style sweep

[kbatuigas]

Description

This pull request introduces several documentation updates to the Redpanda SQL reference, focusing on standardizing naming conventions for SQL data types and improving example clarity. It also announces the general availability of Redpanda SQL on AWS BYOC clusters and updates usage examples to reflect the required catalog notation. The most significant changes are summarized below:

New Features and Announcements:

• Redpanda SQL is now generally available (GA) on AWS BYOC clusters, enabling real-time SQL queries using PostgreSQL syntax and connectivity. Documentation links for the quickstart and overview are provided.

Standardization and Consistency Improvements:

• Standardized SQL data type names and section titles to use lowercase and consistent formatting across documentation. This includes files and references for types such as array, bool, date, geography, geometry, interval, json, numeric, row, text, and time. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17]

Example and Syntax Updates:

• Updated SQL query examples throughout the documentation to use the default_redpanda_catalog=>table_name notation, reflecting the required catalog syntax for Redpanda SQL. [1] [2] [3] [4]

• Improved clarity in documentation notes and tips by referencing data types in backticks and updating descriptions to match the new naming conventions (e.g., referring to the json type instead of "JSON type"). [1] [2] [3] [4]

These changes ensure the documentation is more consistent, easier to follow, and accurately reflects the current usage and capabilities of Redpanda SQL.

Resolves https://github.com/redpanda-data/documentation-private/issues/
Review deadline: 22 May

Page previews

Redpanda SQL
What's New in Cloud

Checks

• New feature
• Content gap
• Support Follow-up
• Small fix (typos, links, copyedits, etc)

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[micheleRP]

docs-team-standards review

Critical issues

1. [modules/sql/pages/index.adoc:14, 15] Two broken xrefs in the new landing page.

   • xref:sql:get-started/overview.adoc[Redpanda SQL overview] — overview.adoc doesn't exist. The existing Overview page is modules/sql/pages/get-started/what-is-redpanda-sql.adoc, which is wired into nav.adoc with label [Overview].
   • xref:sql:get-started/sql-quickstart.adoc[Redpanda SQL quickstart] — sql-quickstart.adoc doesn't exist. Per the DOC-1993 comment in nav.adoc, this is a known placeholder waiting for the page to land. Worth flagging that the landing page is now front-and-center linking to a 404 until the quickstart PR merges.
   • Fix: Point the overview link at what-is-redpanda-sql.adoc (or rename the file). Coordinate the quickstart link with whichever PR adds sql-quickstart.adoc.

2. [modules/get-started/pages/whats-new-cloud.adoc:13] Same two broken xrefs in the What's New entry — xref:sql:get-started/sql-quickstart.adoc[quickstart guide] and xref:sql:get-started/overview.adoc[Redpanda SQL Overview]. Both don't exist.

   • Fix: Same as above — quickstart depends on a future PR; the overview link should target what-is-redpanda-sql.adoc.

3. [modules/get-started/pages/whats-new-cloud.adoc:11, 13] Two existing inline review comments aren't applied yet — (a) drop "GA on AWS BYOC" from the H3 heading because What's New entries are GA by default, and (b) use the suggested paragraph rewrite. The current text still has "Redpanda SQL: GA on AWS BYOC" and the unrevised body.

Suggestions

1. Title sweep introduces a new mixed convention. Lowercase for items (= array, = json, = avg, = regr_sxx) but Title Case for category/index pages (= SQL Clauses, = Set Operations, = SQL Data Types, = Time Operators, = Other Functions). This is intentional and defensible (lowercase = SQL keyword/identifier, Title Case = section title), but it diverges from the recent direction toward sentence case and from the team standards template that calls for sentence case at H2+. If this becomes the SQL section's convention, please document it somewhere reviewers can find later — otherwise these pages will get "fixed" back to sentence case in a future sweep.

2. Title sweep didn't update page bodies to match the new H1 casing.

   • numeric.adoc: H1 is now = numeric but the description still says "The INT data type represents whole numbers…" and the next subsection is == Int type with "The INT data type represents…". Same pattern across array.adoc, bool.adoc, json.adoc, time.adoc, generate-series.adoc, etc. — H1 is lowercase but everything below is uppercase.
   • Fix: Either revert the H1 changes or do a follow-up pass to make the body match.

3. Backticks pass is partial.

   • sql-functions/aggregate-functions/sum.adoc: `int` and `interval` got backticks, but the same table still has bare LONG, FLOAT, DOUBLE — the others should match.
   • sql-data-types/index.adoc: `array`, `bool`, etc. all got backticked lowercase; GEOMETRY and GEOGRAPHY are still UPPERCASE without backticks in the same table.
   • sql-functions/index.adoc: xref labels read `boolean` FUNCTIONS, MATH, TRIGONOMETRIC, AND HYPERBOLIC FUNCTIONS, STRING FUNCTIONS, `timestamp` FUNCTIONS, `json` FUNCTIONS, AGGREGATE FUNCTIONS. Mixing backticked lowercase types with UPPERCASE plurals renders awkwardly.
   • Fix: Either do all type/function names or none; if doing them, normalize the surrounding case too.

4. [sql-functions/boolean-functions/is-distinct-from-operator.adoc / is-not-distinct-from-operator.adoc] H1 changed from "IS DISTINCT FROM Operator" → "IS DISTINCT FROM" (removed "Operator"). The page still describes an operator and the filename ends with -operator.adoc, so the title is now less descriptive. Optional; consistent with the sibling page, so internal consistency is fine.

5. [sql-data-types/index.adoc] Column header casing. Headers are "Data Type | Definition | Format" — Title Case in the column headers but lowercase in the rows (array, bool, json). The header could match sentence/lowercase too, or this is fine as-is.

6. [modules/sql/pages/index.adoc:14–16] Em dashes. Three em dashes in the new landing-page bullets ("Redpanda SQL overview — how the engine fits…", etc.). Per docs-team-standards (no em dashes), use a colon or period instead.