If I recall correctly, when I used Sybase (about 12 years ago) I used to do it like this:

my $SQL = <<EOSQL;
begin
  insert into foo (col1, uniquecol) values (?, ?);
  select id from foo where uniquecol=?;
end
EOSQL
my $ST = $DB->prepare($SQL);
$ST->execute('abacus', 'S/N5842', 'S/N5842');
while (my $hr = $ST->fetchrow_hasharray) {
   print "ID is $$hr{ID}\n";
}
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Since it's executed in a transaction, there isn't a race condition. However, you *do* need to be able to uniquely identify the row without using it's ID--by using a unique (group of) column(s).

...roboticus

When your only tool is a hammer, all problems look like your thumb.