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Posted by Kenneth Downs on 05/14/06 22:41
Bent Stigsen wrote:
>
>
> The answer is D, implementing two tables.
> One table with the characteristics, and one table containing two foreign
> keys making the association between characteristics and the "items" (what
> that might be).
Anybody working with databases must have a reasonable method for altering
table structures as a regular event and a reasonable way to synchronize
structures and the code that works with them. Not having this will cost,
and all solutions that seek to re-invent physical implementation produce
burdens worse than the disease.
The solution you present may be correct in his case, but it verges on the
dreaded 'abstraction' of the E-A-V system, and if that is so it would be a
cure worse than the disease. Whether it is a valid cross-reference or an
instance of E-A-V would require knowing more about the system.
But I would repeat that any 'abstraction' made in an attempt to avoid table
structure changes is going to fail. It fails because you give up what the
server can do for you and end up spending your time reinventing an RDMBS
server.
--
Kenneth Downs
Secure Data Software, Inc.
(Ken)nneth@(Sec)ure(Dat)a(.com)
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