[AccessD] On DB Bloat, Bad DB Design, and various

Hi Drew

> Now Gustav, that is a VERY valid point.  And one that is constantly glossed
> over whenever we debate 'bad practice' issues.

> Something is really only bad practice when done by someone that doesn't
> realize what they are doing.  Just like tossing matches into a bucket of
> gasoline is bad practice, if the person is a fire marshal, and they are
> doing it for a very specific reason, then it should be done.  

> Same with almost every other topic that has come up with 'bad practice'
> implications.  You are a good developer, so I honestly don't think I would
> every have to worry about field size limits in a database built by you.
> However, in the beginning of this thread, I was mentioning that a college
> course was having their students set field size limits on all of their
> fields. (10 characters for a first name, etc.)  So my point was that the
> 'established' education system out there is teaching bad habits (along with
> spaces in the table names, etc).

Ahh - I've forgot that for a moment. True, that's a bad habit.
Now, does that make three of us?

/gustav


>> Just out of curiousity, how many times have you been called, because someone
>> set a field size limit to 255, and the users couldn't enter their data? Not
>> theory, how many actual times.

> I don't recall ever to have had to adjust this limit. That's because
> I'm so good to anticipate the client's need.

>> In the past 3 months, I have had 3 incidents were a db built by a previous
>> developer had field size limits, which I had to increase, because the users
>> were entering more data into the field.  On top of that, most of what I had
>> done was either new data entry screens, or reporting screens, and both of
>> those worked just fine with the new 'length' of the data, it was just the db
>> that couldn't store what they wanted.

> Well, those previous developers were bad developers.

>> Now, assuming (cause it's a pretty safe assumption) that you have never had
>> a user complain they couldn't put what they needed into a 255 character
>> field, how do you think the previous developer looked, when I come in, and
>> say, 'Yep, whoever built this set the maximum field length to 35
>> characters.', which I then get replied 'Why did he/she do that?', and what
>> do I answer? 'Got me, guess they figured that's all you needed'.  What do
>> you think those clients think of their original developers?

> It all sums up, that to limit a text field length you must be a good
> programmer; if you are not, just don't. (No reverse conclusions should
> be made.)