[AccessD] Normalizing issue

I think so. But I hope you all come with a good answer to this so I can
store it in my tips & tricks db :o)

I've run into one really bad name example some years ago. I had an app that
tracked donors for an organization. The couple wanted BOTH of their names on
the address label and she used a hyphenated name but he didn't. Something
like "Joe Smith & Sue Jones-Smith".

I could have easily tracked them as individuals but they only wanted ONE
piece of mail.

I also could have also tracked them as an Organization or Business and used
"Joe Smith & Sue Jones-Smith" as an Organization name, with both of them
listed as contacts for the Organization but that didn't cover every single
instance of mailing and/or reports quite correctly and my customer didn't
want to offend any of their donors by accident.

I think we ended up putting his first & last name in the firstname field and
her first name and hyphenated last-name in the lastname field. Which of
course messed up the alphabetical internal lists of donors.

I considered adding a spousename field and doing some complicated queries to
get things correctly listed on the label but thankfully (for me anyway) they
left the area and quit donating to the organization - problem solved! So the
customer was happy and I quit thinking about it.

John B.


This is one of those never ending arguments, isn't it.  :)

Reuben Cummings
GFC, LLC
phone: 812.523.1017
email: reuben at gfconsultants.com