From oracle-l-bounce@freelists.org Wed Oct 27 09:12:46 2004 Return-Path: Received: from air189.startdedicated.com (root@localhost) by orafaq.com (8.11.6/8.11.6) with ESMTP id i9RECk728451 for ; Wed, 27 Oct 2004 09:12:46 -0500 X-ClientAddr: 206.53.239.180 Received: from turing.freelists.org (freelists-180.iquest.net [206.53.239.180]) by air189.startdedicated.com (8.11.6/8.11.6) with ESMTP id i9RECkI28445 for ; Wed, 27 Oct 2004 09:12:46 -0500 Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP id 8800672E794; Wed, 27 Oct 2004 09:18:57 -0500 (EST) Received: from turing.freelists.org ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (turing [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10024) with ESMTP id 10416-74; Wed, 27 Oct 2004 09:18:57 -0500 (EST) Received: from turing (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by turing.freelists.org (Avenir Technologies Mail Multiplex) with ESMTP id 9E20372E7F5; Wed, 27 Oct 2004 09:18:49 -0500 (EST) Subject: RE: Check constraint Date: Wed, 27 Oct 2004 08:17:25 -0600 MIME-Version: 1.0 To: oracle-l@freelists.org Cc: oracle-l@freelists.org From: "William B Ferguson" Message-ID: X-MIMETrack: Serialize by Router on gscodenm05/SERVER/USGS/DOI(Release 5.0.12HF677 | March 16, 2004) at 10/27/2004 08:16:59 AM, Serialize complete at 10/27/2004 08:16:59 AM Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2180 X-archive-position: 11580 X-ecartis-version: Ecartis v1.0.0 Sender: oracle-l-bounce@freelists.org Errors-To: oracle-l-bounce@freelists.org X-original-sender: wbfergus@usgs.gov Precedence: normal Reply-To: wbfergus@usgs.gov X-list: oracle-l X-Virus-Scanned: by amavisd-new at freelists.org Thanks for all of the suggestions. Once we actually have an application (I'm beginning to start on that now after 8 years of data cleanup), the separate table and trigger mechanism would probably work best for user interaction. I'll have to experiment when I get to that point. As it is right now, I need a simple way of allowing most spreadsheet = data (which myself and one other guy have to load) to get into the database, = so user-friendly handling and error messages aren't that important. So, as a quick fix, that works, I created the unique index with a = decode. (The asktom site said the decode was quicker than case). Being out of production DBA and development for 8 years, I'm behind the times and starting to play catch-up, and I was thinking that a unique index had to have all indexed columns be unique, I didn't realize that nulls were more or less ignored (and also makes a smaller index). ------------------------------------------------------------ Bill Ferguson U.S. Geological Survey - Minerals Information Team PO Box 25046, MS-750 Denver, Colorado 80225 Voice (303)236-8747 ext. 321 Fax (303)236-4208 ~ Think on a grand scale, start to implement on a small scale ~ -- http://www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l