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Home -> Community -> Usenet -> c.d.o.server -> Re: How do i store "TIME DURATION" (what datatype should i use?)
I think I would store the duration as the number of seconds.
Don't forget that internal storage and external
presentation can be totally different - if you
like you could superimpose a view which
displayed the data (for reading only) as
three separate columns.
-- Jonathan Lewis Yet another Oracle-related web site: http://www.jlcomp.demon.co.uk Alexandros Kotsiras, NYC wrote in message <39ACC42C.318B8EC6_at_prodigy.net>...Received on Wed Aug 30 2000 - 03:37:11 CDT
>Hello,
>I am building a database of Video Tapes.
>Each tape (a record of the TAPE table) should have an attribute that
>describes the "Total Recorded Time" of the tape
>for example 1 Hour 25 minutes and 35 seconds. (This is not the capacity
>of the Tape which can be 180 minutes etc)
>Also that is the format that the user will enter the recorded time of a
>tape through the interface , for example 3
>text boxes for Hours, Minutes , Seconds.
>I am wondering what is the best way to store this information.
>
>I was thinking of using 3 NUMBER fields in the Tape table (3 Attributes
>called HOURS , MINUTES, SECONDS)
>Is that approach right ?
>Then i can easily order by HOURS, MINUTES, SECONDS in my sql statement.
>Also i can easily enforce CHECK constraints as "check MINUTES between 0
>and 59)
>
>I think that the DATE datatype is not appropriate since there is no date
>concept (total number of seconds from the epoch) and then the order by
>clause on a DATE datatype will not make sense when i decide to order
>the tapes according to the Total Recorder Time.
>
>I would like to verify that my approach is right or I would like to hear
>a better one.
>
>Thanks,
>Alex.
>
>
>