Re: NULLs

"Roy Hann" <specially_at_processed.almost.meat> wrote:

>Working in criminal justince systems cleared a lot of this up for me. If
>one regards a database as being something like the transcript of a trial:
>i.e. it is just a faithful record of testimony about the world, given by
>people who accurately tell the truth, inaccurately tell their "truth", or
>just flat-out lie, then I find it all quite easy. One focuses on the form
>of the facts (testimony), their internal consistency, and the reasonable
>derivations from the testimony. One lets go of the mistaken idea that one
>knows the truth from looking at the database. It is very important not to
>think that the database somehow *is* reality, or is even an image of
>reality. It is just testimony, and not necessarily true testimony. Our job
>is just to capture the testimony without introducing new errors, to ensure
>its internal consistency, and to derive only logically justified
>conclusions.

That's a very interesting way of looking at data and databases. And you're right.

Tony

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