Re: Enforcing Referential Integrity: Pros vs. Cons?

"Richard Hollenbeck" <richard.hollenbeck_at_verizon.net> wrote:

>I'm not an ABSOLUTE newbie, but probably a relative newbie compared to many
>in this group. I've been programming in Access using VBA with DAO. Ever
>since I began, I thought it would ALWAYS been better to enforce referential
>integrity with cascading deletes and cascading updates to keep data
>synchronized among related tables. My thoughts were influenced by the idea
>that if a database were properly normalized, there should not be a reason
>why I shouldn't enforce this referential integrity. Am I correct or not?
>Are there any reasons why I would not? I'm assuming there is a reason
>because Access provides the option to enforce or not enforce. What are some
>very valid reasons why one would choose to not enforce? Is not enforcing
>just a cheap way to get around a poorly normalized database?

     It is a way to get speed. It is at the expense of accuracy, but some do not see that.

     "How fast do you want your wrong answers?" -- post from alt.folklore.computers

Sincerely,

Gene Wirchenko

Computerese Irregular Verb Conjugation:

     I have preferences.
     You have biases.
     He/She has prejudices.