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Archiver > TMG > 2003-05 > 1051797947


From: Darrell Martin <>
Subject: Re: [TMG] OT maybe - TMG or ? to record/publish VRs
Date: Thu, 1 May 2003 10:06:30 -0500 (GMT)


Paul wrote, in response to me

>> I am interested in why you think that putting Vital
>> Records into a relational database would require me to
>> make assumptions about the relationships of the data.

> I was referring to the process of "normalizing" a flat
> file database from a spreadsheet into a relational
> database. I merely meant that that "process" would want
> to combine all the John Smiths into a single record, which
> would be fine as long as you acknowledged that it is a
> record of a NAME, not a person.
>
> Good luck with the project!
>
> Paul

Hi, Paul:

The process may work this way with *some* specific transfers,
but it is neither a necessity nor would I use a program that
had to work that way. Do you refer to a transfer from Excel? I
don't think that any spreadsheet program is a realistic option
anyway; such programs typically enforce data validation only
after an inordinate amount of (potentially buggy) work.

Darrell


Darrell A. Martin
a native Vermonter in exile in Illinois


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