Too many tables?

[Kelly S.]

Is it possible to have too many tables? I'm trying to
build a DB for people who have never used one before and
are not familiar with the power of a relational DB.
Getting the information to populate the tables is like
pulling teeth. Information changes constantly and I am
trying to cover my behind. I have ended up with many
small to medium tables (all linked with the same ID
number). Is this bad database behavior?

Thanks!!

 

[Howard Brody]

'Too Many' tables depends less on the actual number of
tables and more on the data in them . . . and whether
multiple tables store the same information.

You're better off adding a SalesRep field to your Customer
table than having a seperate Customer table for each sales
rep.

I've done this a number of times (both building a database
to meet the different needs of different users/departments
and rebuilding a database I inherited and reworking the
entire table structure). Get as much information, what
the needs of the users are going to be, and build your
database to meet as many of them as you can. Figure out
how the database as a whole is going to operate and then
worry about fitting the used-only-by-Fred process into it
somewhere.

Hope this helps. If I can answer any more questions, feel
free to email me.

Howard