N
Nikos Yannacopoulos
Dear Novice User,
I'm posting this because I see postings in the newsgroups every day, from
which it is evident that new users encounter problems in the development of
their databases as a result of poor data structure design. Novice users get
excited discovering what Access can do, and being anxious to take the next
step, fall in the trap of overlooking the importance of data structure
design, it happens to everyone (and I was no exception).
A good, robust data structure design is key to a potentially functional
database.
As development progresses, design shortcomings always manifest themselves
sooner or later, some times a long way down the process, when it's painful
to go back and make corrections. So, here is my advice:
1. Take some time to try to understand the entity - relationship model, data
normalization etc. Lots of literature out there, and it doesn't necessarily
have to be MS-Access specific, the general concepts apply to any relational
database management system.
2. When embarking on a new project, first of all make sure you have a full,
clear picture of the "system" you are trying to model, and the desired
functionality.
3. Spend all the time required to design the data structure as best you can
before you proceed to the next step, it will be worth every second; don't
compromise. If in doubt, post your questions to the tablesdbdesign newsgroup
for expert advice.
4. If at some point further down your development you discover a design
flaw, go back and fix it right away; the further you ignore it and try to
work around it, the harder it will be when you can no longer avoid it.
Hoping this will help some of you out there save some frustration,
Nikos Yannacopoulos
I'm posting this because I see postings in the newsgroups every day, from
which it is evident that new users encounter problems in the development of
their databases as a result of poor data structure design. Novice users get
excited discovering what Access can do, and being anxious to take the next
step, fall in the trap of overlooking the importance of data structure
design, it happens to everyone (and I was no exception).
A good, robust data structure design is key to a potentially functional
database.
As development progresses, design shortcomings always manifest themselves
sooner or later, some times a long way down the process, when it's painful
to go back and make corrections. So, here is my advice:
1. Take some time to try to understand the entity - relationship model, data
normalization etc. Lots of literature out there, and it doesn't necessarily
have to be MS-Access specific, the general concepts apply to any relational
database management system.
2. When embarking on a new project, first of all make sure you have a full,
clear picture of the "system" you are trying to model, and the desired
functionality.
3. Spend all the time required to design the data structure as best you can
before you proceed to the next step, it will be worth every second; don't
compromise. If in doubt, post your questions to the tablesdbdesign newsgroup
for expert advice.
4. If at some point further down your development you discover a design
flaw, go back and fix it right away; the further you ignore it and try to
work around it, the harder it will be when you can no longer avoid it.
Hoping this will help some of you out there save some frustration,
Nikos Yannacopoulos
