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Changing the field type

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    #1

    Changing the field type

    I am having an issue.

    I had couple of "Memo" fields. now I changed it to "Character fields". On the form it does not convert.

    Any idea?

    Thanks.
    Mark
    Tags: None
    #2
    Re: Changing the field type

    Alpha is not completely object oriented from top to bottom where changes can roll up or down to all objects.

    Some things like this you need to change manually.

    Once you've changed the table, go to the form, either modify the field object or delete the field object and re-add it.
    Al Buchholz
    Bookwood Systems, LTD
    Weekly QReportBuilder Webinars Thursday 1 pm CST

    Occam's Razor - KISS
    Normalize till it hurts - De-normalize till it works.
    Advice offered and questions asked in the spirit of learning how to fish is better than someone giving you a fish.
    When we triage a problem it is much easier to read sample systems than to read a mind.
    "Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler."
    Albert Einstein

    http://www.iadn.com/images/media/iadn_member.png

    Comment

      #3
      Re: Changing the field type

      I have done all of these you mentioned. All I can think is to add a new field and delete the problem ones.

      Comment

        #4
        Re: Changing the field type

        Originally posted by markbwillard View Post
        I have done all of these you mentioned. All I can think is to add a new field and delete the problem ones.
        Mark

        Something is missing in the exchange of information.

        Please attach an example of your database or a video of what you are doing.

        If you are on windows 7, use the problem step recorder to record the key strokes that you are doing, zip the files from it and attach to a post.
        Al Buchholz
        Bookwood Systems, LTD
        Weekly QReportBuilder Webinars Thursday 1 pm CST

        Occam's Razor - KISS
        Normalize till it hurts - De-normalize till it works.
        Advice offered and questions asked in the spirit of learning how to fish is better than someone giving you a fish.
        When we triage a problem it is much easier to read sample systems than to read a mind.
        "Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler."
        Albert Einstein

        http://www.iadn.com/images/media/iadn_member.png

        Comment

          #5
          Re: Changing the field type

          Al

          I recently was asked to increase the character field to a size that is too large, so i converted to a memo field with no problem, however after a few months the .FPT file got corrupt and we lost a lot of data. I don't want that to happen again so i want to convert to a character field again. i assume it will truncate and data over the 240 character max. i am concerned i will lose other data. is this something that has been done by others who might give me some guidance.

          Steve

          Comment

            #6
            Re: Changing the field type

            Before deleting the memo field from the table, add your character field then try updating it with the data from the memo field.
            Robin

            Discernment is not needed in things that differ, but in those things that appear to be the same. - Miles Sanford

            Comment

              #7
              Re: Changing the field type

              If I was faced with this, the first thing I would do is export whatever you have managed to save as a CSV
              Then you can import, but you will have some solid and replicable data to fall back on.
              You might even be able to get some of the corrupt data back by using some FTP tools.
              See our Hybrid Option here;
              https://hybridapps.example-software.com/

              Apologies to anyone I haven't managed to upset yet.
              You are held in a queue and I will get to you soon.

              Comment

                #8
                Re: Changing the field type

                Steve

                I'm guessing that this post is related to this thread. http://msgboard.alphasoftware.com/al...emo-field-data

                Can you go back in time to when the dbf and fpt were in synch and get the data from there?

                Then add the data from that time that is correct?

                This is never an easy process and some of the other suggestions may work too.

                Best of luck to you.

                Per your specific question, you can change the field type and it will truncate. If the memo data is improperly pointed to you'll still have incorrect data - just a shorter version.
                Al Buchholz
                Bookwood Systems, LTD
                Weekly QReportBuilder Webinars Thursday 1 pm CST

                Occam's Razor - KISS
                Normalize till it hurts - De-normalize till it works.
                Advice offered and questions asked in the spirit of learning how to fish is better than someone giving you a fish.
                When we triage a problem it is much easier to read sample systems than to read a mind.
                "Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler."
                Albert Einstein

                http://www.iadn.com/images/media/iadn_member.png

                Comment

                  #9
                  Re: Changing the field type

                  Going off on one of my tangents here:
                  create another table with one key field and one memo field. append the data from a key field and memo field where you are having the problem. do the same with other memo fields. all memo fields need to be in their own table. You can connect them bac to the main table with a one to one by the key field.
                  Once done, you can delete the memo fields in your main table completely or change them to char fields.
                  any reference to the memo files on the main tables can/haveto be removed in forms, reports, etc and replace by the child memo fields or the char fields(whichever you decide on. Remove, save, close, open, place new field.
                  Use one of the above because keeping a char and memo are redundant.

                  I recently had a client with 5 memo fields in one huge main table and they were corrupted. This was the fix I used. I deleted the memos after I had appended each to a table of it's own. It looked like insmemo1, insmemo2, etc. It turns out it was only 1 of the memo fields was a problem even though all are stored in one file named after the table. I would have loved 5 char fields, but their work really needed memo fields.

                  Client says the app has never worked as good as it does now.
                  Dave Mason
                  [email protected]
                  Skype is dave.mason46

                  Comment

                    #10
                    Re: Changing the field type

                    A good practice is to force users to enter/edit memo fields via xdialog. I use a function.
                    Keeping them in a separate table is also recommended, as mentioned above.
                    You can also auto add a memo record when entering a new parent in the cansaverecord event of the parent, with a value of one space. Then you are always editing.

                    The main way a memo field gets corrupted is not copying the memo (fpt files) when you copy the dbf files from one location to another.
                    Cole Custom Programming - Terrell, Texas
                    972 524 8714
                    [email protected]

                    ____________________
                    "A young man who is not liberal has no heart, but an old man who is not conservative has no mind." GB Shaw

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Re: Changing the field type

                      I do have 1 one app that uses variables in the place of a memo field. Whatever information is entered into the variable(looks like a field on a form) is written to the proper memo field on save event. It also has a down side that code has to be written to populate the variable from the memo field when viewing the record or modifying.
                      Dave Mason
                      [email protected]
                      Skype is dave.mason46

                      Comment

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