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import a numeric field into a character field

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    import a numeric field into a character field

    I am importing from another database a numeric field with a lenth of 3 into a character field in Alpha which is my customer_id field the database has 516 records. The customer_id field has the field rule autoincrement, when I press the button for new record I get 990000 as the next record instead of 517.

    I know you can put a default value in the autoincrement by a simple expression, I have put in Str(517) but still get 990000. Any one got and suggestions.

    Kind regards
    David

    #2
    RE: import a numeric field into a character field

    Don't use a character field.

    See this thread: http://msgboard.alphasoftware.com/alphaphorum/read.php3?sortby=lastreply&direction=desc&num=15&id=10477&thread=10476

    Shirley

    Comment


      #3
      RE: import a numeric field into a character field

      David,

      Consider adding another character field. Do the import as numeric then do an update to the new field and convert number field to character.

      Let us know how you get on.

      RegardsKeith HubertGuild MemberLondon.KHDB Management Systems
      Regards
      Keith Hubert
      Alpha Guild Member
      London.
      KHDB Management Systems
      Skype = keith.hubert


      For your day-to-day Needs, you Need an Alpha Database!

      Comment


        #4
        RE: import a numeric field into a character field

        David

        The default value only applies to the first and only record in a table when used with autoincrement field.

        After that, the next value (in your case the next customer_id) is 1 more than the largest value that is in the table.

        Since you've made this an autoincrement field, there is now an index named customer_id. Open a browse to that table, select the index, and then look at the last record. I'm betting that you'll see 989999.

        The previous values in the table are part of the auto increment process.

        Also, since you are doing an import, you want to get your customer_id's from the import table rather than a new id assigned by the autoincrement process.

        So you'll have to have the field rule for customer_id be defined as a user entered field until the import is done. Otherwise you'll get the values assigned to it rather than keeping what you're transferring in.

        The last part is that it looks like you are converting from a 3 digit numeric to a size 6 character field. You'll need to consider how to convert that numeric id to a character.

        Here are some examples of the functions that you might consider for the conversion.

        dim customer_id as N =123
        ?str(customer_id)
        = " 123"
        ?str(customer_id,6)
        = " 123"
        ?padl(alltrim(str(customer_id,6)),6,"0")
        = "000123"

        Then make sure that all child records of any links follow the same process.
        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: import a numeric field into a character field

          David,

          A general rule of thumb that will serve you well is: if you don't do math with it, make it a character field.

          Dave
          Dave Jampole
          www.customalpha.com

          Women and cats will do whatever they want. The sooner men and dogs realize that, the happier they will be.

          Comment


            #6
            RE: import a numeric field into a character field

            I designed the database on the alphasports model which has all the linking fields as character. When I found the problems with getting the data from the dbase program ( which by the way I did not import but added the dbf tables and then appended the records)I tried changing the linking field to numeric which I did successfully. But then when I went into my invoice form I had 14 fields in the trace window which were not linked to a field, I don't know why this happened?. I was then going to make my own lookup table to which I would post the invoice numer and have a second field which would add 1 to the invoice number and the lookup would fill in the next number. I hope this makes sense and would appreciate any suggestions as I am delivering the program on monday updating the tables from the old program for the client to continue invoiceing in the new program Tuesday morning.

            Kind regards
            David

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