Steve Jones - Editor (8/30/2010)
It's a good writeup. And there's always a big debate about NULL being valid or acceptable in RI.I personally think it's OK, but I see the other side, and there's a valid argument there. If you start to use NULLs, you are usually defining it to mean something, like a "N/A", but over time you might find people assuming it means something else. Like the earliest date, or "I don't know". In those cases, you can start to get bugs or misconceptions in the application. Not that you will, but you might. There is a good argument to be made to not allow NULL.
So, Steve, what is the definition of "N/A"? Is it "Not Applicable" or "Not Available" or "No Answer"? 😉
Ralph D. Wilson II
Development DBA
"Give me 6 hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first 4 sharpening the ax."
A. Lincoln