That is 3 or 4 months that I spend a lot of time on this forum, as I'm planning to totally rebuild my database to suits my own needs. I'm so "excited" to run into it, but I just cannot decide my self to close my Explorer window, open FM and click the New Database in the Menu.

It's just that there are so many answers to questions I would never have asked, but that could do a big difference, and tips suggested that would need to reconsider the general scheme of this new database.

But here I am now. I just do not have too much time left as I planned to implement this database in a few months. So let's go and see.

Nevertheless, I need 4 basic answers before definitively starting up

1- In a business system implementing a Line Item and multiple files, would the Serial N

1) As a matter of good practice, I have a serial no./record ID in all files. In addition: Creation Date, Creation Time, Modification Date and Modification Time files, appropriately auto entered.

2) Customer information is either looked up or shown as related data, as appropriate. For instance, in Invoices, Shippers and the like, the data is looked up, as these become documents of historical record. You want an Invoice to reflect the contact information for a customer at the time it was issued, otherwise you would not be able to produce an exact copy of the invoice at a later date.

3) I think this is just a matter of clean design. It keeps the answer to the "what is a record" question consistent and not "sometimes it's this and sometimes it's that".

4) There is no universal "Business System" just as there is not a universal business. Files are related as appropriate. All files in every system are not related to all other files. Relationships are used as part of an overall structure created to serve the desired purpose. There are cases where exports are used. In one large system I'm involved with, Timelog information is exported to a Billing file to provide a "closing" operation and allow duplication of records for revised invoices. This is a unique systems where every timelog record is used, either directly or via summaries, to create an invoice.

Hope this helps a little.

-bd

There is no universal "Business System"

Reminds me of the IBM ads. Gotta love those. I especially like the "Universal Business Adapter", the one that connects anything to everything... "Does it work in Europe?"... "You need an adapter." lol

Anyway, the best advice I can give before you go to File < New Database, is to write a good plan so you're not thinking it up as you go along. Otherwise you'll surely end up with abandoned fields, workarounds, and re-writes.

1. I'm OK with serials, Mod Time and other keys, but cannot imagine how I could create a new Inoice N

e-business, yeah ! The song of this add upsets me.

The Problem with this Plan is that it changes everyday according to all your rich answers. Really amazing forum...

And as you said, a bad one could end up in lots of time wasted.

Regarding issue 1): You will be entering line items through a portal in Invoices and a the point of creation of the related line item record you will be automatically marking it with the same UID as the invoice has ... based on the defined relationship controlling the portal.

I don't think you'll be creating an invoice from the line items file ... you'll be creating line items from the invoice file.

Does that make sense?

Cael.

Hi,

Thanks for your reply,

I actually use this method, but at the moment of this post, I was anxious as some others posted "reverse" solutions (using setfield script in the line items).

I still have a lookup problem though, unsolved (see post "lookup not looking up...")

Thanks again.