Serial Flavor?

[FestiveEmbalmer]

So I am getting to the point where a single letter in front of my primary keys is simply not enough to distinguish the origin of a serial number...

Can I build relationships off of a stored calc field that concatenates a prefix to the serial number?

Forseeable problems, friends?

[LaRetta]

a single letter in front of my primary keys is simply not enough to distinguish the origin of a serial number...

Any time you mess with anything (use other than straight serial IDs), there is potential for problems. Why not just have an Origin field? Then if you wish, you can concatenate them. But keep in mind that if you EVER EVER change the Origin, you risk breaking your relationships. Simply, it is best to keep the apart always and use straight serials only.

LaRetta

Edited October 30, 2007 by Guest

[Søren Dyhr]

Yes off course you can:

http://www.onegasoft.com/tools/smartranges/SmartRanges2.zip

But why, when multicriteria relations today does exactly this? Previously was a good answer to this to complain about "speed" ...but LeCates staff have carved the carbs and it works today a swiftly as the equi joins! Only place where there still could be a point is recuring event's say something like "every 3rd sunday and first monday in the month" ....

--sd

[LaRetta]

Soren, I admit that I had to re-read the thread ... thinking we both were responding to a different post! I wondered if that glue I'd been sniffing finally went to my head! I've no idea which of us in on base either! :giggle:

[Genx]

I wondered if that glue I'd been sniffing finally went to my head!

That would certainly explain a few things lol.

[FestiveEmbalmer]

Thank you for the advice, LaRetta

Søren: I do not understand how multicriteria relationships could help me identify what table a serial belongs to on a layout. I AM glad to hear that the Filemaker engineers have all been dieting, though...

:(

[Genx]

... Add an extra field to specify the source table.

I.e.

table_fk

serial

Add a calc field and voila you get table_fk & serial.

... wait LaRetta just said that lol, I'd better get off the glue.

Edited October 30, 2007 by Guest

[LaRetta]

That would certainly explain a few things lol.

I would be angry at that ... but I gave up free-basing this week and I'm just not in the mood. [color:gray](this was joke from my favorite movie - Airplane. Lloyd Bridges said, "Looks like I chose the wrong week to give up sniffing glue.") ... and many more things. I don't free-base in real life.

Edited October 30, 2007 by Guest

[Genx]

You my friend are a crack up lol.

[Genx]

Lol, ironically its called Flying High in Aus / NZ and that is one of the few lines that I recall from that movie.

I just remember the inflatable auto pilot ahahahaa. Anyway, now i have a good movie (or 2) to go watch.

[Vaughan]

"Have you ever been in the cockpit of an airplane before, Johnny?"

That movie is the epitome of the running gag.

"Surely you can't be serious?"

"I am serious, and stop calling me Shirley."

"There's trouble at the hospital."

"What is it?"

"It's a big brick building with sick people in it."

I once asked a pilot acquaintance of mine whether they ever do the "Roger that rodger. Check the clearance, Clarence..." routine. He said, all the time, all the time. :(

[LaRetta]

I didn't like the movie at all. I disliked it so much, I remember the entire thing ...

"Shall we turn on the runway lights?"

Robert Stack, thinking deeply ... "No ... that's EXACTLY what they would expect."

The SQL wasn't nearly as good but it was funny too.

Oooops you left out something ...

"It's a big brick building with sick people in it - [color:green]but that's not important now."

It remined me of Monte Python humor which I also adored!

Edited October 30, 2007 by Guest

[Søren Dyhr]

could help me identify what table a serial belongs to on a layout

Why are the serials used for relations visible at all? The problem here is that you economize with what we're allowed to know ... but as such a good indication that a very home brewed take on what relations is about, is going on in you file.

All the replies you have seen so far are hallucinari, the consequence of the "oxygen depriavation" your post exhibit!

What you apparently havn't realized yet, is that although some of us here undoubtedly are very talented, are most of, if not all knowledge build via paths into a topic.

Most of us have tried the frustating feeling, to be confused with hardware specialists, simply because we make a living utilizing a series of tools ...on a computer. Worst of all is that our near relatives most often expect us to fix just a "...tiny" thing.

What your question lack is an indication of a mission statement. Why is it a problem? When will it ever occure? Why would espect a fully fledged developer spot your problem right away, with very little to go on? - being skilled provides usually a methodology to prevent being caught on the wrong leg ... which means a lot of the tool's permutations not even are considered worth bringing into the equation because something else is much more obvious.

--sd

[FestiveEmbalmer]

Point taken-

In my final solution there is no reason why the user should see serial numbers.

Right now, as I am developing, I want to be able to see which table a serial belongs to

in browse mode all the time. This is a luxury that helps me keep details organized in my head - it's not vital.

I apologize if I did not give enough information. I sympathize whenever I see you guys attempt to answer narrow, specific questions with a frustratingly limited amount of information.

My question was intended to be abstract; there is nothing project-specific about it.

"Joey, do you like movies about gladiators?"