Duplicate Record Check on Creation

[Ukyo]

Dear Professionals,

There are quite many duplicate contacts which my user makes. It seems it is so troublesome for my users to first search for the contact if they already exists or not. I need to delete these duplicate records very often since the drop-down list in Invoice shows the duplicate contacts and my users starts calling me for deletion. This is so annoying, and hope someone can help out from this nightmare.

Are there a way to script to check for duplicate record when user clicks a new button. Or even a better method you the professionals use to prevent this.

[Inky Phil]

You can set validation on the key field to 'unique' and display a custom message if the validation fails (ie the key field, and therefore contact, already exists)

Secondly, you say it is tiresome for users to check if a contact exists. Are you aware that you can use a value list made up of existing contacts and use the type ahead feature to do a very quick check of existing contacts?

Phil

Edited May 9, 2008 by Guest

[bcooney]

One technique to try is have your "New Invoice" routine enter the user in the Contacts table in Find Mode. Then after they've found the Contact a new invoice is created, setting that contacts id into the foreign contact id in Invoices. If they do not find the contact, they can create a new contact. Have a New Invoice button on the Contact form view, as well.

The drop down list is an idea, however, I'm worried that you are relating Contacts to Invoices by Contact Name and not a unique serial ID.

[Ukyo]

Thank you Inky Phil and bcooney,

Yes, I use auto serial unique ID in every tables for primary key.

I'll get rid of the drop-down list and go with bcooney's idea to force users to check the contacts from invoice.

New button in the contact can also force them into find mode to check existing contacts first... thats your idea right bcooney?

[bcooney]

Not exactly, the new invoice button on contacts will create a new invoice with that contact id set in the invoice contact foreign key.

[Ukyo]

Thanks for your help again bcooney, I've got it done.

I'm pretty sure this will get me out of the nightmare soon.

Although, I'm getting bunch of phone calls for today since I've changed the interface on the weekend without notice. ;)