I'm planning a new relational database where I need many different users (salespeople) accessing a database of customers. I also need each sales database to access an Order database which can be used for reports later. Simply Database "a" =Customers, Database "b" = salespeople data ralting to "a", and Database "c"= orders relating to both "a" & "b".

Does this sound correct?

What's the best way to start?

You will probably get many different answers! It sounds like you have started off well by thinking through the relationships. I usually draw a picture (some folks call it an entity/relationship diagram) with a rectangle for each database, the fields listed inside the database, and lines connecting the fields indicating relationships.

If you create a serial number field in each database, you can use that field as the basis for relationships between the files. For example, if a company changes its name, your relationships won't break like they would if you based the relationships on the company name.

Will quotes be in the order file? Will there be a field indicating whether an order is at the quote, active, invoiced, closed stage?

Will you have separate fields for cell phone, home phone, business phone? Or will you have a related phone file with a phone number field and phone type field? You can see where that kind of thinking leads you...

So, I not only draw a picture, but I try to imagine my way through different scenarios using the system.

Have fun.

Tom

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Old Advance Man