Chris, I would prefer the first method. As far as I am concerned, the only reason to use a sequence number as a primary key is if the value for the natural primary could could possibly change.
In this case, the two char state codes have been around for a very long time and would probably not change. The other think I would be concerned with is considering Canadian Province codes. Would they fit within a "STATES" table structure? This crazy world of ours is getting soooooo small, that thinking provincially about state codes may no longer be correct anymore. hope this helps. Tom Mercadante Oracle Certified Professional -----Original Message----- Sent: Wednesday, April 17, 2002 1:19 PM To: Multiple recipients of list ORACLE-L To simplify my question, if I am creating a STATE table to hold all the states of the US, should I create it like this... Name Null? Type ----------------------------------------- -------- ---------------------------- STATE_CODE NOT NULL CHAR(2) <-- PK STATE_DESC NOT NULL VARCHAR2(50) or like this... Name Null? Type ----------------------------------------- -------- ---------------------------- STATE_ID NOT NULL NUMBER <-- PK STATE_CODE NOT NULL CHAR(2) STATE_DESC NOT NULL VARCHAR2(50) I'm trying to figure out which is more efficient, STATE_CODE or STATE_ID, when doing a PK lookup, dealing with FKs, etc. Many TIA!!! Chris -- Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.com -- Author: Grabowy, Chris INET: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fat City Network Services -- (858) 538-5051 FAX: (858) 538-5051 San Diego, California -- Public Internet access / Mailing Lists -------------------------------------------------------------------- To REMOVE yourself from this mailing list, send an E-Mail message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (note EXACT spelling of 'ListGuru') and in the message BODY, include a line containing: UNSUB ORACLE-L (or the name of mailing list you want to be removed from). You may also send the HELP command for other information (like subscribing). -- Please see the official ORACLE-L FAQ: http://www.orafaq.com -- Author: Mercadante, Thomas F INET: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Fat City Network Services -- (858) 538-5051 FAX: (858) 538-5051 San Diego, California -- Public Internet access / Mailing Lists -------------------------------------------------------------------- To REMOVE yourself from this mailing list, send an E-Mail message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (note EXACT spelling of 'ListGuru') and in the message BODY, include a line containing: UNSUB ORACLE-L (or the name of mailing list you want to be removed from). You may also send the HELP command for other information (like subscribing).
