> On 7/6/06, David Clarke <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > I posted a couple of weeks back a question > regarding the use of a 100 > > char column as a primary key and the responses > uniformily advised the > > use of a serial column. My concern is that the key > is effectively > > abstract and I want to use the column as a foreign > key in other > > tables. > > > I have a simple question... why do you want to use > the column as a foreign > key in other tables? If you use the serial column > then all you need is a > simple join to get the 100 char column out in your > query. If you need to > make things simpler, just create a view that does > the join for you. > > Either there is some requirement here that I am not > aware of or it sounds > like you may be trying to use a sledge hammer on a > nail. > > -Aaron
i agree. all my primary keys are abstract - even though some don't have to be. iow, i'm comfortable using serials as my primary key even when i don't absolutely need to. in any case, the primary key is typically used as a unique identifer *and that's it*. the uniqueness makes it ideal for another table to use it to link related data. it sounds like you want a unique identifier *plus something else*. i'd argue that the "plus something else" belongs in a separate column. imho, your database life will be much easier and more consistent. good luck. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- TIP 2: Don't 'kill -9' the postmaster
