Re: Is there a problem with RECORD LIKE notation

Brian McGinity wrote: > I've been programming in 4gl for four years. I just finished my first > consultant position and have started a new job in a new company. > > This company is against using RECORD LIKE declarations. I can't > figure out why. Also they don't want to use .* notation. Yeah. For quick and dirty programs, read: temporary, RECORD LIKE tbl.* is OK. The problem is that lets say you create a database for a specific task. Down the line, someone adds another program. And another, yadda , yadda yadda. Now someone wants to re-use your database, but needs to enhance the tables for their specific needs. Lets say its only a single column in a single table. You change the database and write your new program. Only now, you can't use all your other programs until you recompile them. Also if you want to use default values, you can't. (I believe there was a thread on this a few weeks ago.) The bottom line, is that everytime the table changes, you have to recompile. Not a nice thing on a large system. -Mikey BTW, it also helps to enforce better table design. (I think this occurs only because programmers think more about how the data is being used. YMMV)