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Hello Fellow Netters..... Just a few simple (for YUZ guys) questions..... I am running 4.10U2 version of Informix SE... 1) I have a table that has a SERIAL field. For conversion purposes I force inserted (via SQL) a row w/ a value of -1 (which I use for any record that doesn't convert right). It took it and I can view the data via SQL, but none of the other programs seem to "see" this record. NOTE: This is NOT a problem, just curious as to why it seems to be invisible. a) Is this an unusual situation ? b) Could this cause a problem in the future ? c) Somewhat unrelated..... How do I get the "serial" value to start over - do I have to alter the table to remove the "serial" field and then alter it again back to "serial"? 2) I have a table that had a number of records, but now they're all deleted. a) Why does it still take up space as if there were records in it? b) Is there a way to "compress" it w/o dropping and recreating? c) Is there any performance degradation when records get re-added? If I drop/recreate the index, will that prevent degradation? d) Is there some other way to get rid of all the records OTHER THAN delete or drop? 3) If a table's structure gets changed, why isn't there any warning/ error message issued by Informix if a program tries to access it w/ the old structure? I spent quite a bit of time tracking down a problem only to find that it was caused by a structure change. (yes, I know dopey me - I SHOULD have recompiled all the programs as soon as I changed the structure). Thanks again, guys and gals. Mark * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mark E. Heringslake Phone (215) 824-3000 extension 249 * * FAX (215) 824-4423 * * OHIWISHIWEREANOSCARMEYERWEINERTHATISWHATIDTRUELYLIKETOBEFORIFIWEREANOSCAR * * MEYERWEINEREVERYONEWOULDBEINLOVEWITHME. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *